Environmental Archaeology

The life of an environmental archaeologist is very varied. Their job includes visiting excavations to provide advice, taking soil samples and carrying out surveys. They also work in laboratories looking at biological remains such as pollen or seeds through a microscope, and in the office writing reports.

The work of environmental archaeologists can help other archaeologists to interpret the life of a settlement or what a particular feature was used for. To be an environmental archaeologist you have to have good observational skills so that you can distinguish one seed or pollen grain from another!

Elizabeth Huckerby and Denise Druce are both environmental archaeologists and tell us that

There are probably two aspects of our work that could be described as the most exciting. The first is being able to find out about the economy, environment and diets of people in the past. The second is finding and identifying a previously unrecorded plant or organism from a site.