Archaeologist

Key Points

Archaeologists provide us with lots of information about the period of history before writing began.
The information comes from artefacts. These are human-made objects - arrowheads, pots, jewellery etc.…
Remains of buildings/homes/walls also provide evidence
Bones and seeds provide information on diet and health of people
Archaeological sites are often discovered by accident
Aerial photographs also help archaeologists to identify good sites
Very careful work required
Firstly a plan of the area to be excavated is made
Tools used include trowels, brushes, shovels
Sieves used to find even the smallest artefacts
All artefacts carefully labelled and photographed
Careful records are kept of everything and written down
Artefacts sent to museums or science laboratory
Carbon-14 dating tests used to find exact age of bones etc.
Dendrochronology also used to date oak timber on the basis of the pattern of growth rings.
After evidence collected, conclusions can be made.
Work of the archaeologist essential for the historian.