Buildings Archaeology

A buildings archaeologist studies historic buildings. Every time a building is altered the building will reveal evidence of these changes. Buildings archaeologists read these clues to explain the history of the building.

Buildings archaeologists will work on site and in the office. The work on site can range from taking photographs, to measuring and drawing every single detail to create a precise picture of the whole building. A buildings archaeologist looks at a building in a similar way to how an archaeologist looks at an excavated site. They look for evidence and try to understand what happened when and why.

To be a buildings archaeologist you need to:

• be patient
• be accurate
• be able to draw
• have good observational skills
• be enthusiastic and persistent

Isabel Mason is a buildings archaeologist and says

The best part of my job is working outside in the sun! You can’t beat spending days drawing beautiful medieval buildings with sun on your back – and getting paid for it! However, if the best part of the job is the sun, then the worst is the cold. It is very difficult to hold a pencil when your fingers are numb with cold. It’s not that bad, you just need a big flask of tea! …I would recommend being a buildings archaeologist. Digging is a lot of fun and I loved that too, but given the choice between a building and some mud – well there’s no contest really is there?!