16th Century Christian Symbols Found Next To Indigenous Drawings In Caribbean

In a remote island in the Caribbean, 16^th century Christian symbols were found in a cave, left by European explorers - and alongside ancient indigenous art.

Christian symbols and indigenous art were discovered on cave walls of Mona Island. https://t.co/OpLHvuteEN pic.twitter.com/38ht0a3dAk

— Nat Geo Photography (@NatGeoPhotos) July 20, 2016

In the island of Mona - located between the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico - caves can be found. These caves and cavers were sources of freshwater, and marks made by indigenous tribes usually appear by these sources.

What caught the eyes of these archaeologists, however, were the cave markings on cave number 18, which is half a mile long. The cave, according to the study published in the journal, Antiquity, is marked with about 250 indigenous markings in the walls and ceilings, made through "finger fluting", meaning that fingers were used to draw on the cave walls. Americas at the British Museum in London curator Jago Cooper shared, "These finger-fluted designs reflect the spiritual beliefs of the indigenous people."

What makes the caves even more interesting, according to Fox News, is that the walls also record drawings of Christian crosses and even Latin and Spanish phrases. Among the phrases that can be read include "God made many things," and "may God forgive you." There is also a Latin quote from the bible that translated as "And the Word was made flesh [and dwelt among us]."

The indigenous people lived on the rocky outposts for over 5,000 years, and in the last millennia, they overlapped with the start of the European colonial era. In a historical point of view, National Geographic noted, were the surprisingly modern graffiti - names and dates, most of which are from the mid-16^th century. Most notably, however, is the presence of Francisco Alegre, a Spaniard who arrived in the West Indies in the 1530s. He was based in Puerto Rico, but was eventually put in charge of royal estates, one of which is Mona Island.