SECAR: Digging Into Statia's Buried History
Get hands-on with the Caribbean's most archaeologically rich square mile.
Why Go
On an island of just eight square miles, there are around 600 known dig sites ΓÇö remnants of a 1700s free port that once handled more trade than New York. SECAR is where that story gets unearthed, catalogued, and (if you're lucky) placed into your palm.
The Experience
Housed in a modest headquarters on Road to English Quarter, the St. Eustatius Center for Archaeological Research is less a polished museum and more a working lab ΓÇö shelves of pottery sherds, clay pipes, and the famous blue trade beads pulled straight from the volcanic soil. Founded in 2000 and now an independent foundation, SECAR runs both terrestrial and underwater projects tied to Statia's colonial and pre-Columbian past. Visitors can drop in to see finds being processed, sit in on a public lecture, or ΓÇö the real draw ΓÇö sign up for an Excavation Experience and spend a morning trowel-in-hand on an active dig alongside professional archaeologists and international field-school students. It's the rare stop where 'do not touch' doesn't apply.
What to Try
Book an Excavation Experience for a half or full day at a live site (usually somewhere between Oranjestad's Upper Town and the plantation ruins inland). Ask to see the reference collection of Statia blue beads ΓÇö the cobalt glass beads once used as currency and now the island's unofficial talisman. If a public lecture is on the schedule, go: the researchers are unusually good storytellers.
Insider Tip
Email info@secar.org (or call +599 319 1918) at least a few days ahead ΓÇö walk-ins are welcomed when staff are around, but the team is often out in the field, and the Excavation Experience needs to be scheduled around active dig days. Wear closed-toe shoes, bring a hat and more water than you think you'll need, and if you find a blue bead on the dig, tradition says you keep it.
The Practical Stuff
Location: Road to English Quarter, Oranjestad, Sint Eustatius. Contact: +599 319 1918, info@secar.org. Small participation fee for Excavation Experiences (donations to the foundation also welcomed). Best reached by rental car or a short taxi from Lower Town; the office is unmarked-ish, so watch your GPS. Allow 1ΓÇô2 hours for a lab visit, half a day for a dig.
Pair It With
- Aquarium Dive Site — After digging into Statia's terrestrial past, go underwater ΓÇö SECAR also works on submerged sites, and the reef here hints at the same shipwreck-rich seabed.
- Alvin V. Courtar Park — A quiet green space nearby to decompress and flip through whatever field notes or brochures you picked up at SECAR.
- Baby Beach — Cap a dusty morning on a dig with a swim on Statia's calm, low-key shoreline ΓÇö a fitting reward for volunteer archaeologists.