In the city of Ponce, there is a place with great cultural and historical value, and one of the most important indigenous archaeological sites in the Caribbean. We are talking about the Centro Ceremonial Indígena del Tibes (Indian Ceremonial Center of Tibes), a center that keeps historical evidence of our ancestors and their journey through our island. This center is located on State Road #503, in the city of Ponce. To take part of the tour of the center can be extremely interesting and educating, because not only the center exhibits artifacts that the indians used, but you can also see rock formations, petroglyphs and more.
In this center, you will find collected artifacts and information about the lives of our ancestors. Contrary to what many people believe, in this island the Taino Indians were not the only civilization that lived here, but 3 different cultures: the archaic, the igneris and pre-tainos. The Archaic where coastal and nomads therefore, they did not leave evidence of their civilization. However, the Igneris and pre-Tainos left evidence of their civilization through artifacts and skeletons.
In the facilities of the Indian Ceremonial Center of Tibes, you can find many different stones and rock formations. According to professionals who have studied the area, the structures found in the ceremonial center are all original. As well, it is believed by the 
professionals that the Igneris civilization used the structures as a cemetery, since they have found over 186 skeletons within the center. After the Igneris, the Tainos arrived and built approximately 12 structures to be used for celebrations.
One of the structures is a main square: it has three entrances and a rock in the middle, which is led to believed that it was used for ceremonies. A few steps away you can find a long rectangular structure and it was most likely used for sports. On your right side, you will then find three triangles, which are believed to be used to welcome the solstices and equinoxes, since on those specific days the sunrise would aligned on one of the head of the triangles on each event.
The peculiarity of these structures is the fact that they are unique in Puerto Rico, since they are not found in similar places on the island. Even though we have an indigenous center in the town of Utuado, it is very different to the one in Ponce: one marks the beginning, while the other marks the end of the culture in the island. The Indian Ceremonial Center of Tibes marks the beginning of the Taino culture: Puerto Rico is located in the Caribbean and the south area of the island is very close to Venezuela therefore, it is believed that the Igneris arrived through the south of Puerto Rico, since they would hopped from island to island taking advantage of the Orinoco River when it rained. Since the waves off the coast of the town of Naguabo are quite strong, and the reefs are dangerous, theories suggest that the Igneris took advantage of the south to get into the island and established themselves in Ponce. Afterwards, the Taino culture arrived and continued their journey and ended in the town of Utuado.
Origin:
The Indian Ceremonial Center of Tibes was discovered by Mr. Luis Hernadez approximately in 1975. After Hurrican Eloise, several items like vases were exposed to the surface. Luis Hernandez advised the Southwest Archaeological Society, along with other organizations and specialists like Ricardo Alegria, Juan Gonzalez and Antonio Curet, began the investigation of the area. After several efforts, the center opened to the public in 1982.
Tour:
Once at the center, guests are invited to visit the the museums and its exhibitions, which you will find artifacts such as pottery, human bones, tools of hunting, among many others. Afterwards, everyone will go into a conference room where a documentary about the origins of the center and its archaeological findings is presented. The documentary is bilingual and it last approximately 12 minutes, and it is an interesting documentary because you get to learn more about the culture of an extinct civilization. Once the documentary has ended, the tour through the facilities outdoors begins with a tour guide. You will visit several locations, like the Indian village and the archaeological area where the ceremonial center are located. During the tour, you will able to see different types of trees used by the Indians to eat, to make their artifacts, among other uses. The whole tour can last approximately about an hour and half, between the documentary, the museum and visiting the ceremonial center. We strongly recommend to visit the Indian Ceremonial Center of Tibes; is very interesting and educational.
Information:
The center has an entrance fee of $2.00 USD for children between the age of 2 to 12 years old. $3.00 USD for adults between the age of 13 to 59 years old, and $1.50 USD for seniors between the age of 60 to 74 years old. The center opens from Tuesday to Sunday from 9:00am to 4:00pm, but it is highly recommended to call at 787-840-5685 to confirm the hours of operations. The location has free parking space, vending machines for drinks and snacks.
The coordinates to get to the location are 18.04115,-66.62048. To see more pictures, you can visit our gallery in Pinterest HERE. Watch our video about our experience:
Adictos a Descubrir PR is not liable for any damages caused by performing the activities mentioned here; changes of date, time and / or place of the events; or changes in prices. Should you have any questions, you may contact us through our social media or contact the place of interest.
Addicted to Discover 