Dialogues in Cuban Archaeology

Three Stages in the History of Cuban Archaeology / 37
in the Ciénaga de Zapata, the subject of archaeological research undertaken
at the beginning of this stage, to the Museo del Chorro de Maíta in Lomas
de Maniabón. At the latter, a group of archaeologists from the province of
Holguín headed by the late Dr. José M. Guarch excavated a cemetery and
then re-created it for public interpretative purposes, making it one of the most
important archaeological museums on the island (see Valcárcel Rojas and
Rodríguez Arce, Chapter 7).
Advances have also been made in the ¤eld of site registration and information
technology through the Censo de Sitios Arqueológico de Cuba conducted
by the Departamento de Arqueología of the Ministerio de Tecnología
y Medio Ambiente and a computerized database of archaeological objects in
Cuban museums, which at the moment is updated continuously by the Consejo
de Patrimonio Cultural of the Ministerio de Cultura.
Other efforts during this period have been directed toward an improved
understanding of methodologies used in the investigation of artifacts and animal
remains, ceramic analysis, and the application of chemistry to living surfaces
(see Davis 1996 for a more detailed discussion of this topic). Cuban
archaeologists have published several studies and guides intended to standardize
methods and systems of analysis. The ¤rst attempt was Método Experimental
para el Estudio de Artefactos Líticos de Culturas Antillanas No Ceramistas by
Ramón Dacal, which in 1968 inaugurated the Serie Antropológica of the Cuban
Academy of Sciences. In 1975, this series was followed by a book published
by the Museo Montané of the University of Havana titled Técnica de
la Talla y Tipología de los Instrumentos Líticos by Janusz K. Kozlowski and
Boleslaw Ginter (1975) with a preface by Ramón Dacal. Three years later, the
Museo Montané published Artefactos de Concha en las Comunidades Aborígenes
Cubanas by Ramón Dacal Moure (1978). In 1987, José Manuel Guarch wrote
Arqueología de Cuba: Métodos y Sistemas, which included his recommendations
for ¤eld and laboratory techniques that should be employed in archaeological
investigations. Manuel Rivero de la Calle published in 1985 Nociones de
anatomía humana aplicadas a la arqueología. In 1988, Jorge Febles Dunas presented
his book Manual para el Estudio de la Piedra Tallada de los Aborígenes
de Cuba, published by the Academy of Sciences.
During this period, master’s degrees in archaeology have been awarded to
several archaeologists, and a small group possesses the doctorate in historical
sciences. These individuals with degrees do not include the whole range of
archaeologists working in the discipline, who either come from other disciplines
or are conducting important work in national and municipal museums.