Diggin' Up Bones

History is alive and well! Jamestown Rediscovery and the Smithsonian Institute announced yesterday that they have discovered and excavated the graves of four prominent Jamestown citizens, as well as a peculiar silver box. All had been buried inside the church that once stood in James Fort. Amazingly, archaeologists were able to determine the identity of the four sets of remains; but what is housed inside the silver box remains something of a mystery. It is believed that the box is a reliquary- or receptacle for holy relics. Veneration of holy relics is a Catholic practice- so how did these relics come to be in an English colony in the early 17th century? Sounds like a mystery for Indiana Jones-a much worthier and more interesting one than Kingdom of the Crystal Skull-although the dig site would likely be compromised and all context lost.

1606 Map of Virginia Engraved by William Hole Based on the Descriptions of John Smith.