Neolithic Archaeology

Journal 6: Micromorphology: Sampling Soggy Soil

Submitted by Kimberly Singleton on Fri, 04/26/2013 - 11:17

Watch as geoarchaeologist Dr. Panagiotis (Takis) Karkanas extracts soil samples at the soggy tell site, which has been plagued by record-setting rain and snow this season. The samples will be impregnated with epoxy and then cut and polished into thin sections so that their structure and composition can be examined under a microscope to learn more about the ancient behaviors that created the tell site over time.

Journal 5: Underwater Geophysics

Submitted by Kimberly Singleton on Thu, 04/25/2013 - 17:30

Check out how historic levels of rain in Hungary affect the work of geophysicist Dr. Apostolos Sarris and graduate student Dani Reibe as they attempt to establish GPS coordinates on the flooded site. Unfortunately, soggy soil can wreak havoc on ground penetrating radar, magnetometers, and other devices that let archaeologists "see" man-made structures hidden below the surface of the soil.

4. Winding Down

Submitted by William Parkinson on Thu, 04/11/2013 - 00:00

These last couple weeks haven't been easy. We've made progress, but we've continued to be hammered by rain on a daily basis. In my last dispatch, I reported that two of our Greek colleagues—Drs. Takis Karkanas and Apostolos Sarris—had just arrived. Although it rained—or snowed (or hailed)—every single day that they both were here, we managed to get them into the field so they could do their jobs.

Journal 4: Difficult Digging

Submitted by Kimberly Singleton on Fri, 03/29/2013 - 13:36

Discover how difficult it is to dig through heavy mud and expose archaeological features after spring snowstorms and rain at the excavation site. (From behind the camera, Dr. Parkinson has a sarcastic discussion in Hungarian with his hard-at-work colleagues about the lovely weather.)

This is the fourth installment in a six-part series of video journals by Dr. Parkinson as he documents daily life and fieldwork during his expedition to Hungary's Körös River Valley, where he and his team are unearthing the remnants of some of Europe’s earliest villages.

Journal 3. Sloshing & Screening

Submitted by Kimberly Singleton on Fri, 03/29/2013 - 13:29

After days of snow at the excavation site, even walking the short distance from the edge of the trench to the screen can be an arduous task, not to mention sifting through all that mud.

This is the third installment in a six-part series of video journals by Dr. Parkinson as he documents daily life and fieldwork during his expedition to Hungary's Körös River Valley, where he and his team are unearthing the remnants of some of Europe’s earliest villages.
 

Journal 2. Stuck in the Mud

Submitted by Kimberly Singleton on Fri, 03/29/2013 - 11:29

Watch the heroic (and somewhat comical) attempt of some of the excavation team to muck their way through the freezing mud and make it back to the trucks after a long day.

This is the second installment in a six-part series of video journals by Dr. Parkinson as he documents daily life and fieldwork during his expedition to Hungary's Körös River Valley, where he and his team are unearthing the remnants of some of Europe’s earliest villages.

3. Ez fáj! (This hurts!)

Submitted by William Parkinson on Thu, 03/28/2013 - 00:00

We finally managed to get into the field last Thursday after the snows, rain, sleet, and hail. As I mentioned in my last dispatch, we lost several days the first two weeks to the weather, and it was a darn good thing we got a small window to get the big backhoe into the tell to clear out the deep trench we identified last year. Exposing the tell trench was critical because we needed to prepare for the newest addition to our team—Dr.

2. Na! Haladjunk már! (Come on! Let's go already!)

Submitted by William Parkinson on Wed, 03/20/2013 - 00:00

Well, that was an interesting week! As I reported in my last dispatch, we were able to work from Monday through Wednesday. But on Thursday things really hit the fan!

Journal 1: Muddin' to the Excavation Site

Submitted by Kimberly Singleton on Mon, 03/18/2013 - 16:34

Check out the hazards of getting to the excavation site after heavy spring rains in Hungary. Nothing like a little "muddin'" on your way to work!

This is the first installment in a six-part series of video journals by Dr. Parkinson as he documents daily life and fieldwork during his expedition to Hungary's Körös River Valley, where he and his team are unearthing the remnants of some of Europe’s earliest villages.

1. "Megkísértsük a szerencsénket?" (Are we pressing our luck?)

Submitted by William Parkinson on Thu, 03/14/2013 - 00:00

This is the third day of field work. I arrived last Friday and worked with Attila and Dani to set up the field base on Saturday and Sunday—we moved all the equipment and the finds from the museum storage unit in Békéscsaba to Vésztő.

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