Spotlight on Students: Thinking Like an Archaeologist

 Thinking like an archaeologist is one of the most challenging exercises a novice or inexperienced person can do, including beginner archaeologists.  For one of the SA 202: Introduction to Anthropology assignments students were tasked with doing just that.  By viewing the familiar as the unfamiliar they gained important insights into the challenges archaeologists face, and several of them did exceptionally well in the exercise.  Here is a student's piece that was eligible for and agreed to be published.

 

By: Erin Lambert

 

Thinking Like an Archaeologist

 

            Hello, my name is Erin Lambert, and I am an archaeologist exploring the ruins of what used to be Jefferson City. This was one of the many great cities that once made up the state of Missouri, which is a central state in the land of the United States of America. Like Missouri, the majority of the other territories in the United States were decimated by the War of the Galaxies. The war spanned several years and killed millions of the United States’ citizens as the aliens from the Andromeda Galaxy fought for control over planet Earth, but they only managed to ravage the continent of North America before the war’s end. Nonetheless, fearing a wider and more deadly invasion was coming, the rest of Earth’s people fled to Europa, one of Jupiter’s many moons. Many Earthians did not make it through the journey, but my ancestors were some of the lucky ones, having reached and settled on Europa centuries ago. Since 2024, the United States, Mexico, and Canada have all been desolate. Following the war, the Andromedans stayed and used up all of Earth’s resources, leaving most of it a barren wasteland. Presently, in the year 4037, interest has been piqued as to how the ancients were living before the war, and my people have begun to excavate and explore the once booming nation’s remnants. However, the task has been difficult because of how destroyed the vast majority of the continent is. I am determined to learn more about this world. I am now standing in the rubble of a central Missouri neighborhood in Jefferson City, surrounded by a plethora of slanted homes. I am nervous, yet excited, to see what these lost ruins hold about the people of the past. More specifically, how these Missourians once lived and the equipment and tools they used to survive.

            I walk through the front door of a small home in a neighborhood that appears to have been relatively well-preserved, as are many homes on this block, but there is still a layer of ash and dirt covering many of the surfaces. I immediately recognize that this may have been an entertainment area or a family room by how wide and spacious it is. It is big enough to hold a large group of people, and has several places to sit. As soon as I walked in, I was greeted by a large glass box that stands directly in front of the door but not quite blocking it. Right above the glass container there is a large and black rectangle. It is thick and about 40 inches wide and 20 inches in height. There are also several black lines running from the back of it and going behind the glass container. To my right there is a wooden black table with a single drawer and a silver knob. Next to the table there is a huge rectangular piece that I am unfamiliar with. It is made out of a leathery material and appears to be used for sitting, as it is built like it is a wider chair and appears to be comfortable to sit on. Beside it sits another small black table, and then another leather chair. However, this one is built like a normal chair. A similar looking stool accompanies it, but it does not have the same backing that the other one has. Nonetheless, I am intrigued already by this civilization’s living conditions. Furthermore, I am standing on compacted dirt and ash, and the original flooring is nowhere to be seen. The room is somewhat clean, other than a few items on the dirt floor, which I assume are from the quick departure this family may have taken from Earth. I created a map to represent the site with each of the furnishings being a blue rectangle. The map also shows where each of the artifacts were found and which artifact is which.

 

            There are several peculiar artifacts scattered about the room and on the tables, and even more that I found from dusting and surveying the site. The first one I pick up out of the rubble and dirt is bone-shaped, but it does not feel like a normal bone or even have the same color as the bones I have seen. It feels rubbery and like plastic, and it is a bluish-teal color all over. There are some ridges, as well as large scrapes and what appear to be tooth marks all over it. It weighs about five pounds, which is all I can deduce about its weight by holding it. It’s also not the only one of its kind in the room, as there are two others in the room that vary in size and color.

The next artifact that I come across is laying just a few feet from the first. It is spherical and yellowish-green in color, almost neon. It is rather light and feels hollow by how light it is. Also, it is covered in little hairs or fibers, except for two white stripes that run over the sides of it, like circles. It is rough to the touch and the only one of its kind in the room. It also feels like it is made out of plastic. The third artifact is unique as well. It is rectangular, small, and about five pounds. It’s dimensions are about eight inches in height, six inches in width, and about two inches thick. The artifact has hundreds of pieces of paper on the inside, something that is very rarely used on Europa. Each piece of paper has strange black symbols and characters. It also has a hard shell encasing the papers and keeping them together. It is all purple with more symbols on the side of the hard shell, which are the color silver. Overall, the artifacts I have found are unfamiliar to me, but I have some theories about what they could have been used for and  how important they were to the family that once lived here.

            From surveying more of the premises, I have some conclusions about the artifacts I have found. The first artifact seems like it may have been a child’s toy, but the teeth marks and scrapes say otherwise. Perhaps it was used by an animal, judging by how large and deep the bites are, which is more than a child or even an adult could create. It could have originated and been used to ward away large predators by giving them something else to occupy themselves with, or for domesticated animals that lived in the home. The second artifact may have also been a child’s toy, as it is light and small. However, I also think it could be used by animals like the first artifact, as they were found relatively close to each other and there was nothing else on the floor with them. Also, because of its hollowness it could have been used to carry very small items. They may have been left on the floor for animals or children to play with. The third artifact may have been used for keeping records or for documentation. It could have been used for entertainment like reading or writing, or alternatively could have been used for conducting research. I also wonder if it was used in religious studies or rituals. Based on its surroundings, as it was present on a table, I can tell it was highly regarded unlike the other two artifacts that were strewn on the floor.

            From examining more of the site and other rooms of the premises, I found that this is the largest and most open room in the home. It is about 180 square feet, and besides the dirt and ash, it is quite clean. I can see this room being used by large families for gatherings or entertainment because of its spaciousness. It may also be used to hold religious meetings or rituals, as it has several artifacts similar to the third one I described. Overall, this home has been well preserved for being through a war, as well as the rest of the neighborhood. It is filled with large furnishings, which lend to the theory that it is for a family.

            Archaeologists like myself face many challenges when working with artifacts. Interpreting them based on the context of the culture and location in which they were found can be very difficult, as well as using this information to piece together information about these past civilizations and cultures. Interpreting these cultural objects with no information as to how the people who used them lived or what the artifacts we find are used for can make interpretation very difficult. Coming from a different planet and excavating centuries after the civilization fell makes it exponentially more troubling, as I am unfamiliar with what they used. Being an archaeologist requires looking at these cultures with an unbiased or culturally relativistic viewpoint. Add on top of that the possibility of looting, which the Andromedans may have done, that may take away vital information about the past, and things like war that can destroy it. Also, there is a significant language barrier because I cannot understand the symbols and language of this culture, which limits what I can deduce about the site (Kintigh 2014). Overall, there can be many obstacles that archaeologists have to face, but it is worth it in the end to learn about the histories or different cultures, and how we can keep from repeating history.

Works Cited

Kintigh, Keith W., et al. “Grand Challenges for Archaeology.” PNAS, National Academy of

Sciences, 21 Jan. 2014, https://www.pnas.org/content/111/3/879. Accessed 10 Nov. 2021.