Los Buchillones is a now-submerged Taíno site on the north coast of Cuba, occupied between the 13th and the 17th centuries.
Excavations began in the mid-1980s and 1990s after local fishermen recovered intact wooden materials, such as eye-needles, dishes, handles with stone axes still hafted, and fragments of zemis from the nearby lagoon. Because of its water logged properties, the site represents one of the most important source of information about Caribbean history.
Los Buchillones: A Waterlogged Site
Los Buchillones seems to have been a large Taíno settlement, with more than 40 structures constructed both along the coast as well as on piles standing within the shallow waters of the lagoon. Archaeologists believe that when the settlement was abandoned, it collapsed into the shallow waters and mud layers beneath. The chemical characteristics of the mud created an anoxic environment, which allowed for an amazing preservation of wooden structures and artifacts.
Los Buchillones Environment During Taíno Times
People living at Los Buchillones exploited a wide array of marine, coastal, lagoon, as well as terrestrial and coral reef resources. Potable water was accessible through the many springs that still exist at Punta Alegre, near the site. Furthermore, the sheltered position of the site and the lagoon offered some protection against the recurrent hurricanes. Sea levels were lower and part of the lagoon was gradually inundated through time. In many aspects, the environment in which Los Buchillones developed as a community during Taíno times was very different from modern conditions.
Settlement Layout and Organization
Archaeological evidence from the surveys and excavations suggests an intense occupation of the site, with buildings of several forms: rectangular, round and oval distributed on the coast as well as pile dwellings and some sorts of fishing infrastructures, such as fish weirs. Houses were made out of different woods and in many cases the original posts, beams, rafters, and portions of thatch roofs were recovered.
Artifacts at Los Buchillones
Apart from building materials, archaeologists recovered all kinds of domestic artifacts, such as pottery fragments, wooden bowls and tools, figurines, parts of a canoe, as well as pieces of hearth charcoals and food remains. Radiocarbon dates from these materials collocate Los Buchillones between the center of Taíno culture florescence and well into the European arrival, offering an unprecedented view into Caribbean pre-Columbian and contact period history.
Sources
This glossary entry is a part of the About.com guide to Caribbean, and the Dictionary of Archaeology.
Cooper, Jago and Roberto Valcarel Rojas, 2004, Pre-Hispanic Settlements Along the North Coast of Cuba: A Pilot Survey Report from Los Buchillones (January- February 2004). Fieldwork Reports, Papers from the Institute of Archaeology 15: 77-81.
Peros, Matthew C., Elizabeth Graham, and Anthony M. Davis, 2006, Stratigraphic Investigations at Los Buchillones, a Coastal Taino Site in North-Central Cuba, Geoarchaeology, Vol. 21, No. 5, 403–428.
Saunders Nicholas J., 2005, The Peoples of the Caribbean. An Encyclopedia of Archaeology and Traditional Culture. ABC-CLIO, Santa Barbara, California.