Beginning in Classical Archaeology
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| Tomb 1 Policastro Bussentino - 11/2016 |
...What do you do?
One of the
first things people ask me, when I geek out and talk about what I study, is
"what do you do?"
Classical Archaeology is my answer, which is an interesting mixture of topics and specialties. You can approach the study of Ancient History with a wide and captivating set of tools in your kit - and incorporating new research methods and approaches is encouraged.
Classical Archaeology is my answer, which is an interesting mixture of topics and specialties. You can approach the study of Ancient History with a wide and captivating set of tools in your kit - and incorporating new research methods and approaches is encouraged.
A background
in a variety of disciplines is important for the study of Classical
Archaeology. For instance, you need to understand the various historical contexts
surrounding the archaeological materials, have the ability to interpret the
iconography, understand the archaeological excavation practices and
documentation, have a background in ancient languages and several modern ones (ideally), and understand
how the art/archaeology fits into the wider narrative of history.
As any
self-aware student discovers, the deeper you dive into your studies, the more
there is for you to learn.
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| Ostia Antica - 2014 |
I will be looking towards further schooling and specialization
within this field, so despite my existing credentials (B.A., B.G.S., M.Sc)
there is still a way to go. I am merely
a Padawan focused on the goal of becoming a Jedi of Archaeology.
This brings
me to the following types of questions you get when you study Classical Archaeology
and go on excavations.
What did you find?
What you find often depends on luck. Frequently one can dig an area which seems promising, but not fruitful. Getting down in
the dirt, so close to the soil you are at times only an inch from it is - for
me - one of the most interesting parts of the whole experience. You
start to ‘hear’ the difference in soil types and composition, you can genuinely
see when something has changed, and it is terribly exciting. Then sometimes you
even find stuff, ancient stuff.
Pottery
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| Poros, Kefalonia, post-wash pottery- 2008 |
Heaps and heaps of broken pieces of
pottery. One of the added bonuses of a Fine Arts Diploma was having to take pottery courses, which have made a lot of what I am looking at comprehensible. However, I have not taken directed studies on pottery typologies formally, so that is another thing to add to the bucket list.
Sometimes the find is gorgeous examples of
figurative painting, colourful striations and less refined pottery of the Early Middle Ages. Then there is coarse-ware pottery.
If you can imagine so, the rough-and-ready DIY
of the pottery quality spectrum is like when you authentically make your own soaps, or boutique mason jar candles.
It gets the job done, but not the most precious of discoveries.
Stunning isn't it?
All joking aside, you can learn a significant amount of information from the coarse-ware pottery! You can see the types of vessels were people using en masse, what types of local materials were being produced and possibly statistical information about population density and consumption patterns.
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| Poros, Kefalonia, coarse-ware pottery- 2008 |
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| Poros, Kefalonia, coarse-ware pottery - 2008 |
All joking aside, you can learn a significant amount of information from the coarse-ware pottery! You can see the types of vessels were people using en masse, what types of local materials were being produced and possibly statistical information about population density and consumption patterns.
Animal Bone
Animal bone can be a significant
contribution to the finds, though of course it all depends on the type of site on which
you are digging. But as a rule, in any location where people lived and dumped their
refuse, you will find some kind of animal remains. This is an area where my
background is limited, so I have a lot to learn. Hopefully as I do, I will be
able to provide some titillating tidbits!
Small Finds
Small finds, like glass, bronze items and
stone materials can be found as well. These are often quite exciting finds, as
you may suddenly come upon a loom weight, fibulae, a ring, or best of all -
coins! Nothing helps the understanding of a site quite like finding a coin. Happy
days!
In a later post I will get into some of the interesting tidbits of pottery, building materials and numismatics (coins). Trust me, they can be very interesting!
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| Poros, Kefalonia - Glass Bead (2008) |
Poros, Kefalonia - Pegasus coin of Corinth 7th Century BC (2008)
In a later post I will get into some of the interesting tidbits of pottery, building materials and numismatics (coins). Trust me, they can be very interesting!
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| Poros, Kefalonia - Loom weight, 2008 |
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| Poros, Kefalonia - Loom weight, 2008 |
Human Remains
Different countries handle the discovery of
human remains from antiquity in different ways. I have been lucky enough to
work on two excavations which allowed me the opportunity to unearth the remains
of four individuals. Handling human remains by the guidelines set by whichever
country you are working in is, of course, incredibly important. It can be a sombre event, and even quite upsetting for some.
Perhaps it is through being an artist and archaeologist that the experience of excavating human remains actually excites and inspires me deeply, each and every time I have done so.
Perhaps it is through being an artist and archaeologist that the experience of excavating human remains actually excites and inspires me deeply, each and every time I have done so.
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One of the more forward-thinking moments I experienced in my undergrad was taking a course in Human Osteology. Making my own study guide to quiz myself was a good investment, and genuinely very helpful when coming across human remains in the field.
Humans are the subject of my art, their history the subject of my studies, and what they created with their hands is the subject of my excavations. When stripped down - even just the traces of the individuals that remain - are just as beautiful, graceful and impressive.
Coming face-to-face with a citizen of the
Roman Empire, 2,000 years after they have been carefully buried, is a humbling
and exciting thing.
One of the highlights of my rainy days on field schools has been laboratory work.
Yes, highlight!
Laboratory tasks tend to include: washing and sorting pottery, cataloguing, and illustrating artefacts which may have some diagnostic relevance. I took an archaeological illustration course at Edinburgh which was helpful but - as in all things - different teams/countries will tell you to do something differently.
(For instance, in the above drawing, I was asked to indicate the colour of the glaze, using coloured pencils- a practice I had never done before!)
As an artist (and huge nerd) I spend 70% of my free time drawing anyways, so this is just fun! Possibly even one of the top five things I love about this field.
I will be posting further artefact illustrations, discussion, and more depth to these topics later on, but I hope this little introduction to what is Classical Archaeology helpful and interesting!
Ciao xx
Lab Work
One of the highlights of my rainy days on field schools has been laboratory work. 
Yes, highlight!
Laboratory tasks tend to include: washing and sorting pottery, cataloguing, and illustrating artefacts which may have some diagnostic relevance. I took an archaeological illustration course at Edinburgh which was helpful but - as in all things - different teams/countries will tell you to do something differently.
(For instance, in the above drawing, I was asked to indicate the colour of the glaze, using coloured pencils- a practice I had never done before!)
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| Poros, Kefalonia- Amber Medusa head sketch (2008) |
I will be posting further artefact illustrations, discussion, and more depth to these topics later on, but I hope this little introduction to what is Classical Archaeology helpful and interesting!
Ciao xx
