Nago Board of Education surveys Schwab coast for relics

The Nago City Board of Education conducted an investigation of the coastal area at Oura bay on Camp Schwab On Apr. 6 morning to locate possible culturally valuable relicts.

The board pointed out that the board had previously conducted very little survey in the area, specifically within Camp Schwab, and demanded to conduct the investigation before reclamation work in Oura bay and the seawall construction by Okinawa Defense Bureau.

On Apr. 6, four staff members of the board walked through the planned construction site on the Schwab coast conducting a visual survey of the area from 9 a.m. to noon with staff from Okinawa Defense Bureau as witnesses.

The board h scheduled a more detailed investigation for this week starting today, followed by a survey in the deep-water areas off the construction site after consulting the Okinawa Education Bureau.

If the survey discovers new remains or properties in the area, it’s possible that the construction could be stopped for the time of further investigation and subsequent conservation measures based on the Law of Protection of Cultural Properties.

Previously, eight culturally significant relicts have been found within Camp Schwab. In 2015, earthenware, stone tools, pottery and an anchor stone were discovered in the area, and Okinawa Education Bureau confirmed the area as the “Nagasaki Kaneku Relic Scattering Area” in July 2016.