An Ancient Taino Frog-Man Could Hold the Key
At an ancient settlement in Puerto Rico, archaeologists have unearthed bodies, rock art, and large structures that may have belonged the to the Taino people – a Pre-Columbian indigenous culture which is thought to have migrated to the Caribbean from either South America or Mexico many centuries ago.
The Taino people were among the first cultures to run into Europeans when they arrived in the Americas, and thus it appears that this settlement probably dates from between 600 and 1500 AD. In fact, the site may even be the largest Taino settlement in the entire Caribbean, making it the most significant settlement these people ever developed – for starters, the site appears to have evidence of not only Taino occupation during the height of the culture, but also an occupation dating far back to a pre-Taino period.
The site on Puerto Rico is extremely well preserved, and while archaeologists knew that the area contained indigenous artifacts, the scope and significance of the site only became clear once construction began on a modern dam nearby. It was during the monitoring process of this work that a fascinating discovery was made: nearby to the dam site, there was a large plaza that covered approximately 40 meters by 50 meters of ground.
The plaza appears to be what the Taino called a ‘batey’, which was a rectangular area that the people built their settlements around – then they would use the plaza for things like ball games and ceremonial rituals. A number of the stones in the plaza also have ancient petroglyphs etched into them, which at the very least indicates the important functionality of the space. All evidence currently points to this being the largest known ancient ‘batey’ in the entire Caribbean as well. A number of the petroglyphs on the plaza’s stones depict a male figure with attached frog legs, which may hold a key to determining the origins of the Taino.
In and around the settlement, there have also been several burials located where some of the bodies were interred in rather unique positions – their legs were bent at the knees, and the bodies placed face down in the grave. This burial position hasn’t been seen at any other indigenous sites in the Caribbean, and it may also give indications as to from where the Taino originated.
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