The pottery assemblage from the trindade archaeological site, santiago island, Cabo Verde

The Trindade archaeological site is located in the interior of Santiago Island. approximately 13 km away from Praia, the present capital, and roughly halfway between Praia and Cidade Velha, the first capital of the archipelago. The site has an important groundwater reserve, so much so that today it is the location of the country’s main water factory, with highly fertile soil. It was a fazenda, a farm estate, originally belonging to Fernão Fiel de Lugo in the 16th century, where he built an octagonal chapel that is still standing today. Later on, in a troubled period in the Cape Verdean history, it became the property of the Bishopric of Cabo Verde and the residence of Bishop Fr. Francisco de Santo Agostinho (1709-1719), where he was also buried. The area underwent an intervention in 2011 in which the main focus was the rehabilitation of the chapel itself and the tomb, with a small archaeological excavation. The materials found are far from what could be expected of a bishop’s dwelling, since the vast majority of the pottery is either functional or connected to the production of sugar or other products from sugar cane.