Hanamiai Excavations

First discovered by Barry Rolett (University of Hawaii) in 1984, the Hanamiai archaeological site is located in a coastal sand dune in Hanamiai valley, close to the village of Vaitahu. In 1985, two three-month excavations were funded by Yale University and the National Science Foundation. Additional excavations under Rolett's direction were later conducted in 1997, 1998, 2001, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018 and 2022, supported by the Andover Foundation for Archaeological Research. Hanamiai is one of the oldest known archaeological sites in East Polynesia, with the earliest settlement dating to A.D. 1200. The artifacts found here offer proof of the advanced seafaring knowledge and unparalleled skill of the early Polynesians voyagers, whose ancestors originated in southeast China.

Methods of Archaeological Excavation

The valley of Hanamiai was once inhabited by generations of islanders. Over time, materials brought to the site accumulated and were gradually buried beneath layers of wind-blown sand. These archaeological layers represent a sequence of ancient time periods. They are excavated one at a time with hand trowels and brushes, up to a depth of up to six feet below the surface.

By screening the sand from the excavation, Rolett and his team found small objects such as pearl shell fishhook, adze flakes and bones. Excavated in one-meter-square units, the soil from each layer was screened separately and all artifacts and features such as house pavements and fireplaces were mapped and measured before removal. 

Artifacts found at Hanamiai indicate some the activities that occurred there, including the manufacturing of pearl shell fishhooks and stone adzes.