The Life of an Archaeologist

Lynn Simonelli, Vice President of Collections and Research for the Dayton Society of Natural History, shares her adventures as an archaeologist and gives caregivers tips to help introduce their children to this fascinating field. Introduce your child to archaeology as a career and create an “Archaeology Party” for your child and his/her friends using the activities below.

“When people learn that I am an archaeologist, their first response is, “How interesting!” It is clear that the majority of people associate archaeology with the romance, intrigue, and mystery of the Indiana Jones and Lara Croft movies. While I am also a fan of these movies, the reality of archaeology in Dayton is that it is unnecessary to travel to exotic locales to learn more about the lives of past people and their cultures: there’s plenty of archaeology to be done in southwestern Ohio.

“The second response I get from meeting someone new is “So, how many dinosaurs have you dug up?” Many people are unaware that archaeology, the study of cultures through examining their material culture, is separated from paleontology, the study of prehistoric life using fossil evidence. Archaeologists are insatiably curious. We want to know how the people of prehistoric cultures lived, ate, married, taught their children, built shelters, and particularly what they threw away. It is not commonly known that prehistoric garbage is a bonanza for an archaeologist. By examining animal bones, broken pottery and other items discarded by ancient people, archaeologists can gain a wealth of knowledge.”