Having spent many a weekend sifting through mud for a few pot shards - as a hobby, no less - I can agree that Indy Jones is perhaps a bit over the top. Who woulda thought movies wouldn't be accurate? Perhaps the best story of modern archaeolgy I've heard is about some ongoing work at a French fort site on the Great Lakes. They used to use day-release prisoners to help with the tedious, dirt-sifting labor. Now they use grad students.
Here's a cheerful look at what archaeologists face day to day. (Not.) Onion.Archaeologist
Having spent many a weekend sifting through mud for a few pot shards - as a hobby, no less - I can agree that Indy Jones is perhaps a bit over the top. Who woulda thought movies wouldn't be accurate? Perhaps the best story of modern archaeolgy I've heard is about some ongoing work at a French fort site on the Great Lakes. They used to use day-release prisoners to help with the tedious, dirt-sifting labor. Now they use grad students.
ReplyDeleteHere's a cheerful look at what archaeologists face day to day. (Not.)
Onion.Archaeologist