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ANOTHER ancestral Chamorro village site is under excavation just up the road from the Ylig Bridge construction project.
Yesterday, archaeologists from the International Archeological Research Institute Inc., government of Guam officials, and representatives of Chamorro groups paid a visit to the site where pebble-paved floors were found about a meter under the surface. Also found were cooking hearths with dark markings of coal/ash.
Prior to the walkthrough of the site, a chant was sung in Chamorro by Leonard Iriarte to ask permission and guidance from Chamorro ancestors.
Lead archaeologist Tim Rieth said they found some artifacts near the surface. After a back hoe track went down about 6 feet, pottery, stone and shell tools were found. Also found were 11 human remains from burial sites in the general area. The remains are being reviewed and catalogued at the IARII’s Guam office.
Standing above the pebbled floor, Rieth described how the artifacts were grounded up, spread out and “basically turned into floor.”
The paving consisted of rounded coral and pumice pebbles packed in the sand.
“This is really common in Hawaii. We also see this often in places like Samoa. It’s a really efficient and useful way of creating a floor surface that keeps you dry. You can build a structure over it. You can put mats over it and you’re good to go,” he said, adding this a unique find for Guam.
At first the archeologists thought the site was just a single paving, but then another paving level was found.
“We’re thinking this is turning out to be pretty big,” Rieth said. A third paving was discovered not too long ago.
The archeologists believe the pavings are probably 500 years old. But this still has to be confirmed by future analysis with carbon dating and analysis of the charcoal found in the cooking hearths.
The report on the site will be done pending completion of the findings and the analysis. The field work will be done by March 1, but the overall report will be completed by next year.
Meanwhile, DPW Deputy Director Carl Dominguez said the project won’t hamper the actual construction of the bridge.
