So, field school is over
It's kind of hard to believe. I am sitting here thinking "wow..." and nothing more coherent than that
I find that I'm able to be a lot more optimistic and fond of something after it's over (it happens with most of my classes, usually)
I can honestly say I'm not that great at archaeology. I work slowly, and I ask too many dumb questions (much to the frustration of my supervisors and peers) and I cannot accurately determine a Munsell soil color 99% of the time. and that's fine. I had a great time doing it ... most of the time.
I am kind of sad for other reasons.
First, I lost my $12 trowel :(
On a more serious note, I am kind of sad that while I have new acquaintances and new experiences, I don't think I really bonded the way that the rest of the group did. This is kind of depressing. Even the people that also were not living on UE's campus made pretty good friends with someone. :-\
In a professional way, I kind of wish I had something more to show of this; they took my field notebook (which we knew about) and I didn't take any pictures.
HOWEVER, Caitlin took a whole bunch and put them online! http://s718.photobucket.com/albums/ww188/angelmounds09/
Look and enjoy :)
Also, we were in the paper today. For reals, rather than the tiny blurb from 6 weeks ago.
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/jun/18/history-in-a-jar/
yes, I felt the need to post comments to better enlighten evansville readers
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
What's been going on
So HOLY CRAP I haven't blogged in a looooong time.
So, in the past 11 days we've gotten a LOT done.
First, we excavated down to the floor mat. That was easier said than done... it took us 3 days of excavation (which is just plain ridiculous, based on rate). Basically it was our first stratographic level, so everything was a "excavate until you hit black" more than "go down 5 cm" At some points, we were removing soil with dental picks (I, thankfully, was spared this task).
We also removed both the complete pot (which is actually partially broken, but mostly intact which is still a HUGE deal). Whole Mississippian pots haven't been found for at least 60 years at angel. two years ago they excavated a building that was used to make pottery... none of it was intact.
We also removed all of the broken pot, which was surrounded by a bunch of maize kernels... like actual kernels that you could pick up (I didn't get to ]: ). These are pretty rare, but don't help diagnostically do things with early Mississippian Angel people and their 80% corn diet business.
Another cool thing that went down this week was a visit from a paleoethnobotanist... an archaeologist who studies plants, basically. She did some cool things with taking apart the parts of the mat that were well preserved. Based on her preliminary stuff, she thinks the mat was a cane mat, kind of similar to bamboo mats in Southeast Asia. She knew a lot of cool stuff about plants in archaeological context. She also found a log in our unit, which is cool. It's also near the center feature which MAY be a fire pit. MAYBE
Interesting thing about the area below the mat: we found rocks. Like the kind you would use to skip stones on water... They were under the mat, and cover a pretty largish area of the unit. We're hypothesizing that the rocks were used as like drainage... but we're not sure why, since they're not ANYWHERE else in the other 3/4 of the building. We also think we found the entryway to the building, based on where the rocks are. I think that's awesome.
Anywho, we're in sterile soil now. This week seems like it's been going on for years! we're coming in earlier and later, but we get a lot done. Today we did posthole explorations. We found FOUR posts... and i found two... in the same hole that I dug... it was kind of awesome. (the second post was a bonus, and not based on the stained area that I was excavating.
We've been having some weather issues. Mainly it's been RAINING. Now, normally rain isn't too bad for archaeology, but with the whole mat issue, as well as horizontal rain and downpours, our ability to work in the field is diminished. We had to end early today (like. 1.5 hours early) because we had absolutely nothing to do inside during the torrential downpour.
All that's left for tomorrow--OUR LAST DAY-- is drawing profile walls in Kd and cleaning stuff up. Should be a good end to the season.
I am still amazed by how fast all of this is going... but still seems to drag on. :-\
I might post new stuff tomorrow, concluding thoughts, etc.
So, in the past 11 days we've gotten a LOT done.
First, we excavated down to the floor mat. That was easier said than done... it took us 3 days of excavation (which is just plain ridiculous, based on rate). Basically it was our first stratographic level, so everything was a "excavate until you hit black" more than "go down 5 cm" At some points, we were removing soil with dental picks (I, thankfully, was spared this task).
We also removed both the complete pot (which is actually partially broken, but mostly intact which is still a HUGE deal). Whole Mississippian pots haven't been found for at least 60 years at angel. two years ago they excavated a building that was used to make pottery... none of it was intact.
We also removed all of the broken pot, which was surrounded by a bunch of maize kernels... like actual kernels that you could pick up (I didn't get to ]: ). These are pretty rare, but don't help diagnostically do things with early Mississippian Angel people and their 80% corn diet business.
Another cool thing that went down this week was a visit from a paleoethnobotanist... an archaeologist who studies plants, basically. She did some cool things with taking apart the parts of the mat that were well preserved. Based on her preliminary stuff, she thinks the mat was a cane mat, kind of similar to bamboo mats in Southeast Asia. She knew a lot of cool stuff about plants in archaeological context. She also found a log in our unit, which is cool. It's also near the center feature which MAY be a fire pit. MAYBE
Interesting thing about the area below the mat: we found rocks. Like the kind you would use to skip stones on water... They were under the mat, and cover a pretty largish area of the unit. We're hypothesizing that the rocks were used as like drainage... but we're not sure why, since they're not ANYWHERE else in the other 3/4 of the building. We also think we found the entryway to the building, based on where the rocks are. I think that's awesome.
Anywho, we're in sterile soil now. This week seems like it's been going on for years! we're coming in earlier and later, but we get a lot done. Today we did posthole explorations. We found FOUR posts... and i found two... in the same hole that I dug... it was kind of awesome. (the second post was a bonus, and not based on the stained area that I was excavating.
We've been having some weather issues. Mainly it's been RAINING. Now, normally rain isn't too bad for archaeology, but with the whole mat issue, as well as horizontal rain and downpours, our ability to work in the field is diminished. We had to end early today (like. 1.5 hours early) because we had absolutely nothing to do inside during the torrential downpour.
All that's left for tomorrow--OUR LAST DAY-- is drawing profile walls in Kd and cleaning stuff up. Should be a good end to the season.
I am still amazed by how fast all of this is going... but still seems to drag on. :-\
I might post new stuff tomorrow, concluding thoughts, etc.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Indiana Weather=Insane
So, usual things going on this week, in terms of archaeology.
Unusual things going on with the weather. Oh lord.
Monday and Tuesday were the hottest days so far this calendar year, breaking 90º both days. It was HOT HOT HOT, and not in a good way.
Wednesday was a full day of threat of rain and thunderstorms, which never happened...
Then Thursday happened... Oh thursday. I, for some reason, didn't think to check the weather before I left on thursday for field school. I was on water screen, so i dressed in a t-shirt and a pair of swim shorts. I get in my car and grab a jacket because I was kind of cold... Upon arriving at site, I discover that it's FUCKING FREEZING (so... like 55º, but still SUPER cold).
Not the best day to water screen, but thankfully I got to spend most of the morning in the museum doing paperwork, so it wasn't 8 hours of misery. Ironic thing was that we were warmer while water screening than when we weren't... the water was warmer than the air, which I think helped.
Then Friday was absolutely beautiful, in the low to mid 70s all day.
Archaeological developments: the pot rim found like... two weeks ago is proving to be a rather large jar, which we think might be on the floor of our structure. we found another, smaller pot rim, which might yield a smaller whole pot. We found the first pieces of our burned mat floor in one of our units, which is equally exciting. and I found a piece of bone while water screening, which is super cool too! :D
Personal comments: I sliced my hand on stone tool flakes two days in a row. They're starting to heal.
Archaeology has karma, I think. Every time I accidentally inflict problems on myself, the universe sees fit to put that back on me; case in point, I have stabbed two people with trowels, repaid with my hand injuries. I kept accidentally spraying people in neighboring water screens... I was thoroughly doused by one of the interns.
Karma. It's real
Unusual things going on with the weather. Oh lord.
Monday and Tuesday were the hottest days so far this calendar year, breaking 90º both days. It was HOT HOT HOT, and not in a good way.
Wednesday was a full day of threat of rain and thunderstorms, which never happened...
Then Thursday happened... Oh thursday. I, for some reason, didn't think to check the weather before I left on thursday for field school. I was on water screen, so i dressed in a t-shirt and a pair of swim shorts. I get in my car and grab a jacket because I was kind of cold... Upon arriving at site, I discover that it's FUCKING FREEZING (so... like 55º, but still SUPER cold).
Not the best day to water screen, but thankfully I got to spend most of the morning in the museum doing paperwork, so it wasn't 8 hours of misery. Ironic thing was that we were warmer while water screening than when we weren't... the water was warmer than the air, which I think helped.
Then Friday was absolutely beautiful, in the low to mid 70s all day.
Archaeological developments: the pot rim found like... two weeks ago is proving to be a rather large jar, which we think might be on the floor of our structure. we found another, smaller pot rim, which might yield a smaller whole pot. We found the first pieces of our burned mat floor in one of our units, which is equally exciting. and I found a piece of bone while water screening, which is super cool too! :D
Personal comments: I sliced my hand on stone tool flakes two days in a row. They're starting to heal.
Archaeology has karma, I think. Every time I accidentally inflict problems on myself, the universe sees fit to put that back on me; case in point, I have stabbed two people with trowels, repaid with my hand injuries. I kept accidentally spraying people in neighboring water screens... I was thoroughly doused by one of the interns.
Karma. It's real
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Profile Wall
I am resentful of the fact that Luke, Kaitlin, and I had to draw a bigger version of our profile wall... outside of field school... on a Sunday.
>:(
>:(
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Geoarchaeology Week
Not much to say about this week really...
I drew a profile wall. For those not in the know, a profile wall is basically drawing the layers (or stratigraphy) that occurred naturally at the site. We then name them, (unit 1, 2, 3, abc), define their texture (clay, sand, loam) and color.
I suck at determining colors of soils. I'm just not good at it. I messed up roughly 6 or 7 attempts at determining color in less than 2 hours. D:
We also did more survey on Mound E (and didn't have to draw a contour map of it... yay!) and did a resistivity test.
Resistivity measures the ability of current to travel through the soil. We put 72 metal pins in the ground and send current. Based on the differences between the points, one can determine how well it conducts electricity, which helps figure out soil type.
I have no idea what this will help us learn about the mound. We didn't discuss that.
Luke, Kaitlin and I talked a lot... and we DID sit around a lot doing nothing.
I also got very muddy and got bug bites... :\
back to excavation and waterscreen next week! YAY!
I really enjoy excavation, if I haven't indicated that previously
I drew a profile wall. For those not in the know, a profile wall is basically drawing the layers (or stratigraphy) that occurred naturally at the site. We then name them, (unit 1, 2, 3, abc), define their texture (clay, sand, loam) and color.
I suck at determining colors of soils. I'm just not good at it. I messed up roughly 6 or 7 attempts at determining color in less than 2 hours. D:
We also did more survey on Mound E (and didn't have to draw a contour map of it... yay!) and did a resistivity test.
Resistivity measures the ability of current to travel through the soil. We put 72 metal pins in the ground and send current. Based on the differences between the points, one can determine how well it conducts electricity, which helps figure out soil type.
I have no idea what this will help us learn about the mound. We didn't discuss that.
Luke, Kaitlin and I talked a lot... and we DID sit around a lot doing nothing.
I also got very muddy and got bug bites... :\
back to excavation and waterscreen next week! YAY!
I really enjoy excavation, if I haven't indicated that previously
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
What's new...
So, it's getting hot. More than anything, it's getting humid. :(
In good news: I am tanning now, rather than burning.
In bad news: I have awful tan lines :-\
Friday, I water screened. It was generally unexciting, and lordy I'm not so good at it... Especially with clay.
If you ever really want to get a feeling for water screening, get a block of clay (like, the hard compact kind from the ground, not the kind from the store). Soak this in water. Then try and force it through a window screen, while spraying it with water... It's not easy.
This week, my crew (consisting of Luke, Kaitlin and myself) are working on geoarchaeology... this rotation, according to last weeks' group involves a lot of standing around :-\
For those of you not in the same weather area as evansville, it rained a LOT this weekend. This meant that Angel Mounds was a huge mud pit. This in turn meant that we got to bail out the units. Fun fun fun. (side note: we might have destoyed a bunch of unit A on accident... OOPS)
After bailing water, I stood around a lot... A LOT. Then I learned how to set up and level Survey equipment. This was followed by lunch (in summary, ~3 hours of doing nothing but stand)
After lunch, it rained. and by rained, i mean it POURED. So we chilled out, in a shed for about an hour.
Then, for the next 3 hours, my crew learned about taking survey points. We then took 108 survey points over a mound (Mound E, the third largest mound at Angel). I'm pretty sure my pants were destroyed by wading through vegetation. We're thinking about bringing a machete tomorrow...
So... basically, I didn't do a lot today.
Great quote though.
"Ew. Why do you spit it out?"
"What, do you think I should swallow it?"
"Uh, yes. Then I wouldn't have to see it"
(That's what he and she said?)
This conversation had to do with hawking loogies... I think I have developed the same revulsion to spit that Alyssa has... but maybe not on the same scale
In good news: I am tanning now, rather than burning.
In bad news: I have awful tan lines :-\
Friday, I water screened. It was generally unexciting, and lordy I'm not so good at it... Especially with clay.
If you ever really want to get a feeling for water screening, get a block of clay (like, the hard compact kind from the ground, not the kind from the store). Soak this in water. Then try and force it through a window screen, while spraying it with water... It's not easy.
This week, my crew (consisting of Luke, Kaitlin and myself) are working on geoarchaeology... this rotation, according to last weeks' group involves a lot of standing around :-\
For those of you not in the same weather area as evansville, it rained a LOT this weekend. This meant that Angel Mounds was a huge mud pit. This in turn meant that we got to bail out the units. Fun fun fun. (side note: we might have destoyed a bunch of unit A on accident... OOPS)
After bailing water, I stood around a lot... A LOT. Then I learned how to set up and level Survey equipment. This was followed by lunch (in summary, ~3 hours of doing nothing but stand)
After lunch, it rained. and by rained, i mean it POURED. So we chilled out, in a shed for about an hour.
Then, for the next 3 hours, my crew learned about taking survey points. We then took 108 survey points over a mound (Mound E, the third largest mound at Angel). I'm pretty sure my pants were destroyed by wading through vegetation. We're thinking about bringing a machete tomorrow...
So... basically, I didn't do a lot today.
Great quote though.
"Ew. Why do you spit it out?"
"What, do you think I should swallow it?"
"Uh, yes. Then I wouldn't have to see it"
(That's what he and she said?)
This conversation had to do with hawking loogies... I think I have developed the same revulsion to spit that Alyssa has... but maybe not on the same scale
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Thursday.
Today, we mapped.
Now, while this sounds like a pretty basic thing... OH LORD IT ISN'T.
It took us roughly 2.5-3 hours to appropriately draw this map. It was INTENSE. I didn't actually draw it... but I measured points.
Also, I learned today that I fail at doing subtraction in my head. Sad, but true, story.
I also got to excavate a 1x1 which was mostly sterile (so we used shovels)... and then I filled out paperwork
I feel that I kind of dominate at paperwork... just saying
Now, while this sounds like a pretty basic thing... OH LORD IT ISN'T.
It took us roughly 2.5-3 hours to appropriately draw this map. It was INTENSE. I didn't actually draw it... but I measured points.
Also, I learned today that I fail at doing subtraction in my head. Sad, but true, story.
I also got to excavate a 1x1 which was mostly sterile (so we used shovels)... and then I filled out paperwork
I feel that I kind of dominate at paperwork... just saying
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