archaegeek talk
Okay, so this is a few days later than I said I`d post again, and I don`t have more pictures yet to show you. Heh, guess I`ve gotten used to "latin american time". Well, that and the hostel`s been quite full of people lately, so the computer`s been occupied most of the time.
Monday, the course group went to Garagay, a Formative period site (approx 1400-1000 BC). It`s very typical, with a big U-shaped arrangement of 3 mounds. The site`s very tightly surrounded by habitation, and it`s likely that the plaza area will be taken over in the next 10 years if there isn`t better security and a stronger delineation of site boundaries. Another thing to note is that in the plaza there are quite a few wall bases that have been uncovered through earlier excaavtions. The cool thing about this, for you non-archaegeeks, is what is found here is contrary to how plazas are normally portrayed: big empty spaces, maybe with some temporary roofs overhead. At this site, there`s even a smaller temple set at an angle in the center. I`m not sure if it may be earlier but even if it is, it`s not significantly so, maybe just from the first occupations. Plus, again, if it is earlier, usually people build the next one over/on top of it, not encircle it. The final nifty thing about the site is that it had several really cool painted plaster friezes--showing warriors, fish, spiders, etc--that were inside atriums on the tops of the mounds. I say had because the part that was uncovered 30 years ago (which we saw pictures of in the course) has since then completely deteriorated; you can`t see anything anymore, it`s all fallen off and crumbled. That`s what gravity naturally does to adobe, you don`t really need to have any other factors involved. Very very sad, but that is the importance of backfilling you work. Well, maybe after they conserve the site, they`ll get around to other excavations on the mound--it`s fairly certain that the friezes are inside the whole room. Very cool.
As for the rest of this week, it will be pretty bland. I`m doing the data entry for the work that we did. The guy who`s supposed to do it for some reason can`t come in all this week, which is bad considering it has to be ready in a week and a half. They`re lucky I already know how to use ArcGIS, or they`d be in trouble.
Thursday I`m running up to Huacho to meet Kit; she`s been good enough to agree to meet me there so we can go to La Centinela to take some GPS points and get some info. Very nice of her, I need that info. Then this weekend there`s an archaeology conference at Catolica University; most of the papers will be about preceramic stuff, but I really should go to meet people, especially since most of the PANC group will be there to help with introductions. Maybe it will inspire me to finally write that stupid rock article for the work I did 2 years ago, heh.
SO I encourage all of you to go play in the dirt this week, I am sure you all have good enough weather to do so (and if it`s too hot, do it in the morning or evening and quit griping). :)
Stacy
Monday, the course group went to Garagay, a Formative period site (approx 1400-1000 BC). It`s very typical, with a big U-shaped arrangement of 3 mounds. The site`s very tightly surrounded by habitation, and it`s likely that the plaza area will be taken over in the next 10 years if there isn`t better security and a stronger delineation of site boundaries. Another thing to note is that in the plaza there are quite a few wall bases that have been uncovered through earlier excaavtions. The cool thing about this, for you non-archaegeeks, is what is found here is contrary to how plazas are normally portrayed: big empty spaces, maybe with some temporary roofs overhead. At this site, there`s even a smaller temple set at an angle in the center. I`m not sure if it may be earlier but even if it is, it`s not significantly so, maybe just from the first occupations. Plus, again, if it is earlier, usually people build the next one over/on top of it, not encircle it. The final nifty thing about the site is that it had several really cool painted plaster friezes--showing warriors, fish, spiders, etc--that were inside atriums on the tops of the mounds. I say had because the part that was uncovered 30 years ago (which we saw pictures of in the course) has since then completely deteriorated; you can`t see anything anymore, it`s all fallen off and crumbled. That`s what gravity naturally does to adobe, you don`t really need to have any other factors involved. Very very sad, but that is the importance of backfilling you work. Well, maybe after they conserve the site, they`ll get around to other excavations on the mound--it`s fairly certain that the friezes are inside the whole room. Very cool.
As for the rest of this week, it will be pretty bland. I`m doing the data entry for the work that we did. The guy who`s supposed to do it for some reason can`t come in all this week, which is bad considering it has to be ready in a week and a half. They`re lucky I already know how to use ArcGIS, or they`d be in trouble.
Thursday I`m running up to Huacho to meet Kit; she`s been good enough to agree to meet me there so we can go to La Centinela to take some GPS points and get some info. Very nice of her, I need that info. Then this weekend there`s an archaeology conference at Catolica University; most of the papers will be about preceramic stuff, but I really should go to meet people, especially since most of the PANC group will be there to help with introductions. Maybe it will inspire me to finally write that stupid rock article for the work I did 2 years ago, heh.
SO I encourage all of you to go play in the dirt this week, I am sure you all have good enough weather to do so (and if it`s too hot, do it in the morning or evening and quit griping). :)
Stacy
posted by archaesmd at 11:35 PM
1 Comments:
Meh, I became a (wanna be) historian specifically because then I wouldn't have to play in dirt ;)
Good to hear from you again though, now I just need to work up the gumption to update my blog more regularly. That and I still owe you an e-mail don't I?
Anyways, hope the conference and the trip up to Huacho goes well and I'll talk to you later.
Mike
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