They find remains of Tainos from 500 to a thousand years

Apparently, Playa Grande was not only the enjoyment of the Dominicans, but that also the ancient ancestors of the Hispaniola took advantage of its natural beauty, which still holds, to settle there.

As evidenced by the skeletal remains of two possible Taino were found buried on the shores of the beach by a team of archaeologists national and international, thanks to an excavation of great magnitude that has been implemented in the area.

In addition to a skeleton, which still occurs in good condition, were also found remains of another possible Taino, but in worse conditions.

The finding includes agricultural lots, places used by the taínos to sow their (relatively new) fruits as well as thousands of archaeological items, including vases, ceramics and amulets, among others, who could not only belong to the aborigines of the island, because they could be of Maya and u000aSpaniards.

Research
the excavation is located right in the Centre of the beach is located between the towns of Río San Juan and Cabrera, in the North coast of the country. Investigations are led by the Spanish archaeologist Adolfo López, associate researcher at the Museum of the Dominican man.

Are part of the research team the archaeologists Cristóbal Burkhatter, Alicia Galarraga, Sara Gálvez, Alejandro Selmi, Jorge Ulloa, Geologist Enríquez Burkhatter, Abelardo Jiménez Lambertus anthropologist and José Guerrero, director of the Instituto Dominicano de research anthropological of the University autonomous of Santo Domingo (UASD), together with a team of ten assistants.

Burials
the two skeletons found could have between 500 to 1,000 years, according to said Adolfo Lopez, director of the excavation.

According to the studies on Taíno mythology, López noted that Aboriginal people had the habit of u000abury their dead beneath their huts (houses) or in cemeteries.

In this case, it is not a cemetery.

One of the remains, which may be of a child, appeared in a place which may have been a bohío. Bones are practically or not powdered, though it retains its teeth. While the other, in better shape, is near the agricultural lots and experts said so far ignored the reason for his burial in this place.

One of the tracks which showed the Taino origin of the remains, according to archaeologists, is the skeleton which is in better condition in the fetal position. On this the Venezuelan anthropologist Alicia Galarraga indicates that it was due to ritual cultural

"The joven-adulto individual possibly of age between 25-30 years is in the fetal position." "Them moored them so that they remain in that same position", he outlined the also an anthropologist. "Possibly due to that as" u000a"we are born we wanted it to reguardar in the womb of the mother", he added.

Galarraga said the remains will undergo tests of carbon 14. They will be sent to a laboratory outside the country, to confi rm the age, sex, period and food that wore.

Culture shock
for researchers, one of the most interesting of the excavation has been to find ceramics of different types of Tainos that they lived on the island, such as the Ostionoides, Mellacoides and Chicoides, dated between the years 100 to 800 DC.

According to the archaeologists Adolfo López and Jorge Ulloa so far had no ceramics of these three groups at the same level of excavation, which brings effect that could be together in that place at the same time. European ceramic fragments, probably Spanish and Mayan amulets, have an explanation.

Diver archaeologist Alexander Selmi revealed that in the u000avicinity of Playa Grande there is a sunken boat of year 1553 with 36 cannons and a fl otilla of French 18th century shipwrecks.

The director of archaeology of the wreck Deep Blue Marine rescue company, tells the story of that one night of the 1798 fifteen boats were sunk in the vicinity of Playa Grande. So far the company has been unable to locate eight.

Selmi handles the hypothesis that if this village existed for the year 1553, the Taíno had direct contact with possible survivors of the shipwreck.

Parts and found artifacts will be deposited in the Department of investigations of the Museum of the Dominican man.

As soon as the excavations finish the area to be released, but until investors cannot develop the project.

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The background and the funding
the Deputy Director of the Museum of the Dominican man, Abelardo Jiménez Lambertus, said that initially the u000aproperty where now carries out excavation belonged to the Central Bank in the 80s of last century. He said that the Museum archaeologists already knew that there might be an archaeological.

Jiménez Lambertus explained that on one occasion they could note fragments of Taíno ceramic surface, which "primed them to think that it would be an important and interesting work because they were fragments of other Taino cultural groups".

, However, indicated that "they had to stop by the high costs and lack of funds which demanded the excavation at the time".

Now, investors from the Playa Grande project, which will take place in the area decided to conclude the research before you start work, "to better document the Dominican heritage".

They financed the excavation and nominated archaeologist Lopez as its director, who has together with his team about a month of u000awork.

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