Pages 133-142
History 8 Environment Bone From a Dry Sea
17. Elements of a dig:
An archaeological dig is a useful way that historians, scientists, and archaeologists are able to obtain important artifacts that tell much information about a civilization, group, or living thing in general. An excavation is completed often due to tow points of rational. Either the archaeologists that want to begin a dig have a particular inquiry that they want to answer or an archaeological project that is already in progress needs to salvage what they can from a certain site before erosion swifts all the relics and the site is demolished. A circle of experts come together before the excavation is begun, including botanists, scientists, students, geologists, trained non-specialists, and of course archaeologists. This way the dig is the most accurate and productive process that it can be. Task number one is to get rid of all plants and vegetation and establish a grid made out of wooden sticks and string on the area. The excavators have screens, trowels, and measuring tape to expose the certain relics and artifacts predicted to be found. When digging up an area, the excavators go from square to square within the grid to be as precise as possible. They make sure to uncover the artifacts slowly and carefully as not to accidentally break a relic that they don't see. An example from Bone from a Dry Sea is on page 122 explaining the elements of a dig is when the novel describes the different jobs and activities of people that are included in the excavation project while Vinny is visiting. "Dr. Wessler was in the second trench, beginning to work his way into the fossil layer the way Dad had done, and Vinny looked after both lots of bags and labels. Michael and another African called Ali started to clear the topsoil for a third trench, further along, while Dr. Hamiska made a series of shallow excavations all along the sloping line of tuff, trying to chart how far the fossil layer extended."
External Sources : http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/nchist-twoworlds/1854 and A Bone from a Dry Sea,122
18. Define Taphonomist. A taphonomist is a person who studies animal and/or plant remains to determine the process in which they were fossilized. On page 124, Dr. Hamiska tells the others his theory on why the discovered bones appear the way they do. He says that possibly a river ran down the hill and that later there could have been a volcanic eruption. He says that these two events would affect the way the bones were scattered and layered in the silt. He says,"can we from those three points deduce the rest of it?" Sam shows that he doubts the theory and then Dr. Hamiska calls him out, reminding everyone that Sam is a taphonomist, meaning that he should be able to determine if this theory is correct because he studies how the processes in which things become fossils.
Sources A Bone from a Dry Sea(124)
