In a Virginia Beach, VA newspaper on 7/29/15 it was reported that archaeologists excavating a burial site in the first church of the Jamestown settlement found the graves of four men, one containing an artifact that was clearly of Roman Catholic origin. This is of interest because the settlers there were Protestants and Europe at the time was mired in Catholic vs Protestant conflict, to the point that the settlers were thought to think of Catholics as spies from a Spanish colony to the south; at least one Catholic was executed according to this report. The artifact was a two and half inch silver box with an "M" etched into the cover. The item was referred to as a "reliquary" and small human bones and a "ampulla", a container used to collect holy water, were determine to be inside. The artifact was found on the grave of Capt. Gabriel Archer who was the secretary of the colony and "kept records of explorations aimed at finding gold or silver...". Was Capt Archer a Roman Catholic? The article does not clearly say for sure.
(Source: "Why was a Catholic artifact buried in a Protestant Colony" by Joanne Kimberlin of The Virginian Pilot. The Virginian Pilot on 7/29/15)
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