Spotlight: What I Do As an Archaeologist
Since archeology serves as the backdrop for old-fashioned adventure stories, you probably have different ideas about what it means to be an archaeologist. Unsurprisingly, the truth is not so much about the treasure hunt as about the methodological analysis of historical monuments.
And it’s not just the professors in tweed; archaeologists also work with the public and private sectors to preserve cultural history from the impact of infrastructure or construction projects. To learn a little more about their day-to-day work, we spoke to Mason Miller, who has worked as an archaeologist in the private sector for the past 15 years.
Tell us a little about yourself and your experience.
Hey! My name is Mason Miller. I am a Senior Archaeologist / Principal Investigator and Project Leader at AmaTerra Environmental, Inc. in Austin, Texas. As one of the senior members of the cultural resources department of a large environmental consulting firm, I oversee the onshore and offshore archaeological research that is often required by law for many public and private sector development projects.
In short: There are various federal and state laws that require agencies to know which types of archaeological sites, historic buildings, and cultural sites may be affected by a proposed construction project, such as a highway extension, or a shipping channel dredging, or a solar power plant (my favorite ), or maybe the installation of sewerage … in general infrastructure. To comply with these laws, firms such as ours are hired to survey project sites for archaeological excavations (among other things) and determine if they are important or not. We carry out all kinds of analyzes to find out how old the site is, what artifacts are there, how well it has survived, and much more. If they are important, we then conduct detailed excavations (such as what you see in documentaries with square holes, lots of buckets and screens) to preserve the site with the data it contains.
I develop and manage project budgets, ensure that fieldwork meets research standards and objectives, write and edit reports and other regulations, and coordinate regularly with clients and members of government and federal agencies. My main geographical area of experience is Texas and the surrounding states, but I have done research even in Europe (England, Portugal, Azores; in graduate school). I have worked for AmaTerra for the last five years, and before that I worked for another environmental firm for about nine years.
Pictured: A large-scale excavation project in northeast Texas.
What prompted you to choose your career path?
I have always been interested in history. I remember reading Scholastic picture books about Ancient Greece in the school library and building pyramids from sugar cubes as a child. I particularly enjoyed the shipwrecks and replicated the exploration of Andrea Dorea and the Titanic that I saw on TV in my nearby pool (I remember my sister and I spinning the spirograph around the page to get a “countdown” of some “analysis.” We did it on a piece of concrete from the bottom of the pool). However, it wasn’t particularly impressive until I went to college. I walked into school with no idea what direction I was going in life and watched the 1977 film The Depth with Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset. Watching him, I realized that I was in awe of all the scenes of the shipwreck, and simply said, “Aha! That’s all!” Since then I have been doing this. I have been doing terrestrial archeology (working on land) most of the time because there were more career opportunities in that case, but sometimes I go out on the water too.
How did you get a job? What kind of education and experience did you need?
After learning what I wanted to do, I earned a BA in Anthropology from the University of Texas. Since I wanted to study wrecks, I got my Master of Science in Marine Archeology from Texas A&M University (although I’m orange blood). I found myself having a doctorate. doesn’t actually open much more doors than just the Workshop, so I haven’t achieved that level of education. During my college and graduate studies, I completed several field projects in Belize, Florida, England, Portugal and the Azores that prepared me for some harsh field work. After getting my master’s degree, I stumbled upon many doors and became a contracted archaeologist (someone who works on one project for one company, then moves on to another project in another company; usually only for field research) with several firms … , doing a project here and a project there (both marine and terrestrial archeology). To be honest, it took a lot longer than I expected to get the full-time job. In the end, I was hired full time at an environmental consulting company and have been working as a full-time employee ever since.
A professional archaeologist requires a minimum of a bachelor’s degree, preferably in a related subject (anthropology, classics, etc.). With this degree, individuals can work as a contract archaeologist and be hired as a full-time employee at a consulting firm. However, there is a pretty solid ceiling for career advancement if you don’t have an advanced degree (master’s or doctorate). For example, in Texas, you often need a permit to conduct field research, and the law requires permit applicants to have at least a master’s degree. Without it, you will never get permission and you will never be able to conduct investigations. While it is not set in stone and there are ways to work within this system, it tends to divide career paths as a result.
Above: Mason records components of the Depression Civilian Conservation Corps camp at Mother Neff State Park (outside Waco, TX) using ground penetrating radar.
What are you doing besides what most people see? What do you actually spend most of your time on?
In the field, we spend most of our time digging empty holes in the ground or finding nothing on the remote sensing screens of marine reconnaissance.
We spend a lot more time in the office than you might expect. Every day in the field, we can spend 3-5 days analyzing and writing. In fact, often even more. The rest of the time is often spent preparing proposals. We have to kind of feed the beast, so we are always looking for opportunities to work on different projects. Oftentimes, responses to these requests for proposals (RFPs) submitted by engineering firms or government or federal agencies require more effort, especially at the higher levels of the company.
Like many of us, I spend a LOT of time writing letters and answering emails, and talking on the phone with clients.
What misconceptions do people often have about your job?
To remove the most common one: we are not looking for dinosaurs; we are looking for what people have done and left behind. I always say, “If we find dinosaurs, then we are digging too deep.” What we’re looking for doesn’t really have to be that old. The legal limit for an “archaeological site” (remember, our work is done under state and federal law) is typically 50 years of age or older. My company recently documented several archaeological excavations of Cold War missile test sites in Utah and New Mexico in the 1960s.
Further, I would say that people tend to think all the time that archeology is exotic and exciting. It’s certainly fun, but most of the time it’s hardly the crazy adventure you’d expect. Recognizing that what we archaeologists do is atypical , it is still a business like many others. We fill out timesheets, send / receive emails, conduct employee meetings and conference calls. We provide professional services and our experience is our product. 75 percent of the time you will find it difficult to tell if we are talking about mid-archaic camping or real estate office work.
Along the same lines, the last misconception that humans have is that all we do is work with sites and amazing artifacts all the time. I can’t tell you how many empty holes I’ve dug in the countryside … thousands (although I’m really good at it!). There are many polls in which we find nothing. Working with real sites is a relatively small part of our surveys, but they are by far the most important. Even more rarely, large excavations. I would say that in my 15 years in the industry, I have been involved in full excavations at about 8-10 sites. Something like that.
Pictured: Gary’s set of shells from an excavation site in northeast Texas. They are about 3000-1000 years old.
What’s your average uptime?
My work week is mostly standard: 40-50 hours a week from Monday to Friday. A field project may require some work on weekends with longer days. We usually have 5/2 or 10/4 field commitments for field work (depending on the size of the project), but I am not in the field as often as I used to.
What personal tips and shortcuts have made your job easier?
I would say that one of the most important personal advice I try to follow is to fully understand what I am writing about. I try to always take a step back and know exactly why I am writing a letter (for example) from a legal point of view. I could write a lot of information, but if it doesn’t help the project get through the trial, it’s a waste. Therefore, I always try to look at what I write from the point of view of the person who reads it, in order to answer all his questions before they ask them. This has helped me a lot over the years.
When it comes to shortcuts, while not every state has them, online archaeological sites are HUGE to our work. These databases are not available to the general public (interestingly, archaeological sites are among the few sets of information that are protected from the Freedom of Information Act …), but professional archaeologists who have access (there is a whole biographical verification process) , can very quickly see the location and types of plots in the area, previous research done and a lot of other really useful information. This helps to prepare project proposals or to understand what methods are best to use in the field, or to remember which site we recorded in some place. Previously, this required trips to certain archives and a lot of extra time, but now it’s a couple of clicks. There are similar online databases for soils ( USDA Soil Web Survey ) and geology (the Texas Geological Atlas layer on Google Maps is one) that are open to the public. It also speeds up work significantly.
Pictured: Colleague Noel Steinl digs a test shovel at the Lake Caddo Wildlife Management Zone in northeast Texas. The Wooden Frame is a small viewing screen that is used to sift through dirt when testing with a shovel to find artifacts.
What are you doing differently from your colleagues or colleagues in the same profession? What are they doing instead?
I find that I enjoy talking to clients and conferences more than many of my colleagues. Because I’m a little humane, I prefer this side of the business to the harsher science. I think this is due to the fact that I studied shipwrecks, but now I work mainly on land.
Also, I think one of the things I do that is a little different from my peers is that I try really hard, especially in the tech area. I’m the guy who reads about some new tool or program and just try it. Many archaeologists in this profession tend to stick to tried and true methods that work well for them. Of course, there are many masters like me in this profession, but I would say that we are the exception rather than the rule. There is considerable risk if you are managing a field crew on a survey or excavation and decide to take a little risk to try something. Will it waste a lot of time / money? Are you about to lose data? But for me the potential of the plus is worth the extra stress. I got a lot of gray hair when things didn’t go as well as I expected, but what the hell … it was worth it and I always ended up learning something new in the process that I could apply to my next project.
What’s the worst part of a job and how do you deal with it?
I would say it’s stressful. Environmental consulting (including archeology) is very competitive. More often than not, like a carpenter or plumber, numerous environmental firms compete for a given project (for example, meeting all archaeological requirements for a new power line), and price is usually a factor. Keeping your budget as low as possible to be competitive and sticking to it can be very difficult given all the unknown aspects of the project. If something goes wrong and the project goes over budget, it reflects on you as a project manager.
I also sometimes worry that we missed something during the survey. This happens sometimes in the industry (we dig holes in the ground to try to find lots, but there is nothing to suggest that the important spot is right next to the hole you are digging …). If I’m particularly paranoid when the phone rings, it bothers me that it’s a phone call from our client saying that a construction bulldozer pulled out half of the Ark of the Covenant in an area that we said was completely clean. Trembling … I never lost sight of the important, but it happens, so it’s always deep down.
I try to deal with stress by running (very slow … more like “trudging”) during my lunch break a few days a week. It’s a great way for me to go outside, get some fresh air and let my thoughts wander. It really helps. I also have a five-year-old child who makes me (sometimes unsuccessfully) forget about work for a while and just play LEGO or kick a soccer ball. And I try to use as many chances as possible to get creative.
Above: Mason collects a river sediment sample from the San Marcos River.
What is the most enjoyable part of the job?
I would say it will be an opportunity for creativity and variety. Often times in this career you have to stretch your legs in one way or another. For some, this means an opportunity to formulate a new method of analysis for identifying retail chains in certain regions. For others, it may be looking for ways to project known locations and site types into a probabilistic model to aid in planning the location of a new highway. I was looking for ways to improve public access to the work we do (after all, they paid taxes for it). As a result, I became the de facto lead author of an interactive digital book that is available for free on iTunes and the Google Play store called “Looking Through the Sands of Time.” As far as I know, this is the first of its kind in the industry (and quite appealing if I say so myself … 3D models, pop-up text, all kinds of fun stuff. You should check it out!
To do this, I had to learn several new programs to develop it, including 3D modeling and ways of posting publications in these stores. Others here at AmaTerra have learned how to mold silicone to mold these amazing 3,000-year-old stone ax blades they recently discovered during their research. And right now I’m trying to figure out how to make an interactive display covering the instrument history at the White Sands Missile Range . It is truly a science promoted by those who practice it. If you have new ideas and new ways to do something (and it fits within the budget), nothing stops you, because this is your project.
One week I work with shipwrecks and the next with 8,000 year old darts. From time to time you take a mental step back and wonder that you are holding an instrument that someone made thousands of years before you and has not seen daylight since. In many ways, it is indeed a privilege to work with such a part of our human heritage.
What advice can you give to people who need to use your services?
Engineering firms are our most frequent clients. When they are handed a development project in which archeology is one of the components, it is very useful for them to know exactly what physical impact is expected from the construction (for example, how wide the highway will be and how deep they will have to dig). build it?). It is important for us to know exactly what we need to do. It is also important to know and communicate what types of permits and funding sources are involved in a given project (these may trigger different levels of investigation).
Also, don’t be afraid of us … people tend to think of archaeologists as these harbingers of the demise of construction projects; that we just can’t wait to close the project, because all the sites there are precious. We have no control over which sites are there, but more often than not everything we find will not affect the project at all and, at best, will cause a slight delay and nothing more. Our task is to help you, the client, go through the process as efficiently and quickly as possible. We’re really on your side … honest!
Above: Co-worker Rachel Faith oversees digging a backhoe trench in downtown Austin. She documented some of the elements of downtown Austin in the late 19th century.
How much money can you expect at your job? Or what is the average starting salary?
You won’t find many rich archaeologists. In the beginning, you were first rich, and then you took up archeology as a hobby. If you are just starting out and work as a contract archaeologist, the pay in our area is around $ 16-18 per hour. If you are hired as an employee, your salary increases slightly, but you often get an allowance, which helps.
Career advancement is accompanied by an increase in wages. An archaeologist’s salary can lead to a modest but comfortable life. I earn enough now, as I have served as the sole breadwinner in the family since my son was born five years ago. We don’t go on vacation a lot or anything like that, but we have a small house, two cars, an HBO channel … you get the idea.
To be at the top of the ladder would mean being a senior partner in a larger firm or owning a successful small firm, and the salaries would be even higher. But then again … you won’t find rich archaeologists.
How are you progressing in your field?
Taking into account the educational requirements (see above), the main way to advance in this profession is to take on an ever higher level of responsibility and do it on a professional level.
An entry-level archaeologist who is on time and friendly and put in a lot of effort (good field notes, accurate data collection and navigation) can be recruited as team leader for the next project. If they can manage multiple crew members as a senior, they may be recruited full-time at some point in the future. If they are doing a good job in the office, writing a chapter of a report, or doing a lot of accurate data entry (there is a lot that we do), they may end up working up to a project archaeologist. These are the ones who are (so to speak) second in the team on the project. They oversee day-to-day operations on a field project, possibly with multiple teams. They can then write a complete report on that project. After that person writes several reports and the reviewing agencies acknowledge the work they are capable of, they may eventually move on to the position of “Principal Investigator”. This is the person who oversees the project as a whole, from developing research objectives to ensuring full assessment and accurate presentation of sites. On top of that, if that person then begins to interact directly with clients, they may eventually become a project manager, and so on.
There are really no fixed steps or set timetable for progress. It’s all about your job, your ability, and your attitude. Although, as I mentioned above, without this degree, your opportunities to become an IP and above are much less common.
Specialization is another path to advancement. You may be well versed with computer maps called geographic information systems (GIS). It is a tool that everyone uses all the time, and mastering it is a big step forward. You can get training in curation (preparing artifacts, photographs, notes, and other data for permanent storage in a kind of archive) or have a good understanding of the markings on stone tools to determine how they were made or what they were used for. While we all know a thing or two about it, having a specialist can propel them up. There are many experts who have well identified plant fibers, pollen, animal bones or how soil is formed on plots …
Photo: Mason captures the banks of the Trinity River for a project southeast of Dallas.
What advice would you give to those who want to become your profession?
First of all, I highly recommend anyone interested in the profession to complete their full degree before starting. Life may dictate otherwise, but if at all possible, get a master’s degree or even a Ph.D. first. This opens a LOT of doors that would be tightly closed without it. There are many archaeologists who get their bachelor’s degree and leave “for a short while” and ultimately never return to get their master’s degree. As a result, they will never have the right to lead projects and will not get as high as they do. could have been otherwise. Try to let the momentum drive you to the point, if at all possible.
Also, the # 1 skill of the first degree that will help you is mentally active writing … I can’t stress that too much. Take time to find out why you write what you write. Don’t just fill the page with text and random data that you think will fit the bill – think about it. By no means do I consider myself a great writer, but I am actively thinking about what I am writing all the time. I put myself in the point of view of a reviewer and try to write to make his job easier. When I see new archaeologists show that they seriously think about what they write, it is a direct sign of potential, and this person stands head and shoulders above the rest. Anyone can dig a hole in the ground; those who can do something with the information really matter.