AUGUSTA — “The Swordfish Hunters: The History and Ecology of an Ancient American Sea People,” a new book by Maine State Museum Chief Archaeologist Bruce Bourque, will be spotlighted in a book launch and signing at the museum Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Bourque will present a talk at 11 a.m.; the book signing will follow from noon to 1 p.m. Copies of “The Swordfish Hunters” will be available for purchase at the Maine State Museum Store. Museum admission is free all day.

Published by Bunker Hill Publishing, “The Swordfish Hunters” explores the story of the Red Paint People and the archaeologists who have tried to understand them over the past century.

“I have been intrigued by the Red Paint People and their unusual culture throughout my career,” Bourque said in a news release. “They lived by the sea and hunted swordfish. They buried their dead in large, orderly cemeteries that included graves filled with a brilliant red powder, known as ocher, along with stone tools and bone ornaments of exquisite beauty and craftsmanship. After about 500 years, these people mysteriously vanished.”

Bourque is chief archaeologist at the Maine State Museum and teaches anthropology at Bates College in Lewiston. He grew up in Massachusetts but spent summers in Maine, where he heard stories of the Red Paint People.

Educated at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, the University of Colorado, Boulder, and Harvard University, he matriculated in engineering school, but found his attention drawn to thoughts of the past. Eventually, he found his way to archaeology and hasn’t looked back. He lives in Freeport.

For more information, visit www.mainestatemuseum.org.