On May , a new campaign of archaeological actions began at the Heping Dao B site (Keelung, Taiwan) which ended on July The project, co-directed by Dr. María Cruz Berrocal (IIIPC, University of Cantabria) and Dr. Tsang Chenghwa (National Tsing Hua University), began its journey in and to date archaeological excavation campaigns have been carried out , with funding from various institutions, including the CSIC, the University of Konstanz, the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Culture of Spain, the Chiang Ching Kuo Foundation, and the Palarq Foundation.
The complete stratification of the site has allowed us to know the characteristics of the prehistoric settlement throughout the duration of this period, with stilt-type dwellings, complete ceramic furnishings B2B Email List located in situ and an interesting repertoire of lithic industry with utensils and ornaments made of nephrite, slate, shale, etc. The occupation of the settlement does not seem to be interrupted and clear signs of the dynamism of the Taiwanese prehistoric communities have been documented, which includes the indigenous development of iron metallurgy, and contacts with continental Chinese and Southeast Asian communities. These topics are key right now in the prehistoric archeology of Asia-Pacific.
As for the Spanish colony, during the years of the project the remains of the Dominican church of San Salvador have been located, burials associated with the European colony - Spanish first and then Dutch - as well as important signs of the aboriginal settlement located in the place where part of the colony was settled. With these results, Heping Dao B becomes a reference site in the Asia-Pacific area not only for the European colonial period but also for the precolonial prehistoric periods. During the campaign we have documented new construction remains of the convent church with the location of its head, equipped with a quadrangular apse, three new burials located inside the temple and two more located outside. Several of the burials have hands clasped in a praying position and in one of the tombs a small fragmented cross has been found, possibly made of bronze, which appears to be of Peninsular origin.