Loading…
19
That time a retired archaeologist told me to dig slower, and I laughed at her
I was on a volunteer dig in New Mexico last summer, and this 70 year old lady kept saying go slower with the trowel or you'll miss stuff. I was like whatever, I'm fast and efficient, right? Turns out she was right because I scraped right through a tiny shell bead that would have been a cool find. Has anyone else had a pro give them weird advice that actually saved their work?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
fisher.jessica3mo ago
That wet screen trick saves so many tiny finds it's basically magic.
6
carr.luna3mo ago
oh man, i had a similar thing happen on a dig in texas. this old guy named frank kept telling me to wet the screen before i sifted, and i was like what is this guy on about? but the first time i did it, all this tiny pottery sherds and bits of charcoal showed up that wouldve just blown away in the dust. i felt pretty dumb but learned my lesson real fast. now i wet everything first even if it means slower work.
2
the_elizabeth3mo ago
That old Frank sounds like every single experienced digger I've ever met, they always have some weird trick that seems like nonsense until you try it. @carr.luna I had a similar moment with a guy named Pete in New Mexico who swore by using a stiff paintbrush to clean roots off bones, I thought he was just being fussy until I accidentally snapped a chunk off a rib with a trowel. Now I'm that person carrying a paintbrush and a spray bottle everywhere, it's a whole thing. The wet screen trick is one of those things that makes you feel like an idiot for not thinking of it sooner, but hey, at least we learned before we lost all the good stuff to the wind.
6