Techniques and concepts of field archaeology. Students will be expected to spend the greatest part of the session in the field during the excavation of prehistoric and historic sites. During summer sessions this course is taught in conjunction with Methods in Archaeology (Anthropology 3170).

This course intends to introduce students to the techniques of archaeological fieldwork. Students will learn how to read stratigraphies, artifacts and building fragments in order to reconstruct the development of the site in time and place. The students will actively be part of the excavation process “from the pickaxe to the pencil,” learning to collect, describe, identify and draw archaeological evidence. They will be required to keep a journal in which they record their experiences and observations, and they will be provided with scholarly literature to contextualize the site. In preparation for the excavation, students will be expected to read an introduction to archaeological fieldwork. To complete their experience short trips to other sites in the area will be organized.