While many artifacts are
found during the screening
process, some are noticed
first by the archaeologists
excavating in the units.
Above is a serrated point I
found while excavating a
midden. Flint points were
not overly uncommon to find,
but most were broken, or
were just shards. This point
was entirely intact, and its
serrated edge makes it quite
memorable and beautiful.
There are two main activities during
any day on the site, screening and
digging. Screening is when two to four
people shift through the excavated dirt
on a large screen, and separate
artifacts. Most artifacts are found in
screening, and are usually smaller.
Some of the most common to find are
bones or shell. These two artifacts
were found while screening. Pictured
on the left is a small bead that was
found in a Fort Ancient era site that
once held a house. On the right is a
piece of decorated pottery, which
allowed us to date the level we were
digging, due to the unique design.
Some artifacts that are
particularly large will be
noticed by an archaeologist
immediately. To the left is a
large pottery sherd. This
piece was unique because it
has a large section of the
rim intact. Sherds such as
this one are very delicate,
and have to be taken out
slowly and carefully.
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