East is east and west is west – where do the two meet?

Recent DNA evidence from archaeological chicken bones recovered from sites across the Pacific to the coast of Chile strongly suggests pre-Columbian Polynesian presence in South America. Other archaeological, cultural and linguistic evidence suggests that contact between Pacific and Native American cultures may have been more widespread. Analyses of faunal and other archaeological remains from islands across the Pacific may be the only way that such contact can be identified and its impact assessed. The current evidence and potential for future research addressing these issues will be presented.