THREE STONE ARTIFACT SITES IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Marc io Veloz Maggiolo, Elpidio Ortega, Pl inio Pina Pena , and Bernardo Vega

During 1971 th ree archeotogical s i tes were studied in the Dominican Republic which can be cons idered as Meso-Indian. The three locations provided sufficient a r t i fac ts with which to es tabl i sh a typology, in a p re l imina ry way, and confirm that the island of Hispan-iola must have been an impor tan t d i spe r s ion cen te r .

Tavera Site

In the hea r t of the cen t ra l mountain range , a few m e t e r s from the Yaque del Norte River, at the place where the Tavera dam is p resen t ly being built (that is approximately 20 k i lometers nor thwest of La Vega) the a rcheologis t s Ortega, Veloz, and Pina found the Tavera site near the end of 1970. There polished stone ar t i fac ts s ta r ted to appear in the lime stone-l ike sand which cons t i tu tes , in this p lace , the lower pa r t of the Yaque del Norte t e r r ace (Fig. 2, a) . This sand was being used as filling m a t e r i a l for the dam and a g rea t sand qua r ry m o r e than 8 m e t e r s deep was made by heavy equipment. The pits dug by us were a few feet away from the q u a r r y . Work was s ta r ted under the auspices of the Auto­nomous Universi ty of Santo Domingo and sys temat ic excavations were initiated on Decem­ber 30, 1970 and concluded June 26, 1971.

The Tave ra si te p r e s e n t s two well defined levels with polished and half-polished specimens found between depths of 3. 0 and 3. 6 m e t e r s and rough or poorly worked tools below at a depth of 4. 6 m e t e r s . The total number of ar t i fac ts so far found at both levels exceeds 1500, being m o r e abundant at the deepest (4. 6 m e t e r s ) level .

The Tavera s t ra t ig raphy p r e s e n t s a c lear p ic tu re . It is made up of 22 levels (num­bered from the bottom), nea r ly a l l of da rk yellow sand, amongst which one can observe the p rocess of sedimentat ion and the per iods in which vegetation was abundant in this s ec to r . Only in two levels does m a t e r i a l appear in abundance: Level 11 at 3. 6 m e t e r s c h a r a c t e r ­ized as a poss ible late Meso-Indian zone and Level 8 at 4. 6 m e t e r s where the typology changes completely and the quantity i n c r e a s e s substantial ly to produce choppers , s c r a p e r s , blades, f lakes , and chips .

The m a t e r i a l s found in assoc ia t ion with the stone industry include hea r ths (at both levels) , r e m a i n s of red och re , land sna i l s , hutia (Plagiodontia aedium) and agouta (Soleno-don paradoxus) . Level 4. 6 m e t e r s , the oldest of the two, supplies grea t quanti t ies of burnt s tones , a s h e s , land snai ls a s well as Plagiodontia. We also found r e m a i n s of sma l l nuts or fruit which a r e not identifiable because of carbonizat ion but which seem to be palm t ree nuts and Acroc in ia . The grea t quantity of a shes found in 4 of the 5 pi ts dug, leads us to conclude that t he re w e r e a g rea t number of inhabitants during deposition of the lowest (oldest) depos i t s .

The i t ems found at Tave ra , Dominican Republic, cor respond to two cul tura l con­texts , d is tanced in t ime and s t r a t ig raph ica l ly super imposed . Specimens (Fig. 2) from Level 8, the oldest , include: 1. Numerous s tones , possibly used as h a m m e r s or , pe rhaps ,

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choppers . 2. Some ar t i facts (in some instances quite big) with convex-planes , without retouching or with little retouching, very pr imi t ive chipping, and with heterogeneous forms which makes one think this ma te r i a l was used as found after having been subjected to pe rcuss ion . 3. Sc rapers with minimal retouching. 4. P r imi t ive m o r t a r s , without polishing, made by hollowing out the center of a granite rock. 5. Metates or stones used as a base for s tr iking o the r s . The ma te r i a l s used includes g ran i te , flint, and quar tz , the f i rs t being the most abundant since it is obtained from r ive r bou lders . Flint and quartz were probably brought from another place about 1 k i lometer from the Tavera s i te .

The more recent m a t e r i a l from Level 11 consis ts of well finished and polished, but undecorated, i tems which would place the inhabitants at this level within a late Me so-In­dian context (Fig. 1). The m a t e r i a l s used include s la te , basal t and sandstone as well as the granite and flint found in the lower zone. Art i facts in this level a re well-defined and include m o r t a r s , s c r a p e r s , and smal l meta tes as well as big (round and oval) me ta t e s . Also p r e s e n t a r e numerous cone-l ike or conic forms cut at the top (oval, cyl indr ica l , square and cubic). Some pe r fo ra to r s and pointed ch i se l s , without re touching, were also found. Mate r i a l at this level shows important samples of but terf ly-shaped cel ts (Fig. 1, c), common to the Couri complex in Haiti . The technique for making these ar t i fac ts was not polishing but pe rcuss ion flaking by which chips of considerable size were removed.

The work techniques at both levels a re re la t ively s imi l a r , suggesting a possible "in s i tu" development. General ly the technique in the oldest s t r a t a (4. 6 m e t e r s ) is r e ­peated on var ious types of ar t i fac ts in the higher level . This technique is as follows:

VELOZ, ORTEGA, PINA, AND VEGA 105

River boulders a re used and hit ver t ica l ly in one of their sides which allows the stone to lose pa r t of its " she l l " or b reak into two big pieces with one side of each a l ready polished by na tura l action in the r i ve r . This piece is then retouched or polished in the area where it was joined to the main nucleus. In the older Tavera level , all ar t i facts a re made by this simple technique, producing an industry of ar t i facts with minimal retouching. En the super ior level , cel ts and s c r a p e r s a re made with the same technique but with the difference that there is more retouching and, in many occas ions , polishing which seems to relate Tavera man at Level 3. 6 m e t e r s with the f i rs t wave of c e r a m i s t s . However the ibsence of pot tery at both levels is total .

Charcoal and land shells were found in pits at both levels and sent for dating to v a r --ous l abo ra to r i e s . At the t ime of this writ ing only the r e su l t s of a charcoa l sample found n the older (4. 6 m e t e r s ) level is known. According to Teledyne Isotopes Labora to r ies the iating, by the Carbon-14 method, is 2095 ± 1 3 5 yea r s before p resen t or about 145 before Christ.

Honduras del Oeste Site

Excavat ions in the Honduras del Oeste site were conducted during the f i rs t months of 971 by Dr. Car los Mora les Ruiz, Renato RÍmoli and P . Mar icha l , and students in the In t ro­

duction to Archeology and Anthropology course di rected by P ro fe s so r Veloz Maggiolo. The p r e l i m i n a r y r epo r t on the findings was published in the Sunday supplement of the 'Lintín Dia r io" , of June 26, 1971 (No. 19753 Year LXXXII).

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w ö ' B w 6A Fig . 3. Honduras del Oeste si te: entrance to cave, s t rat i f icat ion of deposi t s , food r e m a i n s , polished stone ar t i facts (usually assoc ia ted with the Ciboney cul ture) , and specimens of chipped flint.

Honduras del Oeste is situated only five k i lomete rs from the hea r t of the city ot Santo Domingo. The site is located in a cave (Fig. 3, a.) which is p a r t of the pleistocene cliffs, of mar ine origin, which a re located from one to three k i lomete r s inland all around the southeast coast of the Dominican Republic. The cave is covered by an enormous roof which pro tec t s it from ra in and winds and a sedimentary floor covers the a r t i f ac t s . This floor is 50 cm. deep and s ter i le below the f i rs t Z5 cm.

It s eems that the fine sedi-There is no c lear s t ra t igraphy at Honduras del Oeste . ±i aeems unat me une sea i -men ta ry dust has allowed ar t i facts from higher levels to slowly penet ra te into lower levels and mix there with other a r t i f ac t s . We have therefore el iminated s t r a t ig raphy and are using typology as a method of identification.

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During the excavat ions 22 pi ts were dug and 5000 ar t i fac ts found, including r e m a i n s of workshops , nuclei , f l int-chips and other worked m a t e r i a l s . More than half the site is still unexplored. The second p a r t of the excavation is being done by Dr. Veloz Maggiolo, Pina, and Or tega , as well as by the d i s c o v e r e r s of the s i te , Dr. Mora les Ruiz, Renato Rimoli , and P r a g m a c i o Mar icha l .

In this f i rs t p r e l i m i n a r y r epo r t we will mention the existence of a fauna and flora that is typical of this s tage: Remains of Acrocomia quisqueyana, palm t r ee fruits (Roy-stonea hispaniolana) were found (as in the Tavera s i te) . Bone of agouta (Solenodon) and hutia (Plagiodontia) were ve ry numerous , up to 4,000 have been counted, but bones of non-identified rep t i l es were a l so found (possibly crocodi le) . Also p resen t was a fragment of a large bone of the now extinct grand-owl of Hispaniola. Crab claws and quanti t ies of sea and land shells were collected including Caracolus excel lens predominat ing, as well as Chiton and Acanthoplemo. Also found were the following: Murex, F i s s u r e l l a , Leucozonia, Oliva, Tr iv ia , A s t r a e a , P u r p u r a patula , Tec ta r ius m u r i c a t u s , Natica canrena , Cypraea cinérea, Ner i t ina v i r ig inea , Ci t tar ium pica, Strombus gigas , Columbella m e r c a t o r i a , Cypraecass i s t e s t i cu l i s , Tel l ina , A r e a and Trachycard ium isodardia she l l s .

The Honduras del Oeste site seems to have had two well-defined t radi t ions in the mak­ing of stone too ls . We the re fore think that the re exis ted, from the typological point of view, two well-defined Meso-Indian complexes . The absence of s t ra t igraphy has forced us , we repeat , to per form our work on the bas i s of typology alone.

Aspect No. 1 of Honduras del Oeste , which we consider the oldest , includes d ior i t e , serpent ine, g ran i t e , and flint s c r a p e r s as the mos t common objects plus f lakes , nuclei , workshop r e m a i n s and points or blades of the same m a t e r i a l s (Fig. 3). They appear to ­gether with choppers and h a m m e r s , as well as quite big s c r a p e r s . The method of p roduc­tion is s imi l a r to that of the lower Tavera level : breaking a r ive r pebble and using the same, without retouching the pa r t where polishing is na tura l . This level gave, the re fo re , numerous f l in t -chips , resul t ing from working on the s tones . The absence of m o r t a r s and metates is absolute .

Aspect No. 2 of Honduras , which we consider ve ry typical Meso-Indian, includes important flint points or dagge r s , big plano-convex knives, s c r a p e r s , beads , oliva and s trombus she l l s , stone ba l l s , and numerous m o r t a r s arid hand meta tes (with the mos t d i ­ve r se size and shapes) , as well as " s e a l s " of uncooked clay. One of the las t was r e c o v e r ­ed intact by Veloz Maggiolo and Ortega.

Amongst the flint points of Honduras aspec t No. 2 a r e some rea l ly exceptional ones . Numerous p ieces of polished cyl indr ica l co ra l give the impres s ion that the Honduras No. 2 people ut i l ized th is m a t e r i a l for some u t i l i t a r ian purposes unknown to u s . The co ra l p ieces have longitudinal scrappings and we therefore think they could have been used as f i les . Items found at Honduras del Oeste include: Stone balls of var ious s i ze s , h a m m e r s or m e ­ta tes of va r ious shapes including egg-shaped, r ec tangu la r , cone-shaped with a square or round base , s q u a r e , round with both surfaces p lane, and simple h a m m e r s of unretouched stones. These s tones give a total of 105 ar t i fac ts which can be re la ted to the Cayo Redondo aspect of the Ciboney cul ture in Cuba.

Aspect No. 2 of Honduras del Oeste co r responds to a typical Meso-Indian stage cha rac t e r i s t i c of the food g a t h e r e r . We do not think this is a case of local development since in the typological level of aspect No. 2 there is no longer the technique of hitting the

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Fig. 4. Art i facts from the El Porve

VELOZ, ORTEGA, PINA, AND VEGA 109

r iver stone with a ha rd rock, but the p re sence of ve ry c lea r retouching concentra ted in flint tools . This r e s e m b l e s the Ciboney cu l tu res of the a r e a . We believe that it is a typi­cal Meso-Indian cul ture whose beginning could have been p r io r to the ce r amic s tages . We do not deny a l a t e r contact with ag r i cu l tu ra l groups since in p laces near Honduras del Oeste, even in some caves in the a r e a , we have detected Ostiones pot tery typical of one of the oldest G r e a t e r Anti l lean c e r a m i c s , the Ostiones type.

E l Po rven i r Site

This is a p r e c e r a m i c si te located in the e a s t e r n pa r t of the Dominican Republic, in the San P e d r o de M a ç o n s prov ince . Since we have not par t ic ipa ted in the excavations ex­cept as s imple o b s e r v e r s , we feel it would not be c o r r e c t to explain in detai l the finding. We simply point out that the El Po rven i r site was f i rs t excavated by Dr . Fernando Morbán Laucer of the Insti tute of Anthropological R e s e a r c h of the Autonomous Universi ty of Santo Domingo and Mr . Manuel Garc ia AréValo of Santo Domingo. The f i rs t p r e l im ina ry r epor t appeared in the "L i s t ín D ia r io" on March 26, 1971.

Lat te r s tudies made Apr i l 17-18, 1971 by Dr. Irving Rouse of Yale University consisted of the excavat ion of two p i t s . Dr . Veloz Maggiolo, Pina , Ortega, and Dr . Man­uel de Jesus Manon par t ic ipa ted as o b s e r v e r s . Archeological m a t e r i a l (Fig. 4) was found at levels 0. 0-0. 25 and 0. 25-0 . 50 in this enormous shell midden of more than 124 square m e t e r s .

The E l P o r v e n i r m a t e r i a l can be cons idered as late Meso-Indian since it p r e s e n t s cha rac t e r i s t i c s typical of the ce r amic cu l tures although the site has not produced any c e ­ramic m a t e r i a l . F o r this r ea son we suppose that the El Porven i r si te,which can be co r ­related with the Guayabo Blanco aspec t of Cuba, mus t have rece ived influences of the c e ­ramic per iod through contacts with ag r i cu l tu ra l people. Morban Laucer and Garc ia Arévalo cons ider that the complex could be as old as 1700 yea r s before p re sen t in i ts initial phase . This is in ag reemen t with the Tavera date given e a r l i e r .

P r e l i m i n a r y Conclusions

The Tavera and Honduras del Oeste s i tes a r e Meso-Indian complexes with two well defined p h a s e s . In the case of Tavera the re is good s t ra t igraphy with ea r ly and late Meso-Indian l eve l s . A s imi l a r technique is used in both cases but retouching, ve ry r a r e in the ea r l i e r phase, is v e r y common in the l a t e r . The Honduras del Oeste aspect No. 2 a lso in­cludes tools apparent ly not found e a r l i e r .

The E l P o r v e n i r complex p r e s e n t s further developments in work techniques and new- -or at l eas t fur ther deve loped- - too l s . It s e e m s to r e p r e s e n t a Meso-Indian group in t r a n ­sit towards the Neo-Indian s tage .