The Dominican Republic has a rich and storied history that traces back over 8,000 years to the arrival of the Taino Indians. Following the island's discovery by Christopher Columbus in 1492, the Republic had epic interaction with the Spanish, French, Haitians and Africans. It's no wonder, then, how the Dominican Republic came to boast such an impressive collection of personal and cultural relics from centuries past. 

The country has done a magnificent job of maintaining and preserving these artifacts as well as the historical structures in which they're housed. Visiting the Dominican Republic's major cities, especially Santo Domingo, tourists can easily become engrossed in the historical legends that accompany some of the oldest museums and archeological sites in the New World. 

The Dominican Republic also has a unique collection of natural rocks and gems that can only be found on the island. Near Barahona, a turquoise-blue pectolite stone known as larimar has been cultivated from the volcanic rock that once formed the island. The country's most popular gem, amber, is the result of tree sap that hardened millions of years ago, sometimes capturing small plants, animals and insects inside. These two geological imprints are used in jewelry, sometimes together and other times in single pieces. 

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