Heping Dao B (Keelung, Taiwan)

In 2010, the Taiwanese National Science Council and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) organized a series of joint sessions to foster collaboration. Prof. Tsang Chenghwa (TCh) was part of the Taiwanese expedition, and María Cruz Berrocal (MCB) and him led an initiative to start archaeological work on Heping Dao, a small island off Keelung, northern Taiwan, which is today linked to the main island. In 2018, Dr. Ellen Hsieh (EH) joined the team.

Heping Dao saw the foundation of the Spanish colony of San Salvador de Quelang in 1626 CE. The colony was well known through the historical documents, but no archaeological remains were preserved. In the 1930s, the Japanese colonial regime undertook a scientific expedition to the area and the standing walls of the fortress (named La Santísima Trinidad) were photographed. The Japanese scientists also carried out excavations next to the walls (see pictures in Cruz Berrocal et al 2018: 908). Apparently, the remains were considered of relevance from a historical point of view. But the fact is that the remains of the fortress were levelled shortly afterwards, and the location is now in the premises of an important shipyard that was built prior to WWII.

Our project was not able to get permission to excavate within the shipyard (obviously, I should say), but we secured access to a parking lot (P in figure 1) in the neighborhood.

The study of the historical maps determined that no colonial building was located in that area.

Caption: Figure 1. Buildings over modern Hoping map: A) San Salvador fort, B) Todos los Santos convent, C) watching tower (Antonio Uriarte, CCHS, for NAO).
Caption: Figure 1. Buildings over modern Hoping map: A) San Salvador fort, B) Todos los Santos convent, C) watching tower (Antonio Uriarte, CCHS, for NAO)

However, the projection of the maps was so biased, that, luckily, we were wrong.

Unique remains of the colonial Convent and Church of San Salvador, and the associated cemetery, have been uncovered so far. These are the oldest European colonial vestiges in Asia-Pacific.

Caption: Drone image produced under direction by Dr. Ellen Hsieh and Prof. Tsang Chenghwa in 2022. On the left, plant of the church of the Convent of All Saints (Convento de Todos los Santos). On the right, some of the burials in the cemetery are still seen
Caption: Drone image produced under direction by Dr. Ellen Hsieh and Prof. Tsang Chenghwa in 2022. On the left, plant of the church of the Convent of All Saints (Convento de Todos los Santos). On the right, some of the burials in the cemetery are still seen

Our research goes from the study of archaeological wood, to the genetics of the people buried both inside the church, and the yard; from the animal remains in historical and prehistorical strata, to the iron slags resulting from metallurgical processes in prehistory; from the pottery components, to the isotopic signature of the skeletons showing diets; from the soil chemistry and structure, to the geomorphological processes happened in the long-term. Heping Dao is an extraordinary site, where the main historical landmarks developed on the island of Taiwan are represented, including European, Qing and Japanese colonialism, as well as the post-WWII occupation of Taiwan by the Kuomingtan in the recent past, and the Neolithic and Iron Age periods in the deep-time end of the sequence.

Ongoing analyses allow us to better understand the early settlement of the island, the resilient political systems of the indigenous Taiwanese, the mechanisms by which Europeans colonized Asia-Pacific, the early emergence of globalization processes, and the particularities of different colonial enterprises between the 17th century, and the 18th and 20th centuries.

Heping Dao keeps other surprises, such as a well-preserved tsunami, one that took place on December 18, 186: an earthquake in the northern sea of Taiwan triggered a tsunami that killed hundreds of persons.

Caption: sampling the tsunami layer by Prof. Huei-Fen Chen (National Taiwan Ocean University, Institute of Applied Geosciences).
Caption: sampling the tsunami layer by Prof. Huei-Fen Chen (National Taiwan Ocean University, Institute of Applied Geosciences)
Current entrance to Heping Dao B: the site has been musealized and the visit is free (NAO project)
Caption: Current entrance to Heping Dao B: the site has been musealized and the visit is free (NAO project)
Reconstruction of the Convento de Todos los Santos in the on-site exhibition in Heping Dao B (NAO project)
Caption: Reconstruction of the Convento de Todos los Santos in the on-site exhibition in Heping Dao B (NAO project)
View of the foundations of the Convent in the on-site exhibition in Heping Dao B (NAO project)
Caption: View of the foundations of the Convent in the on-site exhibition in Heping Dao B (NAO project)
Archaeological complexity: General view of test pit T2P9, excavated in 2014. On the left, a Qing structure was excavated to the bedrock. It cut a European burial dated to the 17th century (center of the picture). On the right, both prehistoric post holes and Japanese trenches are visible (NAO project)
Caption: Archaeological complexity: General view of test pit T2P9, excavated in 2014. On the left, a Qing structure was excavated to the bedrock. It cut a European burial dated to the 17th century (center of the picture). On the right, both prehistoric post holes and Japanese trenches are visible (NAO project)
A different view of T2P9 from the Qing structure. This was probably a storeroom or even dwelling, constructed in the 19th century. The European 17th century burial is clearly seen in the center of the picture, still holding the legs of the individual (NAO project)
Caption: A different view of T2P9 from the Qing structure. This was probably a storeroom or even dwelling, constructed in the 19th century. The European 17th century burial is clearly seen in the center of the picture, still holding the legs of the individual (NAO project)
Detail of buttress of the Convento de Todos los Santos. This was the first portion of the building that was excavated in 2012. The comments describe the constructive process (Elena Serrano for NAO)
Caption: Detail of buttress of the Convento de Todos los Santos. This was the first portion of the building that was excavated in 2012. The comments describe the constructive process (Elena Serrano for NAO)
Location of burials in relation to a buttress of the Convento de Todos los Santos (see picture 2): jar burial (child found within a pottery vessel, usual child burial among Taiwanese indigenous groups) and Christian burials (Elena Serrano for NAO)
Caption: Location of burials in relation to a buttress of the Convento de Todos los Santos (see picture 2): jar burial (child found within a pottery vessel, usual child burial among Taiwanese indigenous groups) and Christian burials (Elena Serrano for NAO)

Publications

Michel, M. 2024 Ancient Plasmodium genomes shed light on the history of human malaria. Nature, ip

Cruz Berrocal, M., Gener Moret, M., Serrano Herrero, E., Tsang, Ch. (ep) Prehistoric iron production in Taiwan: technology and social unchange. Journal of World Prehistory 37, ip

Cruz Berrocal, M., García Rojo, A., Redondo, E., Serrano Herrero, E. 2023 Contribuciones sobre Heping Dao, Keelung, Taiwán: una historia arqueológica. Informes y Trabajos 21: 13-27.

Hsieh, E., Serrano Herrero, E., Cruz Berrocal, M., Tsang, C. 2021 The Discovery of the Todos Los Santos Church, the only remaining structure from the Spanish period in Taiwan. Philippine Studies Association National Conference – 2021

Martín Seijo, M., Cruz Berrocal, M., Serrano Herrera, E., Tsang, Ch. 2021 Wooden material culture and long-term historical processes in Heping Dao (Keelung, Taiwan). Journal of Archaeological Science 133: 105443. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2021.105443

Cruz Berrocal M. 2021 East Asia: Historical Archaeology. In C. Smith (ed) Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-51726-13133-1

Cruz Berrocal, M., Uriarte, A., Sebastián, M., Serrano, E., Tsang, Ch. 2020 Dinámicas internas e implicaciones para los estudios austronesios: aproximación preliminar a la secuencia arqueológica taiwanesa a través del análisis geoespacial de los yacimientos prehistóricos. In P. Díaz del Río, I. Sastre and K. Lillios (eds.) The Power of Reason, the Matter of Prehistory. Papers in Honour of Antonio Gilman Guillén. Bibliotheca Praehistorica Hispana, CSIC, Madrid, pp. 343-363.

Cruz Berrocal, M., Serrano, E., Valentin, F., Tsang, Ch., Gorostiza, A., Campoy, E., Pereira, R., González Martín, A., Bracker, K. 2020 The study of European migration in Asia-Pacific during the Early Modern period: San Salvador de Isla Hermosa (Keelung, Taiwan). International Journal of Historical Archaeology 24: 233-283, DOI: 10.1007/s10761-019-00520-z

Chuang, Ch-M., Shea, K-Sh., Lu, Sh-T., Tsang, Ch-H., Borao, J., Cruz Berrocal, M., Chen, P-T., Liu, Y-Ch., Serrano Herrero, E., Consuegra Rodriguez, S., Gener Moret, M. 2018 Significance of High-Energy Event Deposits Found in the Geological Investigation of Archaeological Test Pits On Heping Island, Keelung. Western Pacific Earth Sciences 15-18: 1-18. [Indexada en Zoological Record (Online); GeoRef; Scopus, 1979-1991; MinAbs Online].

Cruz Berrocal, M.; Serrano, E.; Gener, M.; Uriarte, A.; Torra, M.; Consuegra, S.; Chevalier, A.; Valentin, F.; Tsang, Ch. 2018 A comprised archaeological history of Taiwan through the long-term record of Heping Dao, Keelung. International Journal of Historical Archaeology 22: 905-940. DOI: 10.1007/s10761-017-0453-y.

Cruz Berrocal, M. Herrero, E. S., Pérez, M. T., and Tsang, C.-H. (2017) ‘2016 Season’s Archaeological Investigations in Heping dao, Keelung, Taiwan’, The Proceeding of the Annual Conference of Taiwan Archaeologists. Taichung: National Museum of Natural Science

Cruz Berrocal, M., Tsang, Ch. (eds.) 2017 Historical archaeology of the Early Modern Colonialism in Asia Pacific. The Southwest Pacific and Oceanian regions. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, ISBN 978-0-8130-5475-9

Cruz Berrocal, M., Tsang, Ch. (eds.) 2017 Historical archaeology of the Early Modern Colonialism in Asia Pacific. The Asia-Pacific region. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, ISBN 978-0-8130-5476-6

Cruz Berrocal, M., Tsang, Ch. 2017 Introduction: Understanding Early Modern Colonialism in Asia and the Pacific. In Cruz Berrocal, M., Tsang, Ch. (eds.) Historical archaeology of the Early Modern Colonialism in Asia Pacific. The Southwest Pacific and Oceanian regions. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, pp. 1-9

Cruz Berrocal, M. 2016 Ilha Formosa, 17th century: archaeology in small islands, history of global processes. In Montón, S., Cruz Berrocal, M., Ruiz, C. (eds.) Archaeologies of Early Modern Spanish Colonialism. Springer, Cham: 281-302

Cruz Berrocal, M., Serrano, E., Consuegra, S., Torra, M., Gener, M., Montón, S., Tsang, Ch. 2015 Continuity and European disruption in the Heping Island archaeological record: excavation of test pits T2P8 and T3P1. In J. Borao, Hsiao-Chun Hung (eds.) Recovering the past of Jilong. New archaeological findings from Heping Island of northern Taiwan. SMC, Taipei: 117-135

Cruz Berrocal, M.; Consuegra, S.; Gener, M.; Montón, S.; Serrano, E. 2014 Arqueología histórica española: investigación del asentamiento colonial español de San Salvador de Quelung (siglo XVII). Informes y Trabajos. Excavaciones en el exterior 2012, 11: 91-104. Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte

Cruz Berrocal, M., Serrano, E., Torra, M., Walid, S., Consuegra, S., Gener, M., Tsang, Ch. 2014 Summary of excavations in Hoping Dao, Keelung, Taiwan. Monumenta Taiwanica 10: 129-144

Cruz Berrocal, M.; Consuegra, S.; Gener, M.; Montón, S. 2012 Arqueología histórica española: prospección y excavación del Fuerte de Quelung (siglo XVII), Hoping Dao, Taiwán. Informes y Trabajos 9, Ministerio de Cultura, Madrid: 651-672

Funding

PI: MCB

  • the Formosa Program 2010, National Science Council of Taiwan and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC)
  • Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness Acciones Complementarias program (HAR2011-16017-E)
  • Spanish Ministry of Culture in its program Excavaciones Arqueológicas en el Exterior in 2011, 2012, 2018, 2021
  • Chiang Ching Kuo Foundation (2013 and 2020)
  • University of Konstanz through its Anschubsfinanzierung-EU call, and the EU FP7 Marie Curie Zukunftskolleg Incoming Fellowship Programme, University of Konstanz (grant no. 291784) between 2014 and 2017
  • the Fundación Palarq (2018)
  • program STAR2-Santander Universidades and Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports, in the frame of the Program Campus de Excelencia Internacional, call CEI 2015 of the project Cantabria Campus Internacional
  • grant PID2020-116196GB-I00 funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by the European Union NextGenerationEU/PRTR.

PI: TCh

  • the Institute of History and Philology of the Academia Sinica (2016)

PI: TCh, EH, MCB

  • Keelung City Cultural Affairs Bureau (2019-2021)

Team

Directors: María Cruz Berrocal, Chenghwa Tsang, Ellen Hsieh.

Archaeologists: Elena Serrano Herrero, Mar Torra, Susana Consuegra, Adrián García Rojo, Marc Gener.

Other archaeologists who collaborated with the project are Eva Redondo, Manolo Presas, Sabah Walid, Luis Hernández, and Luis Teira as a topographer.

Experts who collaborate in different analytical programs about the site are María Martín Seijo, Miguel Sánchez Carro, María Sebastián López, Kathrin Nägele, Selina Carlhoff, Ana Belén Marín, Antonio Higuero, Frederique Valentin, Sofía Samper Carro, Zandra Fagernaes, Christine Warinner, Miriam Cubas, Jennifer Jones, Nuria Castañeda.

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