Diggin' Up the Facts about Archaeology! What is Archaeology?

Archaeology is the study of artifacts that people centuries ago may have left behind. Archaeologists look for objects people left behind from a long time ago, far earlier than what you see in written records. What we may leave behind today may tell future archaeologists about the 20th century. The objects we leave behind today may be totally cool and antique to future archaeologists. Archaeologists do not study about the person itself, but the materials and artifacts they used. Many aspects of humans' lives are never recorded. For example, archaeologists could do a lot of research on a tribe, and find out where the tribe lived for a certain part of time, and the archaeologists could excavate in that place. If they were lucky, and came across some really unique pots and candle holders, or even the bones of animals, they would be able to record their information about the lives of those people. Some archaeologists can tell what kind of animal was eaten by the people because of the height, weight, and size of the animals' bones. Items lost or forgotten give archaeologists clues to the past and help them understand why the artifact was used, and how.

Excavate: 1: to make a hole or cavity in; hollow or dig out 2: to form or make by hollowing, digging out, or scooping 3: to remove by digging or scooping out, as soil 4: to uncover by digging, as ruins

Artifact: 1: anything made by human work or art 2: a structure or appearance which is not normally present in a cell or tissue but is produced by artificial means

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