Four Hundred Souls

Vaughan, Ontario. One Grave: Four Hundred Souls Approximately 43°52'6.47"N 79°32'23.53"W, facing East, circa August 15, 2005

Vaughan, Ontario. One Grave: Four Hundred Souls

Approximately 43°52’6.47″N  79°32’23.53″W, facing East, circa August 15, 2005

In the days immediately following the discovery of an apparent mass grave exposed by a road grader that was widening the roadway to service a new housing development, archeologists work to determine the extent of a 700 year old ossuary containing the bones of roughly 400 Huron-Wendat people. As dictated by recently introduced protocols mandating extensive aboriginal consultation, police stand guard around the clock until a determination is made on the fate of the ossuary. Eventually it is left in situ, sealed and protected, and the course of Teston Road altered to accommodate the sacred site.