Field School Opportunity: Jersey, Channel Islands on Ice Age Island

Morning Ancient Diggers. I was contacted about a wonderful opportunity for those of you interested in digs pertaining to prehistory. The archaeological fieldschool in Jersey, Channel Islands is located at Les Varines, a Magdalenian settlement site approximately 15,000 years old. To date, the site has yielded over 5,000 stone artefacts, preserved animal bone, paved areas and, most exceptionally, engraved stones which have recently gained international media coverage and was featured in BBC2’s Digging for Britain.

© Jersey Heritage

This year the field school is available to students from external universities. They have five placements available for the 2016 season, and the deadline is right around the corner, May 25th.

Accommodation is camping but there are modern, clean, indoor WC/showering facilities, dining and socialising spaces. Meals are catered for by their project cook and pick up/ delivery to the airport is included. The total fee is $1,450* (excluding travel costs) covering two weeks of time.

If you are interested in joining the dig on Ice Age Island this summer, please send a brief email providing a bit of information about yourself, your relevant interest/experience and/or a CV to:

Dr Matt Pope (UCL Institute of Archaeology) email: m.pope@ucl.ac.uk.

In your email please specify whether you are interested in Field Season 1 (July 10 – July 23) or Field Season 2 (July 24th – August 6th) or whether you are able to do both.

The application deadline is June 25, 2016).

For more information or to sign up, visit the Project Page for La Mancha Prehistoric

4 Mesoamerican Digs for 2013

With the hype of 2012 and bad interpretations of Mayan dating techniques finally behind us, it's time to get down to the real work that is archaeology in Mesoamerica, allowing us to better understand the real history of the Mayans, Incas, and Aztecs in that part of the world.

From exciting sites that offer a glimpse of the relatively simple lives lead by America's ancient peoples, to the honor of finding yourself in the midst of of large and magnificent ruins, volunteer opportunities abound where South and Central American archaeological digs are concerned. Here is a look at four of the prime volunteer and student-friendly Mesoamerican digs that will be taking place in 2013:

1. Belize Valley Archaeological Projects

Over two sessions that will take place in June and August of 2013, the Belize Valley Archaeological Reconnaissance Project will be conducting work at the site known as Baking Pot, an area rich in camping remains, and playing host to two groups of monumental architecture.

This summer's research will focus narrowly on one area in particular: the monumental center at a palace complex known to those working at the site as Group B. Those on site will be working towards clearing sections of the structures and courtyards in an effort to uncover new artifacts and develop a more thorough understanding of the chronology and heritage of the site.

And those who strive for more fun than ancient civilizations offer, can use car rental services of companies like Cheapcarrental.net and dig for a little more action at Mexico's world renown resorts such as Cancun, which is less than 300 miles away from Belize!

2. Blue Creek Project

If the past few years of silliness surrounding the Mayan people and their dating methods have lead you to a natural curiosity about the facts behind their works and lives, the Maya Research Program and its Blue Creek Project is the place for you.

For the 21st year in a row, this American group will sponsor extensive fieldwork at the Mayan site called Blue Creek, located in northwestern Belize, offering everyone involved the opportunity to discover the fascinating reality of Mayan existence.

The project will be open to students and non-students alike, and experience - or lack thereof - is not a concern in the application process. With academic credit and even scholarships available, this project is well-worth checking out for anyone with a working interest in archaeology.

3. Oaxaca, Mexico

For the third straight year, Indiana University will be playing host to anthropology faculty members, students, and outside volunteers for their field program based in Oaxaca, Mexico. With a focus on archaeology that often finds itself embracing modern anthropology, this course will introduce students to the wide range of diversity in this region, ranging from the ancient Maya to the current inhabitants.

While some of the course's planned activity will involve active time at dig sites, you'll also have the opportunity to attend local festivals and learn about the modern issues, both economic and ecological, facing Oaxaca's people.

4. Project Roatan, Honduras

The University of South Florida is set to host a fantastic learning opportunity for burgeoning archaeologists with a passion for Mesoamerica with its Mesoamerican Archaeology Field School. Taking students on a five-week journey through the history of the pirates and puritans who dominated the Caribbean in the 16th and 17th centuries, the course will focus its attention on the excavation of the English and Pech settlements located at New Port Royal and Camp Bay Village.

Students attending this once-in-a-lifetime course will learn to use archaeological methods to answer the questions that face us in exploring the history of those who came before us, offering a strong base for any historian and archaeologist.

Guest Post Contributor: Jessie Troy

Twitter Users Speak out: 21 Items Archaeologists Can't Live Without on a Dig

Ancient Digger's Twitter followers are the best. Leave it to them to come up with some funny and completely accurate items that archaeologists can not live without on dig.

As for me, I had a hard time deciding.  I like a good bandanna and comfortable shoes. I have these awesome Columbia hiking shoes that are great in the dirt, but what else?

Ok, so, have you seen my hair? It's like Repunzel length, so I would have to say 20 bobby pins, a good hair tie, and maybe some mascara. Yes I said it, mascara. There's no reason to go into the field not looking your best, lol! I like being dirty, but I like being pretty while I'm getting dirty. That sounded dirty, lol.

1. Patience! @Rockhunter710 , Team Hartman
2. Handkerchiefs to their noses filled with earth ... iughhhhhhhhh!!! :P #archaeology. @zoraxhm
3. Good Scotch  @AinslieCogswell
4. Sharpies, trowels, and toilet paper @kbiittner 
5. On a scorching, hot, summers day, gotta have water in a trench!... I always miss post holes without :( haha! @willsmith700
6. I'm ok with Sharpies, but tape measures! The ability they have to vanish has left me baffled for years! @willsmith700
7. Thermos of whisk- uh, coffee. @AccessArtefacts 
8. A nearby pub!! ;) @xCharliBobx
9. Comfortable shoes, a pen that isn't clogged up with dust/mud, some filthy jokes, a perfectly vertical baulk wall. @lshipley805
10. A spray bottle with water is a must have for wall profiles (esp in rock shelters with low light) @kbiittner 
11. Mascara. I like being dirty, but I like being pretty while I'm getting dirty. @Ancientdigger
12. Well tea at a push but obviously a glass or three of real ale would be better , but LOTS of cake naturally :) @tesschwarz
13. A sense of history, a feeling of déjà vu. @thampuran
14. Pants! Also, brambles. Shorts won't hack it.! @processarch
    
15. Kneepads and insect repellant. @SusanLlewellyn
16. A sense of humor!! @thetimetribe 
17. Change of underwear, maybe ten
18. A sports bra. Gotta keep these babies in tact!
19. Sunscreen or Banana boat Oil. Choose your poison!
20. A knife. You'd be surprised how often we can't find one. ‏@JRyme
21. My Marshalltown of course.
    
    
    

So what is that you as an archaeologist can't live without on a dig? Even if you're not an archaeologist, what do you think they can't live without?

Origins Discovery Project is Looking for Volunteers

The Origin's Discovery Project is headed up by archaeologist Haim Cohen from Haifa University in Israel. Haim and his team of volunteers are excavating in caves in the Judean Desert cliff area and they need volunteers.

The Origins Discovery Project is a non-profit-making organisation set up to find the lost archive of the Jewish Second Temple, believed to contain title deeds to land, correspondence and records relating to the Second Temple period of Jewish history. The Temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 CE.

Volunteer Information:

• You need to be physically fit.
• You must arrange your own insurance.
• The fee for volunteers is $600. You will receive: 6 hotel nights, plus 2 meals per day, and a guided tour of Ein Gedi and Massada on day 7 
• You must arrange your own transport to and from the airport (by bus to Ein Gedi from Jerusalem Terminus: bus line number 421` leaves at 9.45 am & line number 486 leaves at 13.30 pm - it is a 1.5 hour journey and will cost $12 one way. 
• Please bring: light, leather working gloves (like truck driver gloves) , flash light on a helmet, camelpack for water, face mask with filters, 40 litre back pack good walking shoes / boots, insect repellent, sunscreen, and metal detector only if you have one.

To volunteer for the 2012 season, please sign up here.

Field Work Opportunities, Jobs, and Summer School

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Miscellaneous Resources for Field School

• Internships @ About.com
• Archaeology Field Schools in Focus @ About.com
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  • Field School Scholarships @ Archaeological.org

Looking for Field School, Archaeology and Anthropology Field Opportunities

I just started researching this area and I have found so many wonderful resources on the net for graduate students, kids, and undergrads.

I was surfing on the Archaeological Institute of America and I was trying to get a sense of the prices and arrangements that needed to be made.

Of course, since I'm not quite to this point yet, I wanted to share with others that may have the resources and credentials available to visit these dig sites.

Please check out the Field Work Page For an up to date listing of the lasted Field Opportunities.