At the other end of the Pacific lies another exotic archaeological site.
A research project on the prehistory of the Solomon Islands was launched in spring 2011. At the beginning the project on the Solomon Islands faced considerable challenges and was a logistical tour de force. Scientific equipment, fuel, tools and household necessities had to be transported by cargo ship from the Solomon capital Honiara to the island of Malaita and then on to the archaeological site. Only then could excavations at the site, Apunirereha, a stone tool workshop near the village of Maniaha, begin. The local occurrence of flint predestined Apunirereha for the production of stone tools. Test excavation has brought to light substantial quantities of hatchets, blades and scrapers in a great variety of forms. Radiocarbon dating provides evidence of occupancy of varying intensity throughout a long time frame from 6,500 BC to 1,600 AD.
The cargo ship arrives at the island of Malaita (Photo: DAI KAAK) 
The excavations on the island of Malaita aroused great curiosity among the local population (Photo: DAI KAAK)