Human remains and burial practices on Ilin Island, Mindoro Occidental, Philippines.

Abstract

Mindoro is the seventh-largest island of the Philippines. Its geographical location suggests that it could have been an entry point for the settlement of the oceanic part of the Philippine archipelago. Ilin Island is a small island just off the coast of Mindoro. It is not only the southernmost part of Mindoro and thus closest to Palawan Island situated on the Sunda Shelf, but it also offers suitable geological conditions (karstic limestone formations) with numerous rock shelters and caves that make conservation of past human settlements very likely. Archaeological surveys and excavations in recent years have shown that the settlement history of Ilin Island is diverse, reflects how humans have changed their subsistence strategies in response to climate fluctuations, and that there is potential for further discoveries of human remains and burials. A flexed burial from Bubog I, a rock shelter located at the southern end of Ilin Island, has been directly dated to c. 5000 cal BP and, a recently discovered modified phalange from Bubog I, associated with remains of animal bones, might be of similar age. Since 2018, Cansubong II, a cave site located near the shore at the northern end of the island, was excavated and has delivered the remains of several burials that can be assigned to a younger period. Related to the human remains are modified artifacts made of bone and shell that were most likely laid down as grave goods and pottery. This presentation will introduce the human remains and burials of Bubog I and Cansubong II and discuss their chronological, biological, and socio-cultural context within SE Asia.