One if the Dominican Republic’s most important archaeological sites, the Pomier Caves in San Cristobal, half an hour west of the capital city, will be closed for about six months for renovations and specialized conservation efforts. This thorough remake of the access, trails, and paths through the caves are being carried out in order to allow the hollowed grounds of the nation’s Taino past to be preserved for many, many years to come.
Some experts use fancy words such as “sustainable eco-tourism,” but this is really a program to keep the caves suitable for people to see and enjoy. So many of the Dominican national treasures have been marred by human graffiti, that the rescue of the caves has the highest priority.
The Pomier Caves Anthropological Reserve is one of the most important geological spaces in the Caribbean. There are 54 caves with over 4000 pictographs done by the original settlers of the island, the Tainos, who, together with the Caribes and the Siboneys, traveled up the Windward Islands and populated the Greater Antilles many centuries before Columbus arrived in 1492.
The Pomier Caves have survived thanks to the effort of cave specialist Domingo Abreu who has motivated the local community to defend what they have despite the threat of construction material seeking companies in the environs.
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Diario Libre
1 December 2025