18 February 2022
Further to the recent update on the Maldivia Car Parking Project, St Helena Government (SHG) wishes to advise the public that relevant persons have been on-site and carried out investigations of the fragmented bones uncovered.
Bones were found in three locations. There was evidence of animal and poultry bones in two of the locations. The bones found in the third area required further analysis and SHG has now received confirmation that the bone found was likely from a human.
The site is well away from any known graveyards marked on old maps, however it is likely that the area was used as a graveyard prior to any maps being developed or used as a site to deposit human remains. It has also not been possible to link the images posted on Social Media to the site, due to the time that has elapsed since they were allegedly taken, the lack of visual keys or for the most part, scale.
On-site recordings have been undertaken in accordance with the Watching Brief for this project and the excavation is now complete in this particular area. It has been recommended to keep the remains in situ and to cause no further disturbance to the archaeology. The contractor has therefore recommenced works.
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SHG
18 February 2022