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at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse

Process of Archaeology / Fieldwork

Fine-Scale recovery

Bags of the soil from features such as pits or hearths are collected. They are taken back to the lab to be floated or fine-screened, to recover the smallest artifacts and the charred seeds and nuts left in the soil, including charcoal that may be used for radiocarbon dating. Samples are processed through screens that have holes 0.5 mm wide, or about half the size of window screening.

The red bags by the pit contain the soil to be returned to the lab for flotation.

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MVAC Educational Programs are supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in these programs do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities. This project was supported in part by the National Science Foundation. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Foundation.