Page 3 - IB February 2025

Mounds of History: Unveiling The Sites: Melabong, Emir, and
Merivau
The 2024 excavations focused
Vanuatu’s Past on three key sites, each offering
a distinct window into Vanuatu’s
past.
By Associate Professor Stuart Bedford and Gouri Banerji
Melabong: Imagine a midden
mound so vast—80 by 40 meters
ANU School of Culture, History & Language, College of Asia and wide, over 4 meters high—that it
the Pacific, The Australian National University resembles a small hill. Dating back to 2800-2700 BP, Melabong holds layers of
discarded shells, pottery, and remnants of daily life. A 3.2-meter-deep test pit
Beneath the lush revealed a rich tapestry of artifacts, providing a rare glimpse into the diets and
landscapes of Vanuatu activities of Vanuatu’s early settlers.
lie hidden stories of Emir: Here, archaeologists peeled back layers of complex stratigraphy to reveal
ancient seafarers, a long history of occupation. Stone tools, shell ornaments, and shifting cultural
lost settlements, and patterns hinted at a site where traditions evolved over generations.
cultural transformations Merivau: Offering another piece of the puzzle, this site revealed intricately
spanning millennia. This decorated pottery and faunal remains, deepening our understanding of
year, archaeologists settlement patterns and cultural exchange in Vanuatu’s prehistoric communities.
and students from ANU,
alongside the Vanuatu Why It Matters
Cultural Centre, delved These discoveries are more than just relics in the dirt—they tell the story of
deeper into these mysteries—one layer of earth at a time. how early Pacific peoples adapted, migrated, and connected across vast
ocean distances. They reveal a world where trade networks stretched between
Digging Deeper into the Past islands, where communities left their mark in the form of pottery and tools, and
In July 2024, the ANU-Vanuatu Cultural Centre Field School returned to Efate where environmental changes shaped human survival.
Island’s east coast to continue its investigation of one of the region’s most The success of this year’s field school highlights the power of collaboration—
intriguing archaeological landscapes. Previous digs had uncovered signs between international researchers, local experts, and students eager to
of early Lapita settlement—pottery, obsidian from distant islands, and even uncover the past. The findings from Melabong, Emir, and Merivau will not only
extinct tortoise bones—all pointing to human activity dating back 3,000 years. contribute to academic scholarship
This year’s goal? To unearth more about how these early communities lived, but also help Vanuatu preserve and
thrived, and connected with the wider Pacific world. celebrate its cultural heritage.
Under the leadership of Associate Professor Stuart Bedford (ANU) and Vanuatu With each excavation, the pieces of
Cultural Centre experts Iarawai Phillip and Makaras Longga, 16 ANU students Vanuatu’s past come together, painting
worked alongside specialists, including Dr. Frédérique Valentin (CNRS, France) a richer picture of its history. And yet,
and Dr. Stuart Hawkins (ANU). PhD student Robert Henderson set up an on- so many questions remain.
site analytical station, allowing real-time examination of artifacts—crucial for What new secrets will next year’s dig
piecing together the region’s history. reveal?
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