ST. PETE, Fla. — If you thought archaeology was just for Indiana Jones, think again. There’s a lab in St. Pete that is asking the public for help researching artifacts more than 1,000 years old.
Once a month, professional archaeologists are teaming up with members of the public at Weedon Island Preserve in this free open archaeology lab, classifying everything from bones to shells.
Rachael Kangas, with the non-profit Florida Public Archaeology Network, says what may look like a tiny pebble could be the key to understanding what once lived here.
All of the shells and bone fragments studied in the lab were collected at Weedon Island Preserve by students at USF St. Pete. Now the public has been invited in to help identify them with some help from the pros.
“And learn proper archaeologic lab techniques, get some hands-on experience with the actual archaeology and the artifacts, they get to clean them and help us sort them, so they are actually helping us along the scientific journey,” said Kangas.
Their most recent findings are of particular interest because it is believed the site where they were uncovered once served as a kitchen floor for early inhabitants.
“So we are learning about all of these people in the past and what it was like to live at Weedon Island 1,000 years ago, but it's just part of this bigger story of humans in Florida and humans on earth,” said Kangas.
The lab has gained popularity among a diverse group, from students to tourists to local residents.
“We found a tooth with a hole drilled into it, but it looked like it was part of a necklace or something, and I thought that was really fascinating,” said 14-year-old Luke Lebel.
“I think everyone can be an archaeologist if they come to this class; I like it, it's my first time, and it won’t be my last,” said Cellia Martin, who was on vacation.
“Just learning so many different things about the land we live in. I mean, I live right around the corner, so this is my backyard,” said Dawna Betz of St. Pete.
Every comb of the brush or peer into the magnifying glass could bring them one step closer to making that all-important discovery.
“It’s kind of like doing a million-piece puzzle where some of the pieces are missing, and each one of these shells is helping us to put that puzzle back together to learn what this site looked like and what all of Florida used to look like,” said Kangas.
For more information on the Weedon Island Archaeology Lab, go to weedonisland.org.
