Colombian archaeologists have found remains of what they think is the first Spanish settlement in the Americas, the scientists said Saturday.
According to the archaeologists, the remains belong to the city of Santa Maria la Antigua del Darien that was discovered on the border with Panama in 2002.
“We have found majolica pottery, swords, firearms, horse saddles and many nails which allow us to affirm that the site is that of Santa Maria la Antigua del Darien,” the Colombian archaeologist Ernesto Montealegre told a conference in Panama.
According to the scientist, Colombia’s Ministry of Culture ordered further examination of the site later this month during which the archaeologists hope to discover the exact location and extension of the extinct city.
According to Montealegre, the city wasn’t founded like other cities in the then-recently discovered colony, but was basically assembled in Spain and installed on what is now the border of Colombia and Panama.
The scientists say the Spanish city was formally founded in 1510 and temporarily was the capital of the New Kingdom of Granada, which consisted of what is now Panama, Colombia, Venezuela and Ecuador.
Location of Santa Maria la Antigua del Darien
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