Field Methods for Excavation of a Culturally Modified Timber on Site 20UM723 in Lake Michigan

Summary

In June 2013, a permit was issued by the State of Michigan and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the preliminary excavation of Site 20UM723 in northern Lake Michigan. The permits were granted after several years of non-disturbance investigations which included remote sensing surveys using a side-scan sonar and cesium magnetometer, and sub-bottom profilers. The lakebed of the site was also physically examined several times by scuba divers. Once excavation commenced, however, the investigators quickly discovered that certain assumptions about site formation were at variance with actual conditions. These assumptions were based on data from the visual and acoustic inspections of the lakebed and sub-bottom profiling of sediments. This paper examines all aspects of the excavation, and especially, the modifications made to methods and techniques which became necessary as the excavation progressed.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• The Search for Le Griffon   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2014

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): SYM-30,03