6. Archaeological Dig and Exhibition Area

Following the path leading from the spice garden, we arrived at the archaeological dig and exhibition area.

The archaelogical dig had us staring into space and wondering what artefacts were dug up and how the exacavation work was actually done. Archaeological research on this site began in 1984 and thousands of artefacts from the 14^th century have been discovered since.

As we walked around the exhibition area, some of the details on the information boards caught our attention. For example, archaeologists could tell from the dark soil found beneath a red layer of clay that human activities had caused this unusual phenomenon (as seen in the first picture). That prompted the archaeological dig at Fort Canning. Over 30,000 artefacts dating from the 14^th century were uncovered, ranging from porcelains to Chinese coins, earthenware to ceramics, and glass to pottery. Most of the items originated from other countries, such as China and Thailand. Based on the artefacts found, trading activities are highly active in Malaya and historians deduced that the life in Singapore in the 14^th century was probably not as simple as what it was thought to be. And it left us wondering how life was like at that time... hmm...