TRANSCONTINENTAL GEOHERITAGE, MOSASAUR HISTORICAL BIOGEOGRAPHY, AND THE NEW ORLEANS BLACK MASKING CARNIVAL TRADITION

The puzzle-like fit of Africa and South America during the Cretaceous Period and the subsequent tectonic growth of the South Atlantic Ocean are shared components of global geoheritage. Here we review the onshore stratigraphical record of Angola, southwestern Africa, that documents this geological progression, including the invasion of the South Atlantic by mosasaurs controlled by oceanic conditions resulting from the opening of the Equatorial Atlantic Gateway. Prognathodon is a widespread genus that dispersed to the South Atlantic from the north. It is recorded in the 71.5 Ma (Early Maastrichtian) Bentiaba fauna, southwestern Angola, and it is known from a single tooth from similar-aged rocks of the Rayburn Salt Dome, Louisiana. In 2023, the co-occurrence of Prognathodon documented in Angola and in Louisiana was incorporated into the rich Carnival traditions of New Orleans. In days past, escaped slaves in Louisiana, some of whom were brought north from Angola in the trans-Atlantic slave trade, sought refuge with indigenous people. To honor that history, black masking nations, as their groups are called, dance and chant in striking costumes of beads, sequins, and turkey feathers through the streets of New Orleans, meeting up with other nations in faux conflict. The Chief of the Golden Feather Hunters resolved to construct his 2023 Carnival suit combining the themes of Louisiana, Africa, and mosasaurs. To complete his suit in one year, he traveled to Tanzania to work with Maasai beading artisans. His style is soft sculpture, which means the beadwork is three dimensional rather than flat. His ornate blue suit presents maps of Africa and Louisiana, magnolia blossoms, the state flower of Louisiana, numerous mosasaurs swimming out of his suit, and the word “Mosasaur” emblazoned across his headdress. His scepter is a beaded mosasaur skull with 3-D printed teeth. As is custom, the suit was worn twice, on Carnival Day in 2023 and on Saint Joseph’s Day. This “Blooming of the Mosasaurs” is a modern-day story of geoheritage because it melds geology and human history in an unexpected cultural theme. Big Chief Shaka Zulu of the Golden Feather Hunters was named a 2022 National Heritage Fellow in Folk and Traditional Arts by the National Endowment for the Arts, the highest honor of its kind awarded in the United States.