PUERTO RICO
Shaping the Centuries
By Amya Green
New Britain, CT, United States
Among the centuries-old stone walls of Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, stretches a wide, sunlit square. This public space, known as the Plaza del Quinto Centenario (Square of the Fifth Centennial), opened in 1992 to celebrate 500 years since Christopher Columbus arrived in the Americas. It invites visitors to explore both history and geometry in one unforgettable stop.
Nearly every corner of the plaza weaves in the number five. Five broad terraces rise one above the next, each marking a century of Puerto Rican history since Europeans arrived. Two needle-like columns on five-sided bases point toward the North Star.
The lampposts and stair ramps hold more pentagons. The number five even shows as a Roman numeral supporting the benches. Squares and triangles appear as well, turning the entire area into an open-air geometry lesson.
Layers of History
The plaza also tells a deeper story. Long before European ships appeared, the Taíno people knew the island as Borikén. Columbus landed there in 1493 and claimed the land for Spain. Settlers called the harbor Puerto Rico, which means “rich port.” Over time, this name came to refer to the entire island.
In 1508 Juan Ponce de León built the first Spanish town, Caparra, a few miles inland. Fortune-seekers soon made gold extraction the colony’s main business, prompting the construction of forts to protect treasure fleets bound for Spain.
Modern sculpture honors the Taíno leader Kasike Mabodamaca. Photo credit: Jeff Hitchcock via Flickr
Spanish rulers forced Taíno families to work the gold mines and accept Catholic teaching. Infectious diseases, warfare, and exploitation devastated the Indigenous population. When workers grew scarce, the Spanish began to import laborers. The first ship carrying enslaved Africans arrived in 1519. Thousands more followed to toil in the dwindling gold mines and the expanding sugarcane fields.
Heritage Carved in Clay
One feature of the plaza tries to honor that complex past. Standing at its center is a forty-foot sculpture made of ceramics, concrete, and black granite. Puerto Rican artist Jaime Suárez created El Tótem Telúrico from clay fragments that echo Taíno pottery. Look closely and you’ll spot hundreds of broken pots embedded like pieces of a giant puzzle. It reminds visitors of the people who shaped Puerto Rico long before 1493.
The Plaza del Quinto Centenario shows how math and history can share the same ground. Count the five terraces, hunt for pentagons, and trace the stone compass rose that points true north. For Puerto Rican and other Hispanic students, its architectural elements reflect their own heritage. For everyone else, it brings geometry to life.
Seeing math through culture helps every learner feel that the subject belongs to them.
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Math Resources
Learning Activities:
- Geometry: Early Elementary (CCSS K.G.A.1, K.G.A.2, 1.G.A.1, 2.G.A.1)
- Geometry: Grade 8 (CCSS 8.G.C.9)
Sample Problems:
- The plaza has five terraces stacked like giant steps. Suppose each terrace is two feet higher than the one below it. How many vertical feet do you climb from the lowest terrace to the top? If the builders had made each rise three feet instead, what would the total climb be? Create a drawing or table to help someone else see your reasoning.
- Stand at the center of the plaza’s compass rose. Face due north, then turn right until you point halfway between north and east. How many degrees did you rotate? Now turn left from north until you point halfway between north and west. Compare the two turns. What pattern do you notice about these “in-between” directions?
- At noon on a sunny day the 40-foot totem casts a 13-foot shadow. Nearby, a visitor who is about 5 feet tall steps into the same sunlight. How long will the visitor’s shadow be? Show how a sketch or a proportion helps you decide.
- Sailors first called the harbor Puerto Rico, then that name shifted to the whole island. Imagine the name change took 20 years. If you place the events on a number line starting at 1493, in which year would the harbor officially keep the name San Juan?
Social Justice Questions
- For centuries, public monuments have often reflected the perspectives of those in power rather than the people most affected by the events they commemorate. Why do you think the decision-makers chose to spotlight Columbus’s arrival in the plaza while bypassing the Taíno people who were already living on the island?
- Imagine witnessing Columbus’s ships through Taíno eyes. What emotions or concerns might have surfaced, and why do you think places like this plaza so rarely tell that side of the story?
Explore Further
- Modern legacy of the Taíno
- More information about Puerto Rico’s history
- Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico webpage for the Tótem Telúrico
- All you need to know about the Cara del Indio sculpture
- Profile of a Taíno leader
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