Scapulimancy (also spelled scapulomancy and scapulamancy, also termed omoplatoscopy or speal bone reading) is the practice of divination by use of scapulae or speal bones (shoulder blades). It is most widely practiced in China and the Sinosphere as oracle bones, but has also been independently developed in other traditions including the West. Historically, scapulimancy has taken two major forms. In the first, "apyromantic", the scapula of an animal was simply examined after its slaughter. This form was widespread in Europe, Northern Africa and the Near East. However, the second form, "pyromantic" scapulimancy, involving the heating or burning of the bone and interpretation of the results, was practiced in East Asia and North America.
Americas The belief amongst the Mistassini Cree and Naskapi Innu peoples was that all animal remains were to be treated in accordance with taboos. This can blur the distinction between ritually or religiously significant remains and secular uses of the remains, which is a point of contention within existing literature. Rituals involving the divination of animal bones have been found on sacred sites of the Naskapi Innu and Eastern Cree peoples. Bones which were found hanging in trees were often displayed near encampments or a slaughter site, where hunted animals were brought. The remains were used as a medium through which divination messages were transmitted, and as such, respectful treatment of the bones was of utmost importance. The treatment of the bones between the two tribes was similar, both treating the remains with a degree of reverence, but the divination application differed.
Naskapi Innu
The Naskapi homeland is north of Nitassinan, spanning the Quebec-Labrador Peninsula. It is a vast region populated sparsely with native timber forests and native flora but largely consisted of snow tundra. The native Algonquian peoples are related in their common use of scapulimancy (mitunsaawaakan), differentiating them from other native populations in the Americas. Generally, scapulimancy and associated divination practices were used concurrently, and were significant in predicting future weather events, personal health status and were essential in religious practices. Principally, scapulimancy was used to aid in the hunting of caribou to ensure that communities had a sufficient supply of meat to sustain them through the winter. Associated divination rituals were performed prior to scapulimantic reading. This often included sweat bathing and percussive music performed on deer-skin drums or rattles to induce a dream state. Hunters would participate in this ritual was performed by shamans on the hunting tribespeople to help them in focalising on a dream where they were involved in hunting caribou. After awakening from their dream-state, the scapula harvested from previous hunts were used in a pyromantic ritual, which would direct the hunters to the location of the deer herd envisioned in their dream ritual. Methods used to prepare the animal remains included removing all flesh from the bone by scraping, boiling and air drying the scapula by hanging up in the wind to dry. The animal from which the bone was from was also ritually significant. Caribou were preferred by the Innu people, as they were the main and most desirable species to be hunted. Divination would only be used where there was a shortage of food or a crisis. The process involved holding the cleaned shoulder blade over hot coals, heating and scorching the bone. The wide plane of the blade corresponded to the hunting grounds used at the time, and the cracks and scorch spots which resulted from the process were used to guide Innu hunters to spots to best find caribou deer to hunt.
The practitioners of scapulimancy and the Naskapi held reverence and respect towards the bone reading rituals. Relationships between practitioners and the spirit world played an important role in the scapulimantic ceremony. If the spirits had been angered by the practitioner, their wrath would be incurred, causing the reading to be deceitful to the hunters, causing them to return empty handed. To ensure that the relationship remained intact, practitioners would ensure that the specific preparations had been performed correctly and that the supplicant is honest and respectful in their dealings with the spirit world and their physical mediums. In the modern day, these rituals are not practiced as often, although the knowledge has been passed down through oral traditions. The spiritual significance of the ritual is still held in high regard, although the interpretations yielded are largely unacted upon, as the practice is performed to maintain the traditions of old.
Mistassini Cree
Unlike that of the Naskapi Innu, the Mistassini Cree practiced multiple forms of scapulimancy. The work of academic Adrian Tanner in the field uncovered that the communities visited exclusively used porcupine scapulae in bone reading rituals.
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