The remains are believed to belong to members of the Island Carib (Kalinago) and Arawak (Taíno) peoples who inhabited St. Eustatius long before European contact. While the exact circumstances of their exhumation remain under study, historical records suggest they were likely removed from burial caves or shell middens on the island during the late 18th or early 19th century—a period when European naturalists and colonial physicians frequently looted Indigenous burial sites for “scientific” study.
“We sang the release song,” said Eliza Marten, a Kalinago spiritual leader who traveled from Dominica for the ceremony. “We called their spirits to leave the cold halls of the museum and return to the warm wind of our island. We could feel them listening.” The remains are believed to belong to members