Introduction In late 1995 the government and private entities formed a pioneer organisation in Panamanian culture resource management, to deal with Panamá's most salient archaeological site, Panamá Viejo. This association, the Patronato Panamá Viejo, was thus commissioned with the investigation and preservation of this 28-hectare site in the centre of modern Panamá City, as well as with keeping the community informed on the progress of the research. It is formed by four partners, the Instituto

more »

... acional de Cultura and the Instituto Nacional de Turismo from the government, and the Kiwanis Club and the Banco del Istmo from the private sector. For the first time, an exclusively Panamanian non-profit organisation would confront this task on a large scale, with a multidisciplinary team of archaeologists, architects, and conservationists, with on-site facilities and laboratories aimed at an in depth study of Panamá's historic and prehistoric past. This organisation is currently conducting extensive archaeological excavations on the site, protecting the stone monuments from further damage from natural and human elements, and trying to inform and educate the public on Panamá Viejo's importance to the country's historical and cultural heritage, and to develop it as a valuable tourist attraction. The Site The site constitutes the original Spanish settlement of the town called Panamá, founded in AD 1519, the first European town on the American Pacific coast ( Figure 1 ). It served first as a base for the exploration of Central and South America, and then as a necessary crossing point for the gold and silver coming from the South American mines on their way to Spain. It led a reasonably prosperous life as a trading town and crossroads, until Henry Morgan attacked in 1671, sacking and destroying most of it. The survivors decided to move ten kilometres west to a more protected site and build a new city there. In 1673 the new city was officially founded, and since then, it has gradually grown to the point that today the ruins of "Panamá Viejo (Old Panamá)", as they are now called, lie at the centre of modern Panamá City. The site today is roughly L shaped, with the main Plaza and town centre on the corner of the L, to the south-east (Figure 2 ). Its limits are, to the south the Bay of Panamá, to the west the Matadero or Algarrobo River, to the east the Gallinero River, and to the north the modern neighbourhood of Panamá Viejo. This modern neighbourhood is standing where the ancient slums of the town stood, as the rich and middle class people lived in and around the centre. The poor whites, Indians, and blacks lived on the outskirts in two slums, Pierdevidas and Malambo, both to the north-west and north respectively of the town. All visible ruins above ground are what have survived of the stone and masonry buildings, which belonged to the Colonial administration, the Church or the very rich. The calculated area of the original site was approximately 70 hectares.