Ancient human remains have been uncovered during the construction of a 75-storey tower in Florida.
Related Group bought the 4-acre plot, once the site of a US customs house, in Brickell, Miami, for $104m in 2013. Since then it has worked plans for the site, with work expected to start on a Baccarat-branded hotel and 1,400 homes. That work was paused last year after surveyors issued a “notice of discovery”.
Archaeologists exploring the site have now found human remains which they believe date back to a civilisation known as the Tequesta, which lived more than 2,000 years ago, the Wall Street Journal reported. The Tequesta used to live around the mouth of the Miami river, which gave access by canoe to the Everglades to the west and Biscayne Bay to the east.
The plot lies in the neighbourhood of Brickell, one of the fastest-growing areas in the city, where the housing market is rocketing and developers are struggling to keep pace with demand.
“This was always valuable real estate,” said Robert Carr, an archaeologist hired by Related to lead the excavation.
