Archaeology Fieldwork

A number of students taking archaeology courses at Gettysburg have been getting their hands dirty with some hands-on experience in fieldwork projects over the summer. Some of them signed up with summer archaeology field schools affiliated with other institutions (see links below to research such programs); others have assisted Gettysburg professors Julia Hendon and William Honeychurch with their research in Honduras and Mongolia (respectively). Here are some profiles of anthropology majors who have wielded their digging tools:

• Tim Nichol, Alyson Myers, and Mike Leader accompanied Prof. Bill Honeychurch to Mongolia in the summer of 2005. There they worked with a team of Mongolian archaeologists to study ancient pastoralist settlements and monument sites. Tim Nichol completed an honors thesis entitled, "Political Development of Xiongnu Mongolia:Predicting Paths of High Potential Non-Herd Based Movement "
  

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• Amelia Viars attended an archaeological field school run by the University of Maryland in the summer of 2005. She also worked as an intern in Annapolis where she was able to take part in several digs in the area.
  

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• Mike Leader attended an archaeological field school run by Witwatersrand University in South Africa in 2004.
  

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• Kim Lusignan: Kim attended an archaeological field school run by Washington State University in the summer of 1999 and put together an illustrated on-line report about her experiences during the excavations.

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• Erin Passetti: Erin spent the summer of 1998 at an archaeological field school at Cahokia State Park, Missouri, run by Northwestern University. She gained experience in the practical methods of excavating a site, including trolling, shovel scraping, taking measurements, screening, and analyzing artifacts.

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• Rob Trainor: Over the summer of '99, Rob got involved in an archaeology dig through a field school in Oregon. We're eagerly awaiting his return from study abroad to hear more about it!

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Below are some useful links with information about fieldwork schools in archaeology and cultural anthropology:

Archaeological Institute of America

ArchaeologyFieldwork.com 

Also check out the Department Bulletin boards for more information on fieldwork opportunities!