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I found no pictures online. I can guess what kinds of pics will soon be posted... |
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Unknown Country #626Dried-out lakes and rivers have exposed so many archeological artifacts during Florida's 3 year drought that scientists can't catalog them fast enough, or protect them from treasure hunters.
An ancient dugout canoe turned up recently at Lake Louisa State Park and canoes dating to prehistoric times have been found in 3 other counties as well. "There has been such a large number of them discovered in lakes in Central and North Florida over the last several months because of the low water levels, there's literally canoes coming out of our ears," says Steve Martin of the Florida State Park Service.
Ryan Wheeler, of the state's Bureau of Archeological Research, is worried that they'll be stolen before there's a chance to examine them. The canoe in Lake Louisa State Park, for instance, sits on an island exposed by drought and is easily reachable by curious onlookers.
Laws prohibit people from taking artifacts from state and federal property. "We want people to come," says Park Manager Chuck McIntire, "but we want them to take nothing but pictures and leave with nothing but pictures."
In Miami, archeologists have found ancient human remains dating back 2,500 years in a downtown city park, near a mysterious stone circle believed to have been used as a ceremonial site by the now-extinct Tequesta Indians. Test holes dug in Bricknell Park have exposed the bones of at least 12 people. Archeologist Bob Carr says the remains span 1,000 years, from 500 BC to 500 AD.
"It's an astonishing development," says Carr. "This appears to be the selected mortuary for the Tequesta town on the south side of the Miami River. These were the people who were using the Miami Circle." He feels that the fact that only 41 small holes were dug but so many remains were found means that there could be between 50 and 100 bodies buried there.
Gotham Partners of New York has withdrawn their plans to build a high-rise building on the site. "These remains should be left alone. In peace," says Patricia Wickman of the Seminole Tribe of Florida. "There is not an inch of space on this state that the ancestors of the Seminoles have not walked on, hunted on or died on."