Directions: The goal of this assignment is to observe an ‘archaeological site’ as an archaeologist would. The student will analyze their observations in terms of themes from the subfield of archaeology such as how it helps frame our understanding of how we can learn more about the human past by studying and interpreting material culture. Archaeologists study past cultural groups through the material remains they leave behind. Choose one room of your home/dwelling or a specific place in your community (playground, parking lot, restaurant). Visit and observe the site for 10-15 minutes. Be objective as you examine the site, remember not to mention what it is in today’s terms, but pretend you have do not recognize or have knowledge of the artifacts and site. Describe the overall scene in detail.Tip: think of yourself as someone who has no previous cultural or historical knowledge about the space and artifacts you are studying. Collect and document artifacts. Describe the artifacts noting color, shape, weight, texture, quantity, material, and other features you think are important. Tip: you should fully describe at least three artifacts. Your descriptions will need to include all of the above details. One way to think about how to do this is to consider how you would describe these artifacts to a blind person (who at one time had sight), so they can visualize what you are talking about without seeing a photo of it. Another way to approach this, how would you describe these artifacts to someone else who entered the room and you are explaining to them which specific artifact you are speaking about. If they cannot accurately identify the artifact you have failed in providing the appropriate amount of detail about the artifact.
Map (hand drawn and scanned/photographed or digitally created map) the site and describe the physical characteristics of the site. Maps should include dimensions of the site area, a north arrow (indicating which way is north), and a legend identifying the physical characteristics of the site. The map and any images do not count toward the page count! An example of a map is here-note, this is an official site map created by an archaeologist. Another example of a map (student created) is available here. Using your imagination, what are some other purposes the artifacts and site might have? What conclusions can you draw about the origin of the artifacts, their use, and the purpose of the site?
Reflect on some of the challenges archaeologists face in piecing together the past, specifically in interpreting artifacts. Provide a specific example to support your answer.
Tip: be explicit and fully explain the challenges. Vague/unclear and/or incomplete responses will net you very few, if any, points. You will need to do research to answer this question, which will require in-text citations and bibliographic references!