According to information from Luis Socorro for elDiario.es, a team of archaeologists has discovered human remains at San Marcial del Rubicón, in the south of Lanzarote, marking the first vestiges excavated at the site of the first European settlement in the Canary Islands, which dates from the start of the conquest of the archipelago at the beginning of the 15th century. The directors of this research project, funded by the Government of the Canary Islands, Esther Chávez and Macri González, both lecturers at the universities of La Laguna and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria respectively, have revealed that the remains of one individual were found during last year's archaeological campaign in the autumn of 2022.
On that occasion, the archaeologists chose not to announce the find immediately, as they needed more time to excavate the grave in full. That work has been completed during the current excavation campaign, which began on 18 September and will conclude on the 21st of this month. During this season, the burial site has been explored and two individuals, a woman and a child, have been exhumed. A seashell was found beside one of the bodies, which could indicate that they belonged to the indigenous culture, although it is too early to draw that conclusion.
During last year's campaign, bone remains were recovered for dating. The first results suggest that the remains date from the beginning of the 15th century, coinciding with the arrival of Jean de Béthencourt in Lanzarote in 1402, financed by the Crown of Castile. However, the marine food content in the bones has caused a reservoir effect, giving an age lower than the real one. In order to obtain a more precise date, the human remains have been sent to another laboratory.
San Marcial del Rubicón is an archaeological site that remarkably reflects the coexistence of the pre-Hispanic indigenous cultures and the European one during the conquest in the 15th century. According to Chávez and González, the excavations make it clear that San Marcial was occupied solely in the 15th century, with no record of earlier or later occupation at the site. This archaeological revelation sheds light on the history of the coexistence of two cultures during that crucial period in the history of the Canary Islands.