BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THE skeletal remains of a human were unearthed on a construction site east of the Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine in West Farm on Tuesday, January 25, 2011.
Information reaching SKNVibes states that while workers of DCK International Construction Company were preparing the foundation for construction of a building next to the university, the skull of a human being surfaced after they dug some three feet into the ground.
An informed source said that further digging revealed additional human remains, which, like the skull, seemed to be those of an infant.
The police were informed and sometime after 10:00 a.m. on that day investigators removed the remains from the construction site and took them into custody.
Speculations are rife about the origin of the remains and one individual suggested it may be that of an infant of one of the Amerindian tribes that had inhabited St. Kitts before the arrival of the Europeans.
This media house contacted Larry Armony to seek his view on the find should it be that of one of the indigenous peoples.
Armony advised that the police should attempt to ascertain the age of the skeletal remains so as to determine if it warrants criminal investigation. He suggested that if the investigation were found not to be of a criminal nature, the authorities should seek assistance from the St. Christopher National Trust which could provide contacts on who to approach for expert advice.
He explained that in the not too distant past, the St. Christopher National Trust and the Brimstone Hill Heritage Society, in collaboration with archeologists from the University of Tennessee, had unearthed lots of skeletal remains and they were taken abroad for further analysis.
“Most of the Amerindians, especially the Kallinago (Caribs), had established their camps close to the Caribbean Sea and along rivers, including Blood River. If the area in which the remains were found is around Camps River and investigations reveal that they are of ancient times, it is likely that they are of the Kallinago,” Armony said.
Armony further explained that in the US, preliminary investigations are normally conducted before construction is done in areas where Indians had established camps.
The find was confirmed by the Police Press and Public Relation Officer, Inspector Vaughan Henderson, who told this media house that members of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Crime Scene Department (CSD) had responded to the report.
“Officers from the Crime Scene Department collected the remains and took them into police custody for further analysis and investigation, while officers from the CID interviewed a number of construction workers and professional staff of Ross University who were all of the opinion that the skeletal remains were akin to that of an archeological find.
“Efforts are being made to get scientists from Ross University, in collaboration with the St. Christopher National Trust, to determine the origin and age of the remains. Therefore, investigations into the find are ongoing,” Henderson said.
SKNVibes has learnt that assistance could be had from an Antiguan archeologist named Dr. Arthur Reginald Murphy, who works in Antigua at the Nelson’s Dockyard as Museum Director/Curator and is also a consultant on research development/management throughout the Caribbean region.
