Archaeology and the Experience that Follows (Guest Post by Jazz Demetrioff, Lux volunteer)

The following post comes from Jazz Demetrioff, one of our volunteers, a nascent archaeologist, and a soon-to-be graduate of U of W Classics, on her first time digging last summer. Because we work with antiquities, it's key to understand the hard work of those who dig them up, document them, and study them. Jazz has already brought some of her expertise to the lab and we look forward to hearing about her future accomplishments! 

Some archaeologists say that your first time in the field gives you the indication of whether you are meant to be an archaeologist or not. That first feeling of taking your trowel and scraping the context, the first find you sieve, the weather…oh yes…weather is a factor; all of these things and more can give you a taste of what archaeologists go through on a daily basis. I took my first archaeology course back in 2013, thinking it would be useful for my degree in Classics. Little did I know that I would fall in love with the idea of digging in the trenches. In the summer of 2017 my friend and I decided that we wanted to go on our first excavation. Even filling out the applications was nerve-racking! When we received word that we had been accepted not on one, but two excavations, we were ecstatic and ready to start our journey to Italy. We were accepted to work alongside the Apolline Project in Aeclanum (Campania) and with Sanisera underwater at the Portus Julius (Bay of Naples) during the summer of 2018.

            People do not really tell you what to expect other than the fact that there is hard labour involved. You do not get a crash course on how to properly use your trowel or how to identity certain aspects of the trench. Nope, you are thrown into your trench and start working away. In Aeclanum, I was designated to the Theatre trench with a few other team members and our trench supervisor. Honestly, the first couple of days were a blur because of how fast you had to learn: constantly asking questions and being out in the heat sure makes time fly. When I came across my first find, I was squealing like a pig with a big grin on my face. One of the girls digging beside me asked, “First dig? That’s totally normal. You’ll get over it.” I was shocked that she assumed I would get over the fact that I found something, even though it was a common piece of pottery. I replied, “I will never get over it.” That day and each day after that, I continued to come across more finds, such as pottery, animal bone, charcoal, fresco, shells and more. Every day I had a smile on my face.
            When I was still planning this trip one of my professors told me that I should not get my hopes up of because there is a likely chance that I would not find anything on site. I knew he was right and that, as an archaeologist, that is more common than some people may think (my friend ended up hulling rocks and limestone the whole time in Aeclanum). First-time archaeologists or those studying archaeology, or even those who just read about it, may think excavating looks easy to do – this is wrong. There is so much more to it than people may think. You have to dig, sieve, document a new layer immediately, clean the layers over and over again, take photos, clean finds, label finds, find the sea-level, map the trench layer, draw the layer (in detail) and more. It does take a lot of energy to do all these things, but I was ready for it and had more than enough energy to do so each day.
Personally, as it was my first time excavating I thought I would only get to dig, sieve and wash finds. In fact, it was all of the above and more. I was taught how to map points for the drawings, how to properly fill out all the types of documentation. I was even looked to when some of the other people on site had questions. The supervisors at Aeclanum were more than helpful and were willing to teach you and answer all your questions. It was an experience of a lifetime to be able to go on an excavation while still an undergraduate and to be able to take away this experience for future endeavors.  

After spending two weeks with the Apolline Project, my friend and I went to our other dig site in Arco Felice. It was strange being away from Aeclanum and it was strange that I now had to put on dive gear. To be honest, this dig site was a good experience to see what it is like to excavate underwater, but it did not live up to my expectations. Furthermore, I did learn that I prefer land archaeology, rather than water, and that I missed being in the Theatre trench at Aeclanum. I missed the heat on my back, I missed playing music and yelling out loud what song it was, I missed feeling the soils and sediments on my hands, I missed hulling limestone blocks. I missed everything about it.

The experience I had last summer, 2018, was something I will never forget. Every day I was able to take what I learned in the classroom and utilize it in the field. Meanwhile, I was still learning different techniques and information during excavation. I was able to meet fellow archaeologists and specialists from around the world, and be able to talk to them in “archaeology lingo”.  I learned that experience is everything in the field, and you are better off starting as early as possible so that you will have more knowledge of methods and techniques for future digs. This experience definitely allowed me to see what it is like in the field and that I want to continue excavating archaeological sites for as long as I am able. The archaeological site of Aeclanum has inspired me to continue my path in archaeology, to the extent that I now have a great passion for that site. I am very excited to be heading back for the 2019 season. My trowel is already packed and ready to go!