DIGS - Sommerville Pit Excavation Jackson Bay Cave
Dr. Elizabeth Rega of Claremont College USA, has been conducting research on the Sommerville Pit, at Jackson Bay. Jackson Bay is on Jamaica's South Central Coast, in the Portland Bight area. This area was the home of a large population of Taino people before 1494.
The focus of the project is to gain a more thorough understanding of the Taino people through an excavation and bio analysis of their skeletal remains.
The project has been in progress for two years. Thus far, bone material from twelve (12) individuals has been unearthed and analyzed. Chemical analysis has revealed that their diet consisted of a mix of terrestrial and marine resources. C14 dating of related material yields a date for the site of 750 AD.
