by Nicole Findlay
The thought of discovering a human skull might elicit horror, fear or disgust. But for Elizabeth Upton it was a thrill.
Of course, context is everything. Upton and two other FASS students spent their summer exhuming ancient remains at an archaeological dig in Spain.
Elizabeth Upton and Tabitha Williams, both fourth year anthropology students and Brittany Mann, a third-year anthropology student, all chose to focus their efforts on the ancient Roman city, Menorca’s necropolis. The site is thought to date to 100 BC – 500 AD.
They joined an international team of students and archeologists at the on-going field school. The site comprised digs focusing on either the necropolis or city, or a combination of both.
Students participating in the dig also selected their area of focus – either on human remains or materials and buildings.
Upton, Williams and Mann opted to dig up the dead.
“I loved the excavation of the tombs and the finer lab work which preceded it,” said Upton. “The most challenging was definitely the manual labour required to dig up the surface layer.”
Arduous physical labour was not the only challenge the students encountered. Affixing dates to and determining the origins of the skulls and bones they unearthed proved difficult due to the centuries-old work of thieves.
“The looting means that there are almost no grave goods, only a few beads and earrings, which make dating the site and the group of people living there very difficult,” said Williams.
Nevertheless, the students were able to see examples of the evolution of funerary practices. These included the discovery of multiple remains found in one grave, an indication that final resting places weren’t so final.
“It looked like when remains were first buried, they were laid out in fetal position or on their backs, however when a sufficient amount of time had passed, the remains were pushed to the sides of the grave, and new ones were placed in,” said Williams.
The students made discoveries about themselves too.
“It was a major push in helping me make decisions about my future career goals,” said Upton, who plans to pursue museum studies.
Participating in a dig is an experience she recommends to any student currently casting around for ideas to fill their future summers.