Written by: Dani Bradford, Steph Halmhofer, and Nikki Martensen *Authors and contributors listed in alphabetical order **Featured image from Steph Halmhofer   It all started with a suggestion on Twitter by @ArchyFantasies to start a “femmes of archaeology support group”. The support group began on Twitter and then quickly moved to Slack to allow for more people to join, as the response to the group was overwhelmingly positive. Initial conversation turned to the inclusion of…

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Pic: The inspiration for this blog series title, from Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (Image borrowed from a website about a map program) It’s no secret that archaeology is often a popular topic for fictional movies and books.  But it’s also no secret that fictional movies and books get a lot wrong about archaeology. The discipline had been romanticized in a way, with grand ideas of gold fortunes, unleashed curses, and monsters hidden away for…

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Pic: Me, sitting in my unit in BC recording some level depths, something you’ll often see archaeologists doing. Imagine you’re out for a walk in a National park and you come across a team of archaeologists on an excavation.  Do you talk to them?  Do you keep walking past? What if you run into one of them in the washroom?  What happens if you make eye contact? For anyone who has visited Point Pelee National…

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Pic: The extra-large beads from Sexwamin If you follow me on Twitter or read this blog on a regular basis, you have definitely heard me talking about blown-glass (B-G) beads.  If you’re new to my blog and find yourself wondering what I’m talking about, I’ll summarize briefly: I uncovered some super rare B-G beads on an archaeological site in BC that I studied for my MA thesis.  Based on specific manufacturing characteristics on these beads I…

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Pic: Me with my super serious archaeologist face doing some super serious archaeology work in the lab. I finished my Masters thesis.  Written, polished, submitted, and accepted kind of done.  Which is kind of crazy for me, since it’s been a goal I’ve been working towards for the past 5 years.  I’m still in a little bit of disbelief that I’m actually finished!  So, I guess the next question is, “now what?”  I was worried…

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Pic: The Canadian Science Publishing Facebook page.  My photo is the very right side in the middle row This is definitely a shameless self-plug post asking you to take a look at a photo I have entered in a contest and vote for it.  Just warning you. The Canadian Science Publishing group has a fantastic science photography contest each year called Visualizing Science.  The photos are all people’s choice – meaning YOU have the power…

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Pic: The first page behind my title page in my Masters thesis Well, I did it.  I wrote my archaeology Masters thesis.  And then I won the battle against formatting images in Word to create a beautiful PDF document that I can be proud of.  It’s not perfect – it will never be perfect.  But that sure as heck won’t stop me from being proud of what I’ve accomplished! I would be lying if I…

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I’ve been pretty absent as of lately, but I promise I have some good excuses!  Firstly, I was in BC for a month for fieldwork.  And secondly, I’ve been busy writing up my Masters thesis! Today I’ve interrupted that writing to bring you a short, but exciting message!  I’ve been invited to work with Dr. Katherine Kirakosian at the University of Massachusetts Amherst on developing an open access introductory textbook on North American archaeology.  It’s…

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I’ve been pretty absent as of lately, but I promise I have some good excuses!  Firstly, I was in BC for a month for fieldwork.  And secondly, I’ve been busy writing up my Masters thesis! Today I’ve interrupted that writing to bring you a short, but exciting message!  I’ve been invited to work with Dr. Katherine Kirakosian at the University of Massachusetts Amherst on developing an open access introductory textbook on North American archaeology.  It’s…

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Pic: the medium sized beads of clear glass with an indeterminate interior colour Recently my field season in BC came and went by in a blur of time.  It was a busy, but rewarding season on the Sunshine Coast, working with the shíshálh Nation and the shíshálh Archaeological Research Project.  Our time was again spent excavating Snake Bay (which will be featured in a fantastic television show’s upcoming second season).  We also spent a significant amount…

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