My decision to pursue an internship at The Gault School of Archaeological Research (GSAR) was based primarily on my interests to learn about the processing and curation of artifacts, and secondly, to enhance my limited knowledge of point diagnostics as pertaining to the various periods of time during the occupation at Gault. Interning at Gault proved to be more than just the cleaning and processing of artifacts; it enhanced and extended my knowledge about the history of peopling of the Americas.
GSAR is a non-profit organization that is under the direction of Dr. Michael Collins (Board Chairman), Dr. Clark Wernecke (Executive Director), and Nancy V. Littlefield (Director of Education). In summary, the school’s main mission is to conduct and promote scientific research throughout the site, to educate the general public about the site and its historical significance, and lastly, to foster the collaboration of universities and organizations with common interests. The Gault School maintains a lab that is located at the Texas State campus in San Marcos. Artifact processing and curation are carried out at the lab by volunteers and interns who share a common interest in archaeology and history.
To fully understand the scope and importance of the Gault Site, it is imperative to understand the history of Gault. According to the The Gault School web site (http://www.gaultschool.org) the site is located on very marginal farmland between Austin and Salado; it was originally owned by Henry and Jodie Gault. Gault has an archaeological existence of approximately 78 years. It began around 1929 when anthropologists J.E. Pearce, along with other excavators, began digging in and around the site for a brief 8 week period. Pearce was initially interested in burnt rock middens which were located on top of the uppermost soil horizon. While digging around, they came across various Paleo-Indian artifacts, specifically Clovis type, which indicated that a very old culture had existed there at one time. The site exchanged hands several times throughout its history and at one point it was advertised as a “pay to dig” site. For a mere 10 dollars (later that was raised to 25 dollars) you could dig at the site and keep what you found. Although this generated much interest, it also attracted many treasure hunters to the site. Many of the artifacts that were recovered during this time period were sold to antiquarians or wound up in personal museums. Many of the excavators were oblivious to what they were looking at and most lacked the proper training in proper methods of excavation. For a span of 80 years, looters have decimated the burned rock layers and cultural material that have been dated to approximately 9,000-500 RCYA. Much of the cultural context has been compromised by treasure seekers looking to make a buck. Although the destruction of the context was severe, it was primarily restricted to the Archaic Period and its deposits. In 1990, during the height of the “pay to dig” era, an archaeologist by the name of David Olmstead began to dig deeply into a burned rock midden and unearthed several fluted Clovis artifacts. Olmstead immediately brought the artifacts to the attention of professional archaeologists. Dr. Collins, a renowned expert on Clovis culture, took an interest on this latest discovery and conducted a series of investigations at the site. The discovery of Clovis artifacts catapulted the Gault Site into the scientific spotlight; it soon became the center of inquiry and research.
Before any work is done on the artifacts, workers first familiarize themselves with the lab processing handout. The handout will specifically give instructions on whether or not an object is to be cleaned or not. For example, some items such as bone, charcoal, and shells are delicate and susceptible to breakage therefore, these items should never come into contact with water. The initial stage of artifact processing involves the classification, washing, and drying of the recovered material. Archeological material that is excavated at the actual site is bagged and tagged then transported to the lab located at Texas State campus. The bags are chronologically sorted and stored on shelving where they await to be processed and catalogued.
Prior to my internship, I had a vague understanding of the immensity of time as related to the peopling of the Americas. I heard the words archaic, paleo, ancient, and prehistoric but couldn’t draw a clear correlation between time periods and cultural life-ways. To me everything was archaic or paleo; in other words, old. What I had was textbook knowledge and no hands-on experience and training. By learning the artifact curation process, I learned to pay closer attention to detail to the material I was handling in the lab. To the untrained eye most of the debitage (chipped stone waste) appears to be nothing more than just ordinary rock. Upon closer examination it is evident that this waste is the result of a tool working process. Almost all of the flake remnants show signs craftsmanship. Each point was designed for a specific purpose according to the needs of the inhabitants of a specific time span. Because of the changes in paleo-climate, the fauna also changed, this required an adaptation in point technology in order to facilitate new hunting strategies. Once I learned to differentiate the various point specimens I was capable to adequately assign them to a specific time period.
Working as an intern at the Gault lab was an experience of a lifetime. Developing diagnostic techniques takes patience and is very time consuming but the rewards are worth it. I think the hardest part of the internship was at the beginning when I was given a bag of rocks to wash. As I persevered through the initial weeks of “grunt work” I eventually graduated to the actual processing and curation of artifacts. While working at the latter station, I began to ask questions about flakes, core material, and other types of scrapers and tools. The staff at Gault was more than helpful in guiding me along the way in developing my artifact IQ. In addition to developing my diagnostic abilities, I learned a little about various dating techniques that, up until then, were only read about in textbooks. GSAR really helped me to understand the methodology behind their mission and purpose: mainly to educate the general public about the site and its historical significance. I would encourage any anthropology major to take part as an intern at GSAR.