A "significant archaeological find" — that included carved wooden images — in a lava tube on the construction site of a Kona luxury home project is causing a buzz on the Big Island despite attempts to keep the discovery under wraps.

On Sept. 21, equipment accidentally punctured a lava tube on the construction site of The Shores of Kohanaiki, according to a Sept. 27 letter from state Historic Preservation Division Administrator Melanie Chinen to Dennis Frost of Rutter Development Co., which is heading the project.

While no human remains were "documented," Chinen said in her letter, "we believe a significant archaeological site is located within the tube."

Chinen yesterday declined to discuss the project, citing a request for confidentiality made by the landowner.

Paul Rosendahl, a Hilo, Hawai'i-based archaeologist hired by California-based Rutter Development Corp., said an unspecified number of artifacts of an indeterminate age were located in the lava tube at the construction site of the 500-home project between Keahole Airport and Kailua, Kona.

Rosendahl declined to give details of what was found.

"It's impressive, I will tell you that," he said. In 37 years as an archaeologist in Hawai'i, he said, "I have never seen anything like this."

He said the artifacts were at least 50 years old and "likely" more than 100 years old.

After talking to Chinen's office, the landowner has sealed the cave temporarily and kept it under around-the-clock monitoring. Work in the immediate vicinity of the cave has ceased, although construction continues elsewhere on the 450-acre site.

In cases in which human remains are found, the final disposition is made by the state, Rosendahl said, but in cases where there are no human remains, the landowner "takes the lead."

Before making a final determination, Rutter and partner Kennedy-Wilson International want to consult with the state and interested parties he described as "kupuna who are kama'aina to Kohanaiki and adjacent lands."

The landowner wanted to keep information about the site confidential both to protect it and to adhere to the wishes of elders in the area who "felt this was a private matter (and that) these things were hidden and meant to stay hidden."

Hawai'i County Councilman Angel Pilago, who represents North Kona, disagreed with Rosendahl and criticized both the landowner and the Historic Preservation Division for keeping the matter private.

"I think it's much more than a lineal descendancy issue," he said. "I firmly believe it's cultural and intellectual property, and that remains in the purview of the general Hawaiian community."

While the company may have a legal right to withhold the information, the public should know what is buried there, said Pilago, who has had a history with the Kohanaiki site, having been a plaintiff in a landmark 1995 Hawai'i Supreme Court decision that affirmed Native Hawaiian gathering and cultural rights on the coastal development and, ultimately, all private property.

Pilago said he does not trust either the Historic Preservation Division or Rutter and wants the county to be more involved.

But Hawai'i County Planning Director Chris Yuen said that, to date, he has seen nothing nefarious in the actions of Rutter or Historic Preservation.

"My guess is that both SHPD and the majority of the Hawaiian community will say it should be kept in place and sealed up so it can't be disturbed," Yuen said. "And the county would be fine with that."

Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com.