It isn't everyday you find out that you have an archaeological dig happening very near to your backyard. In nearby Mecklenburg, there is an ongoing unearthing of an Iroquois site. I had the pleasure today of meeting the lead archaeologist (and budding potter) when she and her partner stopped into the studio. As we poured over sherds and talked about probable causes of certain stains and coatings on the shards, it really brought back memories of my undergrad years in the Amherst MA area. I guess mostly it drove home the desire to be back in academia again. I miss that atmosphere so much!
After they'd left I was thinking about assumptions we make about history when we view it through shards and artifacts. I think sometimes we find very far fetched solutions to an archaeological conundrum when in all likelihood the simpler solution is more likely. Occam's stone arrowhead?
It left me with the question from Edgar in Men in Black..... where do you bury your dead?
No comments:
Post a Comment