I had to pick between two dig sites for my first field school

It came down to a Roman fort in England or a Pueblo site in New Mexico. I went with the Pueblo dig because the travel costs were way lower for me, being in Arizona. We spent six weeks there and found a whole set of painted pottery shards on the third day. Has anyone else had to make a tough call like that for a field placement?

3 comments

3 Comments

anderson.gavin1d ago

Went with the cheaper option too when I had to choose between a lithic scatter site in Texas and a shipwreck survey in Florida. The Texas site didn't have any big finds like your pottery, but we mapped out a whole workshop area that nobody had documented before. That kind of thing stays with you more than the travel costs. The Roman fort would have been interesting, but getting your hands on actual artifacts in the first week is hard to beat. You made the right call.

tyler_fox412mo ago

Ever regret not picking the Roman fort?

fiona_clark2mo ago

Feel that one a bit. I remember standing there looking at the map, and the fort just seemed so far from everything. Thought the convenience would win out. Still wonder about the quiet over there sometimes.