Archaeology starts with a spade in the ground and if it’s not done right then all the learned text that follows can become meaningless. In fieldwork data is gathered at the point of a trowel and is applied with skill and care by the digger. If it is to be of any use however the recognition of these skills and contribution to the body of data and final report can sometimes seem to be lacking. In many reports someone whose contribution may only total a couple of sentences or paragraph will be acknowledged whereas the team that spent six months in all weathers and conditions producing the base data for a lesser salary will hardly be mentioned. At this point I should say I’m not trying to be divisive putting specialist against diggers, I’ve done both spending years in the field and driven colleagues mad with my obsession over one small lump of copper alloy that would have required another volume to be added to the report. It is perhaps that we should look at other areas of work like the film industry where in the final credits everyone gets a mention and recognition for their contribution, even the catering which on some archaeological sites should probably get top billing for keeping the team going. It may be a big ask and certainly in recent times it has improved but when making it up a list of acknowledgements please do it not to make up a list of those who will “impress” your colleagues with their academic prowess but a list of all those who provided the base data from on site, ensured the whole operation ran smoothly and enabled the excavation to go ahead from the office etc. As I said at the beginning, start with the first spade in the ground.
Just a footnote – the above comment was only meant to highlight the under representation of the skilled work performed by diggers and their omission from some (not all) reports. “Archaeology” is not just excavation in the field a lot of work goes into pre ex to prepare and inform before a team arrives at site. The work can include desk top surveys, aerial photography, geophysics, document searches and other specialisations. There is also the logistics of getting the team to a site and providing the equipment, a safe working enviroment, accomodation etc. All of this and the people who provide it are also essential in “Archaeology”. As a final note there are even aspects of “Archaeology” that don’t require excavation Building Survey’s, Landscape Surveys, Maritime Archaeology the list can go on. The point I was trying to make was that all involved in a project should be recognised for their contribution whatever their title.
