5 Places to Rediscover the Golden Age of Piracy
Posted November 10, 2009 , comments closed
That was the actor Robert Newton, in his portrayals of Long John Silver and Blackbeard in movies and television. Obviously, it caught on.Pirates didn’t make their victims walk the plank either.
Not when it was so much easier (though admittedly less dramatic) to simply throw captives overboard. Give credit to illustrator Howard Pyle for that romantic image, his painting of a blindfolded man edging out on a wooden plank captures all of the crippling fear that such a punishment would induce.
Nevertheless, pirates were very real. They did drink rum by the caseload. They were reckless and wild and daring. Some even owned parrots and monkeys as pets. Their real stories are so nightmarish that the fiction they inspired often seems tame by comparison.
It’s no wonder then, that pirates, buccaneers and freebooters still loom large, even in the twenty-first century. They are our most beloved outsiders, particularly among long-term travelers—roaming free, making their own rules, completely in the moment. So many novels, movies and songs honor their bold deeds and gruesome deaths that it’s easy to forget that these rogues actually existed. Any savvy jack-tar worth his salt can track down one of the many pirate festivals celebrated yearly, but even more fascinating is a visit to their real stomping grounds. Some of which haven’t changed as much as one might think.
Here are 5 places that any aspiring pirate historian ought to visit:
1 – Saint Mary’s Island, Madagascar
Pirate’s graveyard in Madagascar
Known these days by the French name Ile Sainte Marie, Saint Mary’s was once the central hub of piracy and nefarious dealings in the Indian Ocean. Notable scalawags Captain Kidd, Robert Culliford and Henry Avery all took refuge on the island at one time or another to buy supplies, drink homebrewed rum and savor the company of the notoriously beautiful Malagasy women.
Many pirates were so entranced with Saint Mary’s free love atmosphere that they decided to extend their furloughs or live there permanently. The rakish pirate Thomas Tew even had a child with a local queen; his bloodline is claimed by the Zafay-Malata people to this day.
Trader Adam Baldridge set up shop on Saint Mary’s and supplied his guests with everything they might need, at a healthy markup of course. Captain Kidd had a hard time getting his crew motivated again after his turn ashore on the island and many of them abandoned him there.
A 21st century traveler visiting Sainte Marie would be missing out if they didn’t take a stroll through the pirate graveyard that overlooks the “Bay of Rogues.” The bay is where some of history’s most notorious sea-devils weighed anchor. The site is shaded by trees and vines and can be reached along a short and often muddy path from the beach. The mossy headstones feature skulls & crossbones and the sentiments etched there show little remorse for the deeds of the men buried below.
If you want to be where the crème de le crème of pirate society went to revel—go to Saint Mary’s. Consider the perfect beaches, jumbo prawns and friendly modern residents to be a bonus.
2 – Port Royal, Jamaica
Thanks to Jack Sparrow’s ringing endorsements in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, Port Royal may be the destination most commonly associated with piracy’s Golden Age. There is both truth and fiction in that assertion—Port Royal was once the world’s premier pirate haven but its heyday was before the Golden Age of Piracy (1690-1720).
In the 1660s however, Port Royal was the carousing capital of the world. Records indicate one alehouse for every ten permanent residents. Ships often came into port rich and left drunk, fat and happy—but drained of plenty of gold coins. Nicknamed “The Sodom of the New World,” Port Royal existed in a state of revolving revelry.
The Gentlemen of Fortune who made Port Royal famous are generally put into the category of Buccaneers and many of them had defended the city from the Spanish or plundered Spanish treasure ports in time of war. When the crown decided that Jamaica needed to change its image they hired one of these unsavory types to do it for them. His name was Captain Henry Morgan and though he was known for taking a bribe here and there and attacking Spanish ships even in times of peace, his work to fix the island’s bloody reputation met with success.
Regardless, the point was soon moot. In 1692, most of the port sunk under water during a devastating earthquake. Some were quick to attribute the quake to an act of God (who was either furious with the hedonism of the people or jealous of all the fun they were having, depending on who you asked). Attempts to rebuild the city went up in smoke (literally, two major fires in ten years) but it did later become a popular execution spot where pirates Calico Jack Rackham and Charles Vane went to meet the gallows.
These days, Port Royal is small and known mostly for fishing—but as a site for pirate lovers and those interested in underwater archeology, it is unparalleled in the Caribbean and certainly worth a visit.
3 – Nassau, Bahamas
At the turn of the 18th century, the island of New Providence in the Bahamas was a scarcely governed haven for gentlemen of fortune. Retired buccaneers and upstart pirates lived in squalor under tents made from pieces of old sail.
Governor Nicholas Trott was well known for taking bribes from men who were sought by the British Crown. When the aforementioned Henry Avery needed someplace to hide out he was sent straight to New Providence. Trott was only too happy to help for a share in Avery’s plunder. Soon even the puppet governments failed and New Providence became a no man’s land split between pirate chieftains.
Later, when England made the Bahamas a colony and decided to clean up Nassau, the Lords Proprietor took a page out of Jamaica’s playbook and called in a gentleman of fortune. This time it was Woodes Rodgers. Rodgers knew the men and knew their tactics—it wasn’t long before Nassau fell off the list of preferred pirate ports.
Today, Nassau has been scrubbed to a high shine. The spit of sand across the harbor from the port even had its name changed to Paradise Island (the pirates knew it as Hog Island). Nassau Town still clings to snippets of old world charm that reference its past, though they are often tough to focus on between cruise ships and modern resorts. Luckily, the Pirates of Nassau Museum does a great job of reminding us of the way things were.
4 – North Carolina, United States
The Carolina Coast has no shortage of pirate lore. There are stories of shipwrecks, battles and buried treasure—all of which pale in comparison to the deeds of one Edward Teach a.k.a. Blackbeard. Blackbeard was tough as coffin nails, at least half-crazy and would sometimes burn slow match in his beard to scare enemies. Not surprisingly, he was an effective pirate.
After leaving New Providence due to the arrival of Woodes Rodgers, he set up camp on Ocracoke Island. From there he and his crew set out pillaging throughout the Caribbean and into the Gulf of Mexico. In 1718, after blockading the Port of Charles Towne and ransoming the entire city, he and his men returned victorious and rich to Ocracoke. Weeks of carousing followed until the governor of Virginia decided to send Lieutenant Maynard and his Royal Navy crew to do something about the pirate infestation.
The chase between Maynard’s crew and Blackbeard’s freebooters was brutal and bloody. But it was the final battle, in which Blackbeard took five bullets and more than “20 dismal cuts” before dying, that is the stuff of legends.
The best account we have of the battle, which describes Blackbeard fighting with three men at once, also attributes a quote to him AFTER receiving a death blow by broadsword to the neck. It wasn’t until his head was completely off of his shoulders that Maynard’s crew stopped fearing him, and even then just barely.
Today North Carolina’s coast has plenty in store for a visitor interested in pirate history. Blackbeard’s memory hangs over the island of Ocracoke and the towns of Beaufort and Bath. Many artifacts from the dreaded pirate’s ship, The Queen Anne’s Revenge, are on display in museums throughout the state including Beaufort’s Maritime Museum. The area also happens to one of the United States’ least appreciated stretches of beach—which any visitor should be able to enjoy heartily.
5 – Vailima, Samoa
Robert Louis Stevenon’s house in Samoa
Samoa wasn’t a hotbed of activity during the Golden Age of Piracy. But it’s notable for one very famous resident: Robert Louis Stevenson. Treasure Island is the definitive pirate novel, and the blood-thirsty crew that populated the schooner Hispanola is responsible for many of our most vivid notions about freebooters.
Most notably, as David Cordingly points out in his book Under the Blag Flag, Stevenson popularized parrots and peg legs, both of which were real parts of life at sea but not yet cemented in the public consciousness.
Stevenson originally travelled to the South Seas to ease his chronic health problems. It wasn’t long before he fell in love with the islands and their people. For their part, the natives of the South Pacific liked the frail writer just as much—he quickly developed an enduring friendship with King Kalakaua of Hawaii.
Known as a culturally sensitive traveler long before the phrase was common, Stevenson established a home on Vailima when he was forty. Four years later he died there and his old residence is now a museum honoring his memory.
Additional photo credits:
Port Royal by Christian y Sergio on Flickr, Bahamas by LinksmanJD on Flickr, North Carolina by greenkayak73 on Flickr, Samoa by anna t on Flickr
31 Places to Go for Halloween
Posted October 17, 2009 , comments closed31 Places to Go for Halloween
With Halloween just around the corner, you may be wondering where some of the spookiest, creepiest, eeriest, most haunted and/or best places to visit on Halloween are located around the world. Places where mummies stare back at you or ghosts roam the hallways, caves where witches hide from the world or dungeons where people were once imprisoned and tortured are scattered throughout the world, giving the heebie jeebies to travelers and residents alike.
So, in honor of this spooky holiday, here is a list of the 31 creepiest Halloween destinations around the world. And, we’re not talking fake haunted houses and corn mazes with paid actors. We’re talking downright terrifying places where mysterious happenings occur year-round and which are guaranteed to give you goose bumps. From haunted prisons to caves to catacombs, these bone chilling places will scare the daylights out of you, and may just give you nightmares for weeks.
1. Mummy Museum, Guanajuato, Mexico
Their haunting faces and hollowed eye sockets will make you quake in your boots. Teeth exposed from open mouths, fingers stiffly crooked for eternity, grey skin clinging to protruding hip bones and ribs, shoes still laced on unmoving, shriveled feet… The Mummy Museum in Guanajuato will haunt you long after your return from this picturesque Mexican colonial town nestled in the hills of the highlands in Mexico. However, these mummified remains are still a mystery to this day.
The mummies were originally exhumed when families were unable to pay a burial tax due each year for deceased relatives. When a family was unable to pay the tax, the body of their relative was exhumed and put on display in the mummy museum. The puzzling part? Rather than decomposing the way bodies usually do after being buried, these corpses were naturally mummified, leaving clothes, skin and sometimes hair preserved and intact. The reason? Some hypothesize it has something to do with the mixture of minerals in the soil, some think there is something a little more paranormal going on.
Either way, after an afternoon in this creepy museum full of mummies of all shapes and sizes (there are even baby mummies that look creepily like little dolls), you are guaranteed to have the heebie jeebies.
2. St. Michan’s Church, Dublin, Ireland
Although St. Michan’s church in Dublin, Ireland was founded in the mid 16th century and has the oldest organ still in use in the entire country, this next creepy destination is much more known for the vault that lies beneath the church. Down a limestone and mortar tunnel that extends below the church is a series of galleries for placing coffins.
Some galleries have been sealed off with wooden or iron doors, others have been left open. Through the iron doors of some, visitors can take a peek at a multitude of coffins laying helter skelter, the occasional arm or leg poking from the coffin lid. Then, in one of the open chambers, deep in the dark, damp tunnels below the church are 4 caskets with the lids completely removed, exposing mysteriously mummified remains—corpses partly covered with a layer of taut, leathery skin. Three of the four coffins lie in a row with a woman on the right, a man with a hand cut off and both feet missing in the center and a nun on the left. Some hypothesize the corpse is missing limbs because he was a thief and was punished by having them cut off, others believe he was simply too large to fit in the casket.
The final mummy in the vaults of St. Michan’s is a man believed to have been a soldier returned from the crusades, whose body is cut in half to fit in the casket and whose hand lifts eerily into the air. If visitors are brave enough to venture further into the underground vaults, they can see the caskets of the Sheare brothers, who were hanged, drawn and quartered in punishment for treason after an uprising in 1798. The most mysterious thing about the mummies of St. Michan is that no one understands why these bodies have not decomposed like others in surrounding areas. Maybe it’s the climate in the underground vaults, maybe it’s the high concentration of lime in the soil, or maybe it’s just something a little more paranormal and a lot spookier. It’s up to you to decide.
3. Catacombs of Paris, France
Although a popular tourist attraction year-round, the famous catacombs of Paris are a particularly good place to visit in honor of Halloween. The underground ossuary, which was organized in a section of the city’s vast network of underground tunnels in the 18th century, were designated as a place to store the remains from condemned cemeteries in the Paris city limits. In the late 1700s, bodies from several burial grounds in Paris were moved into the underground tunnels. The result is the mass stacking of bones you see today, with skulls and femurs lining the walls like decorations.
The creepy Parisian catacombs have also inspired ghostly stories for generations. King of creepy, Edgar Allen Poe uses the Paris catacombs as a reference in his story the “Cask of Amontillado” and there have been several books written about vampires who seek refuge among the bones and dead in the catacombs. Who knows, maybe the next time you are roaming the bone filled tunnels below Paris you may just see a monster living among the dead.
4. Old Jewish Cemetery, Prague, Czech Republic
The cracked and cock-eyed tombstones in the Old Jewish Cemetery in Prague date back to the 15th century and this cemetery is the second oldest Jewish burial site in all of Europe. The crooked graves and tombstones, with caskets protruding from the ground in some places, give this cemetery a definite creepy crawly feel.
It is unknown how many people are actually buried in this cemetery, because the tombs have been layered on top of each other. In fact, it is because Jews were forbidden to bury their dead outside of their own quarter that these layers of tombs and stacked remains (there are thought to be twelve) exist. Surrealist author Franz Kafka also often enjoyed periods of reflection in this creepy, old graveyard. Perhaps he was seeking inspiration for his next work.
5. San Bernardino Ossuary, Milan, Italy
In a non-distinct and rather unassuming church in Milan is a church full of bones. As you turn the corner in this plainly decorated little church and venture down a cold, narrow hallway (I’m getting the creeps just thinking about it) you find yourself in a chilly, one-room chapel with walls lined with human bones. The cages along the walls, holding skulls and leg and arm bones, are stacked high to the ceiling – but rather than just utilitarian piles or plain old orderly stacks, most of the bones are arranged in a decorative fashion, including several large panels where the bones are formed into cross-like designs.
In wire cases along the back doors are the skulls from individuals who had been beheaded in a nearby piazza outside the modern day La Scala opera house. As it turns out, this chapel in San Bernardino alle Ossa became a storage place for bones when a cemetery next door became full, and in 1210 a room was built to house the bones of deceased. So, since the 13th century, dead people (and maybe their spirits) have been housed in this little church in Milan. What says Halloween better than hanging out with a bunch of bones?
6. Bhangarh, India
In a ghost town in the Rajasthan state of India between Jaipur and Alwar City, there remain ruins from a once prosperous town that was mysteriously and abruptly abandoned. Although tranquil during the day, it is said no one dares to hang out in this ghost city after dark because, as legend has it, a curse forced the whole town to be vacated overnight. While some may scoff at this myth, even the Archaeological Survey of India has placed its office near Bhangarh close to a temple to protect it from spirits of the town and has placed a sign stating: “Staying after sunset is strictly prohibited in this area.”
There is a myth surrounding this ghost town that involves a princess and a magician who fell madly in love with her. The magician tried to use his black magic to make the princess his sexual slave, but was killed when his plan was foiled. Legend has it that as the magician died; he cursed the city and wished eternal death upon any person dwelling in the town. The following year, there was a huge battle in the town, which killed everyone involved. Since then, it has been said that anyone who dared to live in Bhangarh would have their roof collapse and would die—which is mysterious as today all of the ruins of houses are without a roof. Whether the creepy legend is true or not, if the Archaeological Survey of India thinks this place is too dangerous at night, so do I.
7. Dia de los Muertos Celebration, Oaxaca, Mexico
On All Hallows Eve, Mexican families are known to don costumes, visit the graves of their loved ones, and hold parades in honor of their deceased friends and relatives. Although practiced all over Mexico, Dia de los Muertos is one of the most important celebrations in Oaxaca, as well as one of the most visited events by outsiders. Skeletons are the decoration of choice, and locals pass cemeteries with food, music and drinks, emphasizing both death and celebration at the same time.
The Day of the Dead is a tradition that fused macabre celebrations from Europe with ancient Mayan and Aztec traditions, which resulted in the modern day festivities. The Day of the Dead celebration in Oaxaca is known as one of the largest and most boisterous in all of Mexico, and with skeletons decorating the entire city, lots of traditional food and drinks made in honor of the dead, and a large cemetery parade, Oaxaca is one of the best places for any traveler to visit on Halloween. It will get you in the Halloween spirit and have you wishing Halloween in the United States was as colorful and involved as much pageantry as it does in Mexico.
8. Sedlec Ossuary, near Kutna Hora, Czech Republic
Although there are a scattering of ossuaries across Europe, where bone filled walls will give anyone the creeps, this famous ossuary in Sedlec in the Czech Republic is one of the largest, most ornate and spookiest ossuaries of them all. It is thought there are 40,000-70,000 human skeletons in this church, which have been artistically arranged to form decorations and furniture in the church. The site of the church has long been a cemetery, but during the Black Death that swept Europe and killed thousands, a church was built at the site to make room for all of the dead.
Around 1400, the gothic style church was built and the lower chapel was used to house the mass amount of graves unearthed during construction. A monk was given the task of exhuming remains and stacking the bones in the chapel. In 1870, with the hundreds of thousands of bones in disarray, woodcarver named Frantisek Rint was hired to organize the heaping piles of bones. The result was a macabre masterpiece, including bell shaped mounds of bones in the corners of the chapel, an enormous chandelier made from bones (which contains at least one of every bone in the human body), and garlands of skulls draping the walls. There is even a coat of arms made from bones and the signature of Rint written using bones. The ossuary has been the backdrop for the movie Dungeons and Dragons, Blood and Chocolate and the novel The Black Angel for its extremely creepy decor.
9. Feng-Du “Ghost City,” China
Feng-Du is a necropolis built into a mountain in China that holds the realm of the dead and is the entrance to the Chinese Hells. This famous ghost city was made even creepier when the Three Gorges Dam was completed and left Feng-Du an island, with parts of the ghostly palace submerged underwater. On Ming Mountain, which is said to be one of the 72 graveyards for Taoism, there are 75 Buddha and Tao temples. It was here on Ming Mountain that it is thought the dead gather near the “spirit world,” lending the name of ghost city to Feng-Du.
There are many magic stories that come from this ghost city and it is believed by some that Feng-Du has become a place for terrible spirits, haunted by tormented souls. As the only ghost city in China, there is a yearly celebration here in March, which includes “Spirit Shows” honoring the spirits that haunt Feng-Du. With the completion of the Three Gorges Dam, now generations of tombs have been consigned to the depths of the Three Gorges Reservoir and the ghosts of Feng-Du will be joined in their watery home by those whose descendants have been forced to desert them.
10. Pere Lachaise Cemetery, Paris, France
If you like the idea of walking the corridors of cemeteries on Halloween, than Pere Lachaise Cemetery in Paris is the place to do it. With its miles of tombstones and mausoleums, Pere Lachaise is the mother of all cemeteries. The old burial place is not only home to many French greats (not to mention American rock musician Jim Morrison, probably the cemetery’s most famous resident), but the cemetery’s above ground tombs, statues and thousands of tombstones make for a perfect, creepy Halloween backdrop.
In the fall, golden and red leaves cling to the dying branches of trees in the cemetery, making October the perfect, eerie time to explore this huge cemetery. Surrounded by the ghosts of Balzac, The Doors music legend, and Chopin, visitors might get goose bumps and feel their skin crawl in this sprawling land of the dead. Or perhaps they will feel inspired by the souls of the deceased French poets, leaders and authors. Obviously, you’ll need to visit for yourself to see what effect this place has on you.
11. Bran Castle (aka Dracula’s Castle), Romania
A fortress situated on the border of Transylvania and Walachia in Romania, this castle was the home of the Bram Stoker’s legendary Dracula character, which has led to persistent myths that it was once the home of Vlad Dracula, or “Vlad the Impaler,” who was a ruler in the area known for the exceedingly cruel punishments he imposed during his reign and which inspired Stoker’s famous book.
The cruel leader who was rumored to live in this castle was mostly known for his preferred method of executing his opponents which was called “bung poling,” where the person was dropped upright onto a sharpened tree trunk starting from between the legs and forcing the tree trunk through the chest or neck. It is rumored Vlad “Dracula” would impale thousands at the same time, often leaving the bodies on the stakes decaying for months. Whether Vlad actually lived in Bran Castle is uncertain, but what better place to visit on Halloween than the Dracula’s Castle, which has inspired a plethora of terrifying vampire tales.
12. Fremantle Prison, Australia
This prison in Western Australia has a long sordid history and served as a place of incarceration for almost 150 years. Its inmates included British convicts, local prisoners, enemy aliens and prisoners of war. In the twentieth century, the prison became a maximum security facility, where the worst and most dangerous criminals were kept. The prison was also the site of a number of hangings, which were carried out at 8am every Monday, and put to death some of the country’s most dangerous murderers. Because of its violent and creepy past, this prison is rumored to be haunted by a variety of ghosts, who roam the halls, cells, gallows and tunnels underneath the prison.
The Government of Western Australia runs daily and nightly tours of this haunted, creepy prison, including one tour that takes you into terrifying water filled tunnels that run beneath the prison and connect to some of the solitary confinement cells. A nighttime tunnel tour beneath an old, creepy prison sounds like an excellent, albeit terrifying, way to celebrate Halloween.
13. Mary King’s Close, Edinburgh, Scotland
This series of underground closes in the Old Town area of Scotland have been shrouded in myths and mysteries for centuries. The closes, which were once narrow street passageways that were later closed by using the surrounding buildings as foundations for newer ones, make up a network of dark and creepy underground tunnels.
Blood-curdling tales of ghosts and murders, as well as stories of plague victims being cast into the close and left to die have given this close a particularly terrifying mystique. Edinburgh is internationally renowned for its strange paranormal activity and dark tales, and these underground tunnels seem to be one of the more haunted areas of the city. There is even a dark corner in the close where visitors leave stuffed animals in attempt to appease the ghost of a woman who was murdered in the tunnels centuries ago. It is said her ghost, as well as others, haunt visitors, making these ghost filled tunnels the perfect place to experience the paranormal this Halloween.
14. Rose Great Hall House, Montego Bay, Jamaica
Once the home of Annie Palmer, who is also known as the Great White Witch, this old plantation home in Jamaica is said to be haunted by the witch herself, as well as the people she is said to have murdered in the home. Annie Palmer, who was the wife of a powerful sugar plantation owner, was known as a cruel and gruesome mistress who tortured and killed her slaves for the smallest infractions. The Great White Witch was also known to take her slaves to bed and then murder them when she grew tired of them, burying them in unmarked graves on the property. It is thought she also murdered her first husband, John Palmer, and avidly practiced Voodoo. It was her Voodoo practices, including sacrificing human infants, and black magic that earned Annie Palmer the reputation of the Great White Witch. Rumor has it Palmer was finally murdered to stop her cruelty.
Despite efforts to entomb the witch’s body and build a grave that would prevent her from rising and roaming the grounds of the plantation, the Great White Witch continues to haunt the house to this day. According to local legend, the White Witch and her victims actively haunt the house and she has been seen wearing a green velvet dress and riding a black horse, whip in hand. She has also been heard walking the halls of the house, and cries of the babies and slaves she murdered have been heard filling the halls. Voices are reportedly sometimes heard coming from the dungeon where she tortured victims, and lights commonly are switched on and off throughout the house with no one around. If you are brave enough to explore this house, then prepare to come face to face with the ghost of the Great White Witch.
15. La Recoleta Cemetery, Buenos Aires, Argentina
This impressive cemetery is as beautiful as it is creepy. It is decorated by elaborate marble mausoleums, Greek columns and tall gates. Located here are the graves of some of Argentina’s most influential and important figures, including presidents, scientists and wealthy landowners. While the cemetery is a popular tourist destination and many of the mausoleums are well-maintained, there are others that have creepy cracks and lids jolted off coffins, which perhaps happened as souls of the dead tried to escape and haunt the cemetery.
The other spooky part of La Recoleta Cemetery? There is a colony of feral cats, which reside within the gates. The cats mostly hide during the day, but come out at dusk in anticipation of a group of women who come to the cemetery each day to feed them. Something about the imagery of feral cats living among tombs just seems so Halloween–making this a great spot to visit on October 31.
16. Manchac Swamp, Louisiana, United States
New Orleans has long been high on the list of many seeking out haunted locations full of Voodoo, black magic and all things dark and scary. Located outside of the city is the notoriously haunted and scenic Manchac Swamp, which has been ranked over and over again as one of the creepiest places on Earth. As night approaches, it is said that you can see the red eyes of ghost alligators as they float above the dark waters, following any visitors as they venture deep into the spooky depths of the swamp.
Tours that carry torch lamps will take you into the depths of this eerily silent swamp, where it is rumored you can hear creatures of the night singing bewitching songs, and see victims from a 1915 tidal wave which carried hundreds to their death in the swamp floating beneath the surface of the water. There are also stories about the ghosts of pirates, swamp witches and restless spirits haunting the swamp under a Voodoo curse. This swamp didn’t get the name Haunted Swamp for nothing, so venture into this spooky swamp past dark only if you dare.
17. Haunted Well of Himeji Castle, Japan
Thirty miles west of Kobe, Japan are the well-preserved remains of an imposing wooden castle at Himeji. The haunted Okiku’s Well, located near the Hara-kiri Maru (Suicide Gate) where people were forced to commit ritual suicide by disembowelment (defeated Japanese soldiers were often forced to commit suicide), was not dug as a source of drinking water, but rather was created as a means of washing away the blood of the suicide victims and was named after a woman who died there. In Japanese culture, ghosts take on different forms and Yuurei ghosts are those that were murdered or committed suicide.
The most hauntings by Yuureis come from wronged female spirits. Okiku was a servant for a lord who lived in the castle, and she was wrongly accused of stealing one of a collection of precious plates. Okiku was tried and found guilty and was punished by being tortured, sexually assaulted and killed. Okiku’s body was thrown into the well and because of the way she died it is believed her soul could find no eternal peace. It is said Okiku haunts the well today, where in the early morning hours you can hear her screams rising from the depths of the well where her mutilated body was tossed centuries ago. So, if you find yourself in Japan this Halloween, make a trip to Himeji’s castle, camp out near Okiku’s well and wait to see if you hear the woman’s ghost screaming from below.
18. Ballygally Castle, Ireland
Located in Northern Ireland, this castle overlooks Ballygally Bay and is now a hotel. It is also reputed to be one of the most haunted places in all of Ireland. It is said that one of the castle’s former residents, Lady Isobel Shaw, amuses herself even in death by knocking on the doors of different rooms and then disappearing abruptly (as ghosts are wont to do).
Lady Shaw, who was locked in her room and starved by her husband, leapt to her death from a window of the castle, and it is said she has not left the property since. Another former resident, Madame Nixon, is said to have been seen roaming the halls of the hotel in her silk dress. If you are feeling brave this Halloween, get a room in this hotel and see if you experience any paranormal activity.
19. Rookwood Cemetery, Sydney, Australia
The largest cemetery in the southern hemisphere, the Rookwood Cemetery (also known as Rookwood Necropolis) is of course home to corpses as well as rumored hauntings and paranormal activity – but it’s unlikely you’ll visit many cemeteries with more than a million corpses in it. In fact, this is probably the most impressive cemetery you’ve ever seen and is a city in its own right (hence the name of Necropolis, or city of the dead). This is not just an historic site, however, as it’s still in operation as a cemetery – it’s the largest Victorian era cemetery still in use today anywhere in the world.
You can join a tour during the daytime, but it seems much more appropriate to take one of the many twilight tours on offer, don’t you think? With the immense numbers of graves, mausoleums and a crematorium, there are plenty of creepy nooks and crannies to explore for any visitor to explore at any time of year, but this city of the dead can become particular interesting (and spooky) at Halloween time. Who knows, maybe you’ll just see a restless soul wandering among the million tombstones.
20. Capuchin Crypt, Rome, Italy
Located in a small space comprised of several tiny chapels in Rome, the Capuchin Crypt is the final resting place for over 4,000 Capuchin monks, who died between 1528 and 1870, as well as several poor Roman citizens. There are six total rooms in the crypt, where large numbers of bones are nailed to the walls in intricate patterns and some bones create working light fixtures and chandeliers.
There are themes for each of the rooms, including a room decorated using bones in honor of the Resurrection, a room full of skulls, one with pelvises, and another with leg and thigh bones. There is also a crypt of three skeletons, which include a center skeleton holding a scythe (a symbol of death). A sign in the last chapel reminds visitors that “As you are now, we once were. As we are now, you one day will be.” Although visitors flock to this crypt at all times of the year, I can imagine few spookier ways to spend Halloween than in crypts decorated with human bones.
21. Raynham Hall, Norfolk, England
This haunted hall in Norfolk, England is home to arguably one of the most famous ghost pictures of all time – and if you’re a ghost story lover, then pay no attention to the people who have decried it as an obvious hoax. The picture is of a woman known as the “little brown lady of Raynham” descending a staircase in Raynham Hall. The ghost is supposed to be that of Lady Dorothy Townshend, who married the Hall’s owner (Lord Townshend) in 1713.
Lady Townshend is said to have died in 1726, but rumors at the time said that instead of dying she was actually locked up in the house by her husband. So, whether you believe in ghosts or not, it’s easy to see why Lady Townshend might very well haunt the halls of her former home and prison since her death (whenever that actually was). The photograph of the Raynham Hall ghost was made in 1936, but since that time no sightings of the ghost have been reported in the Hall. In fact, more recently there have been reports that indicate Lady Townshend might have moved house herself to a different spot in Raynham. But why don’t you hang around in Raynham Hall all night on Halloween to find out for yourself?
22. The Chase Vault at Christ Church, Barbados
A great unsolved mystery revolves around an old burial vault in this church that was built on a high, windswept hill overlooking the Caribbean. The Chase Vault is the location of this sinister and chilling mystery, which took place sometime between 1807 and 1820. Often called the Barbados Tomb Mystery, this story has been repeated thousands of time and is often found in books of the best global ghost stories.
The tomb, which was built to house deceased members of a rich plantation family named Chase, is made up of limestone and was tightly sealed with a large hunk of marble at the entrance. Several members of the Chase family had been buried in the vault between 1808 and 1816, when the vault was reopened in 1816 in order to place the coffin and body of Samuel Brewster inside. However, when the family opened the vault, there were met with a scene of mystery. Not only was the 240 lb. lead coffin of Thomas Chase in the wrong location, all of the coffins except the first coffin to be placed in the vault were in disarray. Despite there being no evidence of the seal from the marble door had been opened, fine sand was placed inside the vault before it was resealed in order to catch the footprints of anybody who may enter the vault. When the vault was later reopened, the seals were found to be intact, yet once again all of the coffins were in disarray with the exception of the first coffin placed in the vault.
The heavy lead coffin of Thomas Chase was also leaning against the inside vault door, thus blocking any alleged perpetrator’s exit. Some believe that the spirits of two family members who committed suicide (and therefore, were cursed and restless) moved the coffins. In any event, the coffins were moved and buried elsewhere and to this day the mystery has not been solved.
23. The Hellfire Tunnels and Caves, West Wycombe, England
These artificial caves were dug out of the hill at West Wycombe in 1740, when the notorious owner, Sir Francis Dashwood, ordered that they be created. At the time, the creation of artificial landscapes was popular among nobility as a means of displaying wealth. The design was meant to reflect Greek myth, and the small stream at the end that is supposed to represent to river Styx.
The caves were later used for occasional meetings for the infamous Hellfire Club, of which Sir Francis Dashwood was the founder. To this day, no one knows exactly what happened in these Hellfire meetings in the caves. This place is dark and creepy and at the end of the tunnel there is an “Inner Temple” where you can watch a what some speculate a Hellfire meeting might have looked like. Any dark cave associated with the word “hell” sounds like a good old spooky place to visit on Halloween.
24. Castle of Good Hope, Cape Town, South Africa
It is no wonder that the oldest surviving building in Cape Town is rumored to be haunted. The castle, which was built between 1666 and 1679 as a replacement to an older military fortification, was declared a national monument in 1936 and has been vigorously restored. Located in the castle are cells where prisoners marked the walls with terrifying graffiti. The most decorated was the Donker Gat (the dark hole), which was a windowless dungeon and torture chamber located in the depths of this castle.
During winter floods, it has been recorded that rising water levels in the dungeons would drown prisoners chained to the walls in the dark hole. It would seem natural, then, that is castle is haunted, no? A semi-luminous ghost is said to have been seen roaming the halls of the castle and ringing the castle bell from time to time. Lady Anne Barnard, who once lived in the castle, is also said to be one of the most prominent ghosts, as her curly-haired but transparent ghost appears at parties and can be seen bathing in the Dolphin Pool of the castle.
25. Old Changi Hospital, Singapore
Singapore is rumored to be the most haunted place in all of Asia, and the Old Changi Hospital houses its fair share of supernatural guests. The run-down hospital has been a favorite spot for paranormal investigators and school children out for a ghostly thrill for years. According to rumors, voices can be heard echoing through the halls of this old hospital at night and rooms where the blood from deceased bodies was once drained have a concentration of ghostly encounters.
Brave souls now attempt to make it all the way to the roof of this creepy place, despite the fact that people who work nearby are scared of the hospital. Even if you don’t believe in ghosts, this spooky old and abandoned hospital is sure to give just about anyone the willies and only the truly adventurous should explore this notoriously haunted spot this Halloween.
26. Salem, Massachusetts, United States
Whether you believe in ghosts or not, this New England town is a great Halloween destination for anyone. I mean, witch costumes are aplenty on this holiday and pretty much every student in the United States has learned about the notorious Salem Witch trials. As the location for those famous Witch Trials, where twenty-six people accused of witchcraft were tried, convicted and put to death, Salem is now the home to several museums which describe and commemorate the witch trials.
One popular destination is The Witch House, which still stands on the corner of North and Essex streets It can be toured by Halloween lovers and tourists alike, who can see eerie memorabilia like “witch pins” and a small bottle containing finger bones. Visitors to Salem can also go on one of the many tours of the city that will tell tales of its haunted past. Not surprisingly, most of the hauntings are by people who were hanged during the Salem Witch Trials – but I can’t think of a better reason to haunt a place than being wrongly accused of witchcraft.
27. Ossuary in Hallstatt, Austria
This picturesque mountain town in Austria, which is an easy day-trip from Salzburg, is known for its ossuary full of painted skulls and stacked bones. The ossuary contains over 1200 skulls alone, with the most recent being added in 1997. The ossuary, which is located behind the Parish Church of St. Michael, contains decorated skulls dating back to the 15th century.
Due to lack of space in the cemetery, the right to any grave would expire after 10-15 years, when the bodies were then exhumed and the skulls were lovingly decorated by family members with the names of the deceased, their professions in life, when they were born, and when they died – and then placed in the ossuary. Even if you can’t read the inscriptions, you can usually tell the men from the women by the extra decorations – women tend to have flowers while men tend to have leaves.
This isn’t the first bone-filled church in Europe on this list (in fact, ossuaries like this were once incredibly common), but the decorated skulls – and the fact that it’s still in use in modern times – definitely make it an interesting Halloween destination.
28. The Stanley Hotel, Estes Park, Colorado, United States
What could be scarier than sleeping in the hotel that inspired Stephen King’s famously scary novel, The Shining? The Stanley Hotel, which also happens to have commanding views of the nearby Rocky Mountain National Park, is where King was staying when he had the idea to write The Shining. The TV series based on the novel was filmed at The Stanley, but the movie itself was filmed elsewhere. Still, visitors to the Estes Park hotel can check out room #217 where King stayed and where The Shining was born.
And in addition to the already-creepy association of the hotel with one of the scariest movies in history, it’s also reportedly haunted by ghosts – including hotel founder F.O. Stanley (he prefers to hang out in the lobby and the billiard room, evidently), Flora Stanley (who occasionally still plays piano for guests in the music room), and a woman called Miss Wilson who haunts the aforementioned room #217. Guests have also said they hear children playing in the hall outside room #418 when there are no children around. So, although seeing “Redrum” written on the walls with blood is doubtful, spending a Halloween night in this spooky and supposedly haunted hotel is a good way to test your nerves.
29. Valley of the Kings, Egypt
For more than 500 years, the Valley of the Kings served as the burial place for kings and powerful nobles of Ancient Egypt. Standing on the west banks of the Nile, there are thousands or ornate tombs, some of which contain numerous entrances and complex chambers, others of which are simple pits. These tombs are also home (or, more accurately, were home) to thousands of mummies, carefully wrapped and preserved.
Since the discovery of King Tutankhamen, this area of Egypt has ignited the curiosity of archaeologists and laymen alike, who love stories of ghostly mummy raids and spooky happenings. Many of the tombs have curses written upon them, warning any who enter may suffer from death. This legend was given validity when several members of the team that first opened Tutankhamen’s tomb mysteriously died, adding to the creepy nature of this area. Whether you believe in the curse or not, this ancient burial ground remains full of mystery to this day, making it a great Halloween destination.
30. New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
As one of the oldest cities in the U.S., New Orleans has a rich and very haunted history. In fact, Halloween in New Orleans is considered second only to Mardi Gras. There are parties, masquerade balls, haunted torch tours, and special Halloween exhibits throughout the city. There is also the annual Ghost Gallivant, which takes visitors into the famous cemeteries at night and has spooky Voodoo magic themed Halloween events.
Visitors can go on tours of the famous above-ground cemeteries (including the one in which the famous Voodoo priestess Marie Laveau is buried, where devoted followers continue to leave offerings to this day), and anyone who has ever read an Anne Rice novel will want to check out her home in the Garden District – it served as her inspiration and the setting for not only some of her famous vampire books but also her series about the family of witches.
Just walking through the Garden District or French Quarter at night is enough to make anyone understand why the city is reportedly full of vampires and witches. There are ghost stories and legends in so many of the buildings and cemeteries in New Orleans that is must-see destination at Halloween – or anytime if you’re a lover of spooky things.
31. Bell Witch Cave, Tennessee, United States
To get to the source of a particularly well-known spooky legend in American folklore, you’ve got to go where the legend lives, so to speak. So to find out more about the famous Bell Witch, you’ll need to go to her cave. Local legends recount that the Bell Witch has haunted this cave since 1817, when the then-owners of the property (whose last name was Bell) were bombarded by horrible noises outside their home and one of the Bell children said she’d been assaulted by something she couldn’t see.
These days, it is said that the witch appears to people in human form and there are many unexplainable pictures of shadows and other such entities in the cave. While the cave remains in private hands, it is opened to visitors during the summer and – conveniently for you – during the month of October. Upon entering the cave, it is alleged that one will be overcome by the feeling of being watched and if you take a rock from the cave, you will forever be cursed by the Bell Witch. Many others have also reported voices in restricted areas of the cave that cannot be reached by any human.
About the Author
Bootsnall staff writer Julie Blakley’s fascination with cemeteries started at a young age, when her father would walk her through the historic cemetery bordering her preschool on their way home. Since then, she has traveled near and far, never missing an opportunity to visit cemeteries and eerie hangouts around the world. When she’s not investigating tombstones at Pere Lachaise, Julie is writing the France Travel Guide and dreaming of her next travel adventure.
original photo locations: Mummy Museum in Guanajuato from here, St. Michan’s Church in Dublin from here, Ossuary in Hallstatt from here, Fremantle Prison in Australia from here, Raynham Hall in Norfolk from here, Hellfire Caves in Buckinghamshire from here, Cape Town Castle from here, Chase Mausoleum in Barbados from here, Old Changi Hospital in Singapore from here, Bell Witch Cave in Tennessee from here.
Cuba is the Caribbean’s forbidden fruit
Posted August 21, 2009 , add a comment- Worst performance for tourism
- Clues To Caribbean's Earliest Inhabitants Discovered
- Four Seasons In Great Exuma, Bahamas purchased by Sandals
- Caribbean suffers crippling impact of the global recession
- Investments pour into St. Kitts despite global economic downturn
- Ferry service soon to be a choice for five Southern Caribbean destinations
- Attracting Chinese tourists the Jamaican way!
- Tropical Storm Ana watches canceled by Caribbean governments
Aug 21, 2009
U.S. Legislation is pending in Congress that would lift the ban on U.S. citizens traveling to Cuba. Travel industry officials estimate that as many as 1 million Americans might visit the island each year.
The question is whether Cuba is ready for a huge jump in foreign visitors.
The island nation has much to offer.
The lack of development under communist rule has left parts of the country resembling a land from a time warp to the 1950s — a welcome change of pace for many foreign tourists.
Cuba is close — Havana is only as far from Miami as Boston is from New York. And the country has beaches, mountains and a rich history.
Attractions Abound
The central Cuban city of Camaguey offers travelers labyrinth-like streets, which were laid out in the 1500s to be intentionally confusing to attacking pirates.
Tourists can go snorkeling in the Bay of Pigs, or lounge on the white sand beaches along the north coast that was favored by Ernest Hemingway.
In the city of Remedios on Cuba’s northern coast, the main church was built in the 16th century. Estaban Augustin Granda Fernandez, 87, used to play the organ at the church. Now, he is the caretaker and shows visitors around the sanctuary.
He points out the timbers in the ceiling, the original Spanish tiles in the floor and the statue of the Virgin Mary, who appears to be dancing the flamenco.
Granda also points out that the statue has a bulge in her belly. It is the only image of a pregnant Virgin Mary in Cuba, he says, slapping his own stomach.
EnlargeJason Beaubien/NPR
This 16th-century church in Remedios, on Cuba’s north coast, is one attraction in the town. Although the island has no shortage of tourist attractions, some worry it lacks the necessary infrastructure to accommodate a large influx of visitors.
Roberto Maseo, who works in a dive shop in the beach town of Santa Lucia, says Cuba’s main tourist market is Canada, because of its proximity. Flying time from Toronto to Santa Lucia, or from Montreal to Camaguey, is about three hours, Maseo says.
Santa Lucia has a series of two- and three-star resorts that sell all-inclusive package vacations. Maseo calls it a value resort. Scuba-diving excursions — all equipment and transportation included — cost about $35.
Maseo is currently preparing for a shark show. “We feed the sharks. No protection. Shark is actually swimming over you, over your heads. People can actually touch them. No problem,” he says with a laugh.
Economic Benefits Of Expanded Tourism
In 2008, tourism was Cuba’s second leading source of income after nickel exports. It’s a growing source of revenue that the communist regime wants to expand.
There are plans to open 30 new hotels across the island in the next five years.
While Cuban officials say they’re not banking on Washington lifting the travel ban, hundreds of thousands of additional visitors from across the Florida Straits could pump much-needed cash into Cuba’s flagging economy.
EnlargeJavier Galeano/AP
Musicians perform for tourists at the Hotel Nacional in Havana. The historic hotel was built in 1930 and modeled after the Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach, Fla.
“For us, the American market is a big opportunity,” says Dario Fernandez, general manager of Hotel Melia Havana, a Spanish-run luxury hotel in the capital city.
The hotel has 400 rooms, seven restaurants and the biggest pool in Havana. It is jointly owned by the Cuban government and a group of foreign investors, and is managed by the Spanish resort chain Sol Melia.
Fernandez says about 3 percent of his guests are from the United States, but he estimates that number could rise to 50 percent without the travel ban. Last year, the hotel had an average occupancy rate of 82 percent — considered good in the business.
But there are challenges to running a five-star hotel in a communist country where ordinary citizens earn just $20 a month. For instance, the reason Melia Havana has seven restaurants is that few dining options outside the hotel meet foreign tourists’ standards. The Melia runs its own fleet of buses for its employees because the city’s transportation system is so unreliable.
American Tourists’ Historical Connection
The Hotel Nacional in Havana abounds with shared history. The Nacional was built in 1930 and modeled after the Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach, Fla.
EnlargeJason Beaubien/NPR
Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner stayed at the Hotel Nacional on their honeymoon.
In 1946, American mobster Charles “Lucky” Luciano held a convention at the Nacional of American gangsters plotting to turn Havana into a second Las Vegas. In 1951, Hollywood stars Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner stayed there on their honeymoon.
After Fidel Castro came to power in 1959, he shut down the hotel’s casino and installed Soviet anti-aircraft guns along the front lawn — under which a bomb shelter, built during the Cuban missile crisis of 1962, still remains.
But if guests don’t want to think about the moment the world was pushed to the brink of nuclear war, mafia gambling rackets or the clash between capitalism and communism, they can sip mojitos at an outdoor restaurant, looking north across the water toward Florida.
Jesus Noguera Ravelo, a tour guide, says Cuba’s infrastructure is not ready for a huge influx of American visitors. He notes there aren’t enough buses, rental cars, quality restaurants or hotel rooms.
“But if you ask me about the will of the Cuban people, I would say, yes, we are ready. We would like to have more exchange with the American people coming from the U.S. to Cuba,” he says.
Noguera says the American visitors who do come have much more interest in Cuban history than other tourists — in part because the two countries have such a long, intertwined relationship. He says if he tries to give Canadians or Europeans a one-hour talk about the Cuban revolution, their eyes start to roll back in their heads. But Americans, he’s found, are eager to hear about it.
“That is telling you that we have a lot in common. And we have to know each other a lot more,” Noguera says.
Worst performance for tourism
Posted , add a comment- Clues To Caribbean's Earliest Inhabitants Discovered
- Four Seasons In Great Exuma, Bahamas purchased by Sandals
- Caribbean suffers crippling impact of the global recession
- Investments pour into St. Kitts despite global economic downturn
- Ferry service soon to be a choice for five Southern Caribbean destinations
- Attracting Chinese tourists the Jamaican way!
- Tropical Storm Ana watches canceled by Caribbean governments
- Once upon a fam trip to Bimini, Bahamas ?
Aug 21, 2009
Mexico’s economy had its worst performance on record in the second quarter, hard hit by falling exports and the swine flu outbreak, according to a official statistics.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) shrunk 10.3 percent between April and June, compared with the same period in 2008, INEGI national statistics institute said in a statement.
Mexico appeared to be heading for its worst year since the so-called 1994 “Tequila Crisis,” when a sharp devaluation of the peso led to a seven percent year-on-year fall in GDP.
Latin America’s second largest economy went into recession in the first quarter, when GDP dropped 8.2 percent compared with the previous year.
INEGI blamed the latest decline on poor figures in the industrial and services sectors, which are closely tied to the US and have felt the full force of the economic crisis.
The economy also took a sharp blow from the outbreak of swine flu in April and May, which paralyzed many sectors, including tourism, the country’s third-largest source of legal foreign income.
Despite signs of mild recovery for Mexico and the United States, prospects for sustained improvement were still unclear.
Consulting group Bursametrica predicted Mexico’s GDP would fall 6.5 percent in 2009, with negative growth slowing down at the end of the year.
Clues To Caribbean’s Earliest Inhabitants Discovered
Posted , add a comment- Four Seasons In Great Exuma, Bahamas purchased by Sandals
- Caribbean suffers crippling impact of the global recession
- Investments pour into St. Kitts despite global economic downturn
- Ferry service soon to be a choice for five Southern Caribbean destinations
- Attracting Chinese tourists the Jamaican way!
- Tropical Storm Ana watches canceled by Caribbean governments
- Once upon a fam trip to Bimini, Bahamas ?
- Lesbians save the world, one Caribbean cruise at a time
Aug 21, 2009
A prehistoric water-filled cave in the Dominican Republic has become a “treasure trove” with the announcement by Indiana University archaeologists of the discovery of stone tools, a small primate skull in remarkable condition, and the claws, jawbone and other bones of several species of sloths.
The discoveries extend by thousands of years the scope of investigations led Charles Beeker, director of Academic Diving and Underwater Science Programs at IU Bloomington’s School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, and his interdisciplinary team of collaborators. The researchers’ focus has been on the era a mere 500 years ago when the Old World and New World first met after Christopher Columbus stepped ashore in the Caribbean — and on scintillating pirate lore. This rare find is expected to give insights into the earliest inhabitants of the Greater Antilles and the animals they encountered.
“To be honest, I couldn’t believe my eyes as I viewed each of these astonishing discoveries underwater,” Beeker said. “The virtually intact extinct faunal skeletons really amazed me, but what may prove to be a fire pit from the first human occupation of the island just seems too good to be true. But now that the lithics (stone tools) are authenticated, I can’t wait to direct another underwater expedition into what may prove to become one of the most important prehistoric sites in all the Caribbean.”
Beeker and researchers Jessica Keller and Harley McDonald found the tools and bones in fresh water 28- to 34-feet deep in a cave called Padre Nuestro. Nearby, and also underwater in the same cave, were found more recent Taino artifacts. The Taino were the first Native American peoples to encounter Europeans. Beeker and his colleagues have been diving in this particular cave, which sits beneath a limestone bluff and is only accessible after submerging into a small pool, since 1996 as they studied its use as a Taino water-gathering site.
Geoffrey Conrad, director of the Mathers Museum of World Culture at IU Bloomington and professor of anthropology, said the tools are estimated to be 4,000 to 6,500 years old. The bones might range in age from 4,000 and 10,000 years old. While sloth bones are not uncommon, he knows of only a handful of other primate skulls found in the Caribbean.
“I know of no place that has sloths, primates and humanly made stone tools together in a nice, tight association around the same time,” said Conrad, also associate vice provost for research at IU Bloomington. “Right now it looks like a potential treasure trove of data to help us sort out the relationship in time between humans and extinct animals in the Greater Antilles. This site definitely is worthy of a large-scale investigation.”
The three stone tools and remnants, made of basalt and limestone, were examined by internationally known IU anthropologists Nicholas Toth and Kathy Schick, who told researchers the palm-sized stones showed unmistakable signs of human craftsmanship. Toth and Schick are co-directors of the Center for Research into the Anthropological Foundations of Technology (CRAFT) Stone Age Institute in Bloomington.
IU primate expert Kevin Hunt told researchers the primate could have been a howler monkey which is extinct in the Caribbean. Keller said the sloth bones came from six, and possibly seven, sloths and include several species, including one the size of a black bear and another the size of a large dog. She said the primate skull is significantly different than the other primate skulls found in the Caribbean.
“Very few primate skulls have been found in the Caribbean,” she said. “The others, found in the late 1800s and early 1900s, are three times as large. We have received a permit to bring the skull to Indiana University for further study. It’s all very exciting.”
Conrad said the lithics and bones, which have arrived at Beeker’s laboratory in the School of HPER, have not only expanded the research program to an earlier time but also to an issue of concern worldwide — the extinction of native birds and animals upon the arrival of humans. Caribbean sloths are among the many species that became extinct soon after the presence of humans.
Researchers with the Office of Underwater Science in the School of HPER work closely with cultural, historical, and tourism agencies and organizations in the Dominican Republic to protect and explore the country’s cultural heritage and natural history. Keller said local interest in the discoveries has been phenomenal. The cave where they were discovered, which is part of an aquifer and cave system that supplies water to nearby resorts, has been closed for research purposes.
“There’s a strong interest in protecting it, in having the research continue,” Keller said. “Our partners were excited before we even found the primate.”
The study is being conducted in cooperation with the Secretariat of State for Culture through the Office of Underwater Heritage and the Museum of Dominican Man, the Secretariat of State for Tourism, and the Secretariat of State for Environment and Natural Resources.