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In 1628 the Dutch seized the New Spain Fleet and its precious cargo in the Bay of Matanzas. After the Dutch withdrawal, the Spanish government rescued some of the sunken assets with divers, this being one of the least known aspects in the history of the encounter. Here is provided, through an analysis of primary sources, a new perspective and data on said dive and rescue. Based on these, areas of high archaeological potential are identified according to underwater geomorphology. It is concluded that there is perhaps little material evidence left in the shallow parts of the bay, where the rescue dives were carried out, since the amount of the wealth was taken by the Dutch, and what was submerged was later rescued by the Spanish. These new data contribute to the historical overview of the encounter and the archaeological research that could be conducted in the waters of the bay. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Domestic dog remains have been encountered in deposits of agroceramist filiation (ceramic-age) of the Cuban archaeological record. However, some have also been found in older, archaic-age contexts. These remains, although undated, prompted the hypothesis of a preceramic age introduction of domestic dogs to the island of Cuba. To test this hypothesis, we dated (C14AMS) dog remains from two archaic (mesolithic) culture deposits. These dates provide the first absolute chronology from dog remains from Cuba, yielding ages between calAD 1450 and 1640. This suggests that both dogs are of post-Columbian age, but their association, whether no-ceramic, ceramic or European, cannot be established with the present data. Thus, further testing will be required from less disturbed deposits to corroborate. From historical documents here we provide a discussion of domestic dog introduction and use in the colonial era, which can help understand the ecological effects of dogs on Cuba's native fauna. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The port city of San Carlos de Matanzas was founded in October 1693 with primarily, a military purpose. The construction of its main fortification, the Castillo de San Severino, took priority over the city and urbanization processes. Although the history of the foundation is satisfactorily understood, the pre-foundational processes are not. Based on new documental and archaeological evidence, we discuss and analyze the reconnaissance and transformation of the site planned for the city, and its fortification, between 1681 and 1695. Our findings reveal that the Castillo was not built were strictly ordered by the crown and the city did not follow all the urbanization laws and royal decrees, thus allowing for a deeper understanding of the local conditions before and after the foundation of the city, plus the social mechanisms that such endeavors required in colonial Latin America. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

El Morrillo, an archaeological site localized on the margin of the Canímar River, in the bay of Matanzas, is considered one of the most important agroceramist culture deposits of western Cuba. Despite its importance and richness, only one radiocarbon date, based on charcoal, had been reported from this site since 1966. Here we provide the first AMS 14C date measured directly from human remains, excavated in 2009, along with a carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis to infer the diet of this individual. The AMS 14C provided a radiocarbon age of 420±40 rcyBP (AP) (2σ calAD1420-1523). These results indicate a post-Columbian time of burial, likely near or during the first decades of the Cuban conquest early in the XVI century. The stable isotopes suggest that the individual had a mixed diet, with intermediate carbon consumption, and high on marine/riverine resources, which suggest the exploitation of the nearby coastal and fluvial ecosystems. These values are generally comparable to several populations of similar filiation in the Greater Antilles. Our results highlight the importance of El Morrillo in the study of agroceramist communities in Cuba and the Caribbean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]