The 'Cerro Azul' Excavation: Searching the Serranía La Lindosa

The path to Cerro Azul from San Jose del Guavire, is a route through the peaceful countryside of the Guaviare. The 40 Km journey reveals the natural beauty of the area.

The Cerro Azul excavation was key to finding archaeological remains of the first humans to arrive in La Lindosa 12,000 years ago.  Here, archaeologists are delimiting the excavation area using string to mark each section.

Tools used during the excavation include brushes, dustpans, tape measure, trowels, pens, pencils and notebooks, small picks, line levels, and bags. It's not very high tech but it does the job beautifully.

The photo shows the start of excavation at Cerro Azul in two different units which later joined together. Trowels, brushes and pans help to remove small layers of earth - a methodical process that requires patience. Once the excavation of each layer is completed, the evidence is recorded.

During excavation it is very important to plot the evidence in situ before it is removed from the floor. In the photo Gaspar Morcote filling an excavation form. Sometimes each layer is documented with drawings, as well as photographs, depicting where artefacts are discovered.

In this picture, archaeologists are washing sediments, in the river, to look for small or micro artefacts such as seeds, animal bones, flakes, charcoal, etc. all of which give us clues about the lives of our ancestors.

In an excavation, deeper levels are older. In this photo you can see how the excavation is progressing. According to the red and white ranging pole (each stripe is 50cm) it's approximately 115cm deep. This depth corresponds to the late Holocene 4,200 years ago.

Archaeologists take samples of pollen and phytoliths. These plant micro fossils help us understand what the forest was like in the past and what forest plants surrounded our ancestors. Collected remains, including stone tools and animal bones, are taken for laboratory analysis.

Once the excavation is completed, the stratigraphic layers, that mark the time of the millenary occupations of the site, are defined. It began when a group of people at the end of the Ice Age (12,000 years ago) decided to cross the Guayabero river to colonise this majestic hill.

The end of an excavation is a mixture of feelings. But it is the responsibility of archaeologists, scientists and researchers, together with local communities, to continue the work of respectfully discovering, preserving and voicing the history of our ancestors.