According to the director of the Lagos Museum, a ‘manilla’, a metal ring used to buy individuals, and a pit containing five skeletons - one of whom displayed violent tendencies -were discovered during excavations in the heart of Lagos. Although Lagos was previously linked to the slave traffic, this is the first instance of a piece being found that was used expressly as payment for individuals.

The ‘manilla’ was found in 2023 during excavations close to the village entrance, the archaeologist, Elena Morán explained adding that “Many of these pieces were produced in the current Netherlands and commissioned by the Portuguese, and this ‘manilla’, dating from the 16th century, coincides with the time when the slave trade began”. Archaeologists also discovered another burial site near the village gate in the same area: a pit containing five skeletons, one of which had marks of violence from a 16th-century incident.

The person in charge claimed that throughout this period, the urban centre was structured around parish churches and related cemeteries, and it was uncommon for funerals to occur outside of these locations unless the deceased were slaves, individuals with contagious diseases, or abnormalities. As Elena further explained “We dug around 50 pits in that perimeter, some were wells for water, others for depositing waste or serving as reservoirs. The discovery of the burials was completely unexpected”.

A huge dump outside of Lagos' walls was discovered in 2009 during excavations for the construction of a parking lot. 158 skeletons were discovered there, and it was later determined by exhumation that they were African in origin. As Elena Morán defended “Slavery is not a thing of the past, the fact that we can talk about these topics helps to create awareness, to be more alert, to identify the signs and eventually to be able to report it”.