Boxed but not forgotten: The significance of collections-driven research in historical archaeology

DOCUMENT Citation Only Mark Warner. Ray von Wandruszka.

In 2008 archaeologists and chemists at the University of Idaho initiated a collaborative program using analytical chemistry to study archaeological materials. Initial work focused on collections from the northwest but it is now nationwide in scope.  The work had provided insight on a variety of questions including the reuse of historical bottles, traditional Chinese medicinal practices as well as the identification of many previously unknown materials.  The work has also proved to be an...

DOCUMENT Citation Only George W. Calfas.

Collections allow archaeologists and other scholars the opportunity a means to view past lifeways. Those lifeways are connected to past histories that are situated in a time and place. Context is everything! However, what happens when artifacts are lost misplaced, or mis-catalogued? Archaeologists across the globe are working on shoe-string budgets and are being asked to do more with less. Due to these shrinking budgets the collections that we painstakingly curate often are given less care and...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Evelyn R. Nimmo.

One of the major challenges in working with museum collections of excavated material is the paucity of information available about the original excavation. What value do these collections have without any context? This paper examines a case study of an archaeological collection from one of the first Spanish Jesuit missions founded in Southern Brazil, housed at the Paranaense Museum, Curitiba, Brazil. The mission, Santo Inacio Mini (1610 – 1631), was the largest in the province and was integral...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Mark Freeman. Barbara Heath.

The Curles Neck excavation, under the direction of Dan Mouer at Virginia Commonwealth University, produced a wealth of information about a significant mid-seventeenth to mid-nineteenth century site. Unfortunately the collections ended up housed in a non-archaeological repository, separate from the unordered documentation. A 2016 reassessment, undertaken by staff and students at the University of Tennessee, conducted an inventory of the physical collections; converted old digital files; digitized...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Andrea Farmer. Michael K. Trimble.

The recognition that our field is based on scientifically curated national collections has re–emerged as a core value of the archaeological community.  While most archaeologists recognize curation and collections management as being integral to our field, resource allocation for these collections have never adequately addressed our national need.  The preservation and digitization of collections is now seen as key to the survival of the field and the science of archaeology.  The U.S. Army Corps...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Leigh Anne Ellison. Francis McManamon.

Existing collections represent a significant untapped potential for future research.  Their value is made possible, and often greatly enhanced, by the associated records that provide context about their discovery.  Other times, physical collections may be incomplete or lost all together and the information about these collections is all that remains.  To ensure that future scholars are able to make use of this information it needs to be properly preserved and accessible for discovery.  Paper...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Ellen Chapman.

Collections associated with urban archaeology, predominantly created by compliance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, face unique challenges of curation, conservation, and accessibility. This research examines the curation crisis through the lens of archaeological collections from Richmond, Virginia. Despite unique assemblages, including those from a considerable Reconstruction Era incarcerated skeletal population; rare 19th century industrial and commercial contexts;...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Mary Furlong Minkoff. Teresa Teixeira.

Unlike other presidential house museums, Montpelier did not inherit a large collection of objects with clear Madison provenance. However, archaeology has been instrumental to reconstructing Montpelier’s story and is one of the only ways for us to know what objects were in the homes of the Madisons and their enslaved laborers. The Montpelier Foundation is currently in a rather unique position: not only are artifacts being unearthed daily, we also have the budget to actively seek out and acquire...

DOCUMENT Citation Only Maryland Archaeological Conservation Laboratory Federal Curator.

At the Maryland Archaeological Conservation Laboratory (MAC Lab), the philosophy on collections is "Yes, you can have access to that," and making access a top priority has delivered valuable and surprising results. This paper is a tale of two artifacts from 1980s collections that have been reexamined and re-identified in the past year and a half: a possible lamb intestine condom from a ca. 1720-1750 well (originally catalogued as "paper?"), and a cilice recovered from a 19th-century Jesuit...