Teaching
Archaeology
-
Unit 5
Public Archaeology
Archaeology as a discipline has much to offer the world outside of academia. In this unit, students will learn about how archaeologists bring their work to the public and how professional archaeologists use their training to make an impact on society through alternative career paths.
Sapiens articles
Keywords
View All in Archaeology
![A white-gloved hand holds a small brush and gently clears debris from a human and a canine skull.]()
![A reddish rocky ridge rises up beneath a blue sky with white clouds.]()
![Herds of black-and-white striped zebras and wildebeest gallop across plains and shallow water.]()
![Beside a large rock, a team digs at an archaeological site scattered with blue and green buckets and sandbags. Some team members wear red hats.]()
![A person wearing black-framed glasses and a white shirt with a green, blue, black, and gold flag emblem on it points up at a rock surface that has faint bronze-colored drawings on it.]()
![A person with long brown hair and a smudge of dirt on her forehead carries a stone weapon and wears a fur around her shoulders and neck.]()
Unearthing What Archaeologists Can and Cannot Know
An archaeologist studying 1,000-year-old dog burials reflects on the need for imagination in archaeology.
The Tomb That Told of a Women’s Kingdom
An archaeologist unspools the story of a female leader buried over 1,000 years ago on the Tibetan Plateau.
Do Africa’s Mass Animal Migrations Extend Into Deep Time?
Isotopes in fossil teeth suggest ancient animals traveled less than once thought—making researchers rethink past human societies and future conservation.
In Human Origins Research, Communities Are the Missing Link
A paleoanthropologist reflects on relationships between researchers and communities living around sites relevant to human evolution.
Reclaiming Tanzania’s Deep Past—Together
A U.S. archaeologist reflects on the power of community-driven research in Tanzania to include local voices and reshape how the story of human origins is told.
Archaeological Fiction and a Scientist’s Dilemma
An archaeologist reflects on the role of fiction, such as The Clan of the Cave Bear, to imagine the deep past—and inspire future generations of archaeologists.
View All in History
![A reddish rocky ridge rises up beneath a blue sky with white clouds.]()
![Beside a rocky coast, a seal pops its head above the waves.]()
![Kashmiri men separate chestnuts from mud while in boats floating serenely across a silvery lake. Trees are reflected on the water's surface.]()
![A person wearing black-framed glasses and a white shirt with a green, blue, black, and gold flag emblem on it points up at a rock surface that has faint bronze-colored drawings on it.]()
![A person with long brown hair and a smudge of dirt on her forehead carries a stone weapon and wears a fur around her shoulders and neck.]()
![A mosque, shrine, and houses lie in ruins after having been burned.]()
The Tomb That Told of a Women’s Kingdom
An archaeologist unspools the story of a female leader buried over 1,000 years ago on the Tibetan Plateau.
Connections and Conflicts With Seals in a Scottish Archipelago
An environmental anthropologist investigates deep-time, mythical, and contemporary relations between seals and Orkney Islanders.
Dreamscapes of Refusal: A Chorus
SAPIENS poet-in-residence for 2025 listens to a chorus of dreams in her field recordings from Kashmir.
Reclaiming Tanzania’s Deep Past—Together
A U.S. archaeologist reflects on the power of community-driven research in Tanzania to include local voices and reshape how the story of human origins is told.
Archaeological Fiction and a Scientist’s Dilemma
An archaeologist reflects on the role of fiction, such as The Clan of the Cave Bear, to imagine the deep past—and inspire future generations of archaeologists.
Listening to Murmurs
Through her field recordings, SAPIENS poet-in-residence for 2025 listens to murmurings of clay, debris, and time in Kashmir’s Tsaar.
View All in Kinship
![A woman pushing a stroller on the sidewalk walks briskly past a large billboard advertising a model who sports a fashionable handbag.]()
![Rolling hills feature elongated human-made rows in the landscape covered by green grass, with a bright blue sky and scattered white clouds above.]()
![Dozens of papers with text on them are punctured and strung horizontally on wires.]()
![A person wearing a snorkel, wetsuit, and flippers floats underwater as sunlight streams into the ocean. In the background, another diver swims near the surface.]()
![Taken from under the frond of a leafy overhang, waters near the shore of a beach gently ripple under the bright orange glow of the setting sun.]()
![A crowd watches a parade float shaped like a building with rainbow-colored windows and a heart made of rainbow handprints. Text reads, “justice community equality” and words on a blue roof read, “United Church of Christ, UCC.org/lgbt.” A small sign propped up against the float reads, “Amen. Advocate for Marriage Equality.”]()
To Raise Children, We Must First Raise Parents
An anthropologist compares her early motherhood in London with child care experiences in a hunter-gatherer community of Central Africa.
In Iron Age Britain, Descent Was Matrilineal
New analyses from Iron Age burials reveal that women remained in their natal communities and provided the key to kinship. The findings offer essential clues about gender roles and social structures in ancient Europe.
Archived Haints
SAPIENS’ 2024 poet-in-residence conjures the voices of those imprisoned in archives.
A Freediver Finds Belonging Without Breath
An anthropologist takes us on a journey “down the line” to explore what freediving can teach us about ourselves and kinship with the sea.
Bila Mwili
A poet-historian in Tanzania remembers those who have passed but who are still nearby.
Being LGBTQ+ in U.S. Protestant Churches
As homophobic and transphobic rhetoric sweeps the U.S., some churches are increasingly welcoming LGBTQ+ parishioners who participate in religious life and help reconcile Christianity with a spectrum of sexual and gender identities.
View All in Migration
![Parts of a wall clock lie on a table disassembled.]()
![Herds of black-and-white striped zebras and wildebeest gallop across plains and shallow water.]()
![The out-of-focus profile of a man stands in the foreground while behind him in the distance lies a cluster of rudimentary shelters at the foot of a brown-colored hill dotted with tufts of brownish-green brush.]()
![A family photograph in a photo album shows a woman in a white shirt with a purse on her lap sitting next to two young children in red sweaters.]()
![Two people carrying baskets on their heads look up at a billboard showing the faces of two men.]()
![A black-and-white image shows a footbridge across a road, facing the stacked buildings of a neighborhood.]()
Listening Against the Threshold of Pain
SAPIENS’ 2025 poet-in-residence situates her listening in Kashmir and Germany during and after her fieldwork, contextualizing her contributions to SAPIENS this year.
Do Africa’s Mass Animal Migrations Extend Into Deep Time?
Isotopes in fossil teeth suggest ancient animals traveled less than once thought—making researchers rethink past human societies and future conservation.
Surveillance and Suspicion From the Margins
A Venezuelan anthropologist reflects on distrust he felt from residents of informal settlements in Santiago, Chile—and how his experiences track global trends of fearing outsiders.
The Day I Heard My Mother’s Accent
In a personal essay, an anthropologist reflects on her family’s dual Syrian and French heritage.
In Zambia, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Chinese Migrants Find Common Ground
In many parts of Africa, investments and migration from China have sparked tensions with local residents—but some Chinese migrants are finding a welcoming community in Mandarin-speaking Zambian Witness congregations.
Snapshots of Losing Jenna
An anthropologist offers a lens on how losses from war dramatically alter a family—and a society.
Professor Talking Points
- Archaeologists inside and outside of academia have the skills to contribute to a wide range of projects and causes.
- Public archaeology is about finding meaningful ways to address issues of interest to the broader public by making use of a skillset that is honed through archaeological training and study.
- Professional archaeologists work for a number of different organizations: for example, museums, regional and national park services, cultural heritage departments, world heritage institutions, environmental associations, community outreach programs, and Indigenous services.
Academic Articles
-
Ross, Anne, Jonathan Prangnell, and Brian Coghill. 2010. “Archaeology, Cultural Landscapes, and Indigenous Knowledge in Australian Cultural Heritage Management Legislation and Practice.” Heritage Management 3 (1): 73–96.
-
Williamson, Ronald. 2011. “Planning for Ontario’s Archaeological Past: Accomplishments and Continuing Challenges.” Revista de Arqueología Americana (Journal of American Archaeology) 28: 7–45.
Student Discussion Questions
- What can archaeology offer the public?
- How can archaeological discussions about ethics be an asset in sectors like cultural heritage management, among other examples?
- Why is public outreach important for archaeologists?
- Where else can archaeologists work aside from inside academia?
- What do the SAPIENS articles by Veronica Petersen (2019) and Virginia Gewin (2020) show us about the merits of connecting and participating in exchanges with communities affected by archaeological work?
Activities
- Have the students reflect on (either through written work or in class discussions) their encounters with archaeology—at tourist sites, in movies and on TV, or in their backyards. What were those encounters like? In what ways were they positive or negative—and why?
Additional Resources
-
Article: The Washington Post’s “How the Discovery of an African Burial Ground in New York City Changed the Field of Genetics”
-
Website: National Park Service’s African Burial Ground
-
Website: Society for American Archaeology’s What Is Public Archaeology
Unit By
Eshe Lewis (2020)
Teaching
Archaeology
-
Unit 6
Black Archaeologies
