An old burial ground is seen as a potential archeological site in Mapanas, Northern Samar, which calls for more effort to preserve the province’s rich history, the local government said recently.

The provincial government said that years ago, locals saw human skeletons on a rocky cliff across the Mayongpayong Rock Formations, reported to be an old burial ground wherein remains were piled at the top of the rocks.

“These bones, which looked broader and taller, were believed to be of our ancestors, which dated back during the pre-Spanish era,” Northern Samar provincial tourism office chief Maria Josette Doctor told the Philippine News Agency on Monday.

Doctor said representatives from the National Museum of the Philippines (NMP) and the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) visited the province last week to inspect human skeletons in Mapanas, one of the towns facing the Pacific Ocean.

“Presently, we don’t know the number of skeletons in the area since these are scattered. It needs further assessment. That is why, we touched base with NCCA and NMP, so we, together with the municipal local government, will be guided on what to do with the discovery years ago,” she said.

Doctor said the cooperation between the provincial government, NCCA, and NMP is a significant step towards unfolding history and discovering a richer cultural wealth in Northern Samar.

Located on the Pacific coast, Mapanas was once part of Palapag as one of its villages during the Spanish regime. The town is known not only for its stunning seaboard but also for its rock formations and mountain caverns, according to the local tourism office.

Mapanas is a 5th-class town in Northern Samar with a population of 14,234 people. (PNA)