Human bones found at construction site in Polyberg

 BY MICHAEL TODD (DAILY NEWS STAFF)

ST. THOMAS - Human bones found at a Polyberg construction site Thursday were not remnants of a criminal act, police said.

"Police suspect they may be ancient bones," said V.I. Police spokeswoman Melody Rames. "Police have experience with ancient bones. You can tell with just a cursory look if the bones are ancient or not."

Rames said when historic remains are found, police give the bones to the V.I. Department of Planning and Natural Resources, "or to some place that has archeologists."

Territorial law requires anyone who finds historic remains to contact the DPNR's State Historic Preservation Office, which employs archeologists authorized to handle and preserve newly unearthed island history.

The Antiquities and Cultural Properties Act of 1998 gives the State Historic Preservation Office jurisdiction to identify and survey, "all terrestrial and marine archaeological sites, structures, sacred sites, shipwrecks, cemeteries, unmarked human burial sites, ossuaries, objects, artifacts and areas of value in archaeology, history, architecture, engineering and culture of the Virgin Islands, both on land and sea," according to the V.I. Code.

In addition, the State Historic Preservation officer can require federal and territorial government agencies, "before any agency initiates alterations to or transferals of historic properties or archaeological sites."

It is unclear who found the bones Thursday and where they lay in Polyberg.

It was clear, however, that architectural historian and senior planner for the State Historic Preservation Office Sean Krigger had not been notified of the find a day later.

"No one has informed my office of it," Krigger said. "We need to look at them. Really and truly a general forensic officer may not be specialized enough to determine the age of the bones."

DPNR spokesman Jamal Nielsen said he did not want to propel an inter-agency squabble but wished Krigger had been notified of the find.

"Why not contact us?" Nielsen asked. "That's what we do."

Historic remains are most telling before they are removed from an excavation site, Krigger said.

"Once the materials are removed from the site, any type of information that could be in the bones is lost," he said. "The opportunity to investigate is so important."

To preserve aged remains, DPNR must be notified soon after the find, said State Historic Preservation Office Senior Archaeologist Brooke Persons.

"But, as usual we haven't been contacted," Persons said. "The first call is usually to the VIPD; the second call should be to the SHPO."

Human remains often are found in the islands because of the region's vibrant history, she added.

Krigger said many slaves were buried in unmarked graves, leaving room to learn more about the islands' heritage.

Other sites have housed Amerindian remains from groups such as the Taíno, Arawaks and the Caribs, Krigger said.

Enough natural factors, such as weather and the terrain in which the remains lay, already challenge the quest to understand the islands' history, Persons said.

"Things just get dislodged," Persons said. "This is really unfortunate, but not unexpected."

Nielsen said the area of the recent find in Polyberg should be protected until it is determined what was unearthed.

"We need to cordon off that area," he said.

Persons said the area is best kept a secret among professionals, though she still did not know where it was Friday.

"People want to know where they are," she said, referring to historic remains. "But not everyone should know where they are."

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