Welcome to the excavation! Sometimes the units are so full of artifacts you can’t wear shoes. All of these artifacts will make their way back to the lab. Photo credit: Gabriela de la Torre, IFR 2014 student, University of California San Diego.
Every artifact then gets mapped using the total station. Student, Victoira Sluka, is a pro. Photo credit: Victoria Sluka, IFR 2014 student, Notre Dame.
This is an intact equid (zebra or horse) mandible. Conservation came out for a visit to the site to pick up this big guy. Superglue is strictly forbidden on site, so we have to be very careful when excavating the more fragile pieces. This mandible was removed within its matrix and wrapped in plaster bandages and coated with cyclododecane, which will sublime after enough exposure to air. Photo credit: Gabriela de la Torre, IFR 2014 student, University of California San Diego.
Once the artifacts arrive back at the camp, they are washed and given a specimen number. Each one of these artifacts is then classified by material and technology type and entered into the database along with the length, width, thickness and weight. Photo credit: OGAP Leken Olle Moita.
Each artifact was carefully labeled with the site, trench and specimen number as well as given a small bar code. Some of these labels can be very tiny. Photo credit: Gabriela de la Torre, IFR 2014 student, University of California, San Diego.
Sometimes the artifacts have so much sediment adhering to the surface that they get a special trip to conservation to be cleaned. Photo credit: Gabriela de la Torre, IFR 2014 student, University of California, San Diego.
Matthew Muttart practices a mini-excavation in the conservation lab on the same equid mandible shown in the field. Photo credit: Matthew Muttart, IFR 2014 student, University of Victoria.
Outside the camp Dr. Gai Jorayev (left) leads aerial photography research with the use of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Photo credit: Victoria Sluka, IFR 2014 student, Notre Dame.
And this is where Kristen could be found during the project! She works with Dr. Michael Pante (above) analyzing the faunal material. If you look closely, you can see a portrait of Dr. Pante and his “preferred” (but not actual) form of transportation to and from the site.
