Massachusetts Archaeological Society

03/25/2025

03/20/2025

Historic Deerfield is having a 1-day conference on the legacies of northern slavery on April 5, 2025. There are "in person" and "virtual" options to attend.

Historic Deerfield is pleased to announce a one-day conference, “Engaging with the Legacies of Northern Slavery,” in collaboration with the Witness Stones Project, Inc. to mark the completion of the second phase of installing 35 Witness Stones Memorials™ that honor the enslaved people who live...

03/18/2025

Join the Massachusetts Archaeological Society - Northeast/Gene Winter Chapter tonight!

03/11/2025

86th Annual Bulletin Call for Submissions

Topic Ideas:Archaeology, Anthropology, Ethnohistory, Historic Preservation, and History of Massachusetts or Southern New England

PAPER IDEAS (~1000–8000 words): Research Notes, Summary Field School Results/Experiences, Undergraduate/Graduate Research Papers, Summary Results and Analysis of Phase I, II, or III Cultural Resource Surveys

Submissions accepted on a rolling basis, soft deadline for the Spring issue is April 5th

Contact us: [email protected]

03/05/2025

DIGGIN' UP YOUR FUTURE
Sunday, April 6 11am-3pm

Learning and networking in Cultural Resources Management

Uncover career opportunities and expand your skill set. Meet with CRM professionals from New England firms. Attend career skills workshops.

General admission $10 @ door
Students Free w/ ID
Lunch Provided

Register ➡️ https://forms.gle/d3LM4fMXEvV5Azm48

02/06/2025

If you haven’t heard…The City of Boston Archaeology Program is hosting a free Ceramics Boot Camp at the City Archaeology Lab on Feb 22 (Saturday) 9-4.

This is a full-day hands-on in-person training opportunity where our team will teach you how to accurately identify historical ceramic types and forms using hundreds of historical and archaeological examples.

Registration required [https://tinyurl.com/36ejue84](https://tinyurl.com/36ejue84?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAAR0PtzPLNMuShvEJ2-5crrS_i5EUILx_BCj0bf4jK3vCRm1LU7xFfuqGSlw_aem_Kpoh2uEBRx6EoRdRzRR_uA)

01/21/2025

Tonight at 7pm in person!

12/12/2024

We have been issued a challenge for our 2024 Annual Appeal currently underway. The Robbins Family in memory of their grandfather, Maurice "Doc" Robbins, have offered to match donations to our 2024 appeal. They will donate $2 for every $1 donated, up to $10,000 through December 31, 2024. So please help us meet this goal!

Many thanks to the Robbins family members for this generous offer and past donations to the Society.

Donate Today: https://secure.givelively.org/donate/massachusetts-archaeological-society-inc

11/16/2024

Today's the day! Will we see you here?

11/16/2024

Annual Meeting Saturday, November 16th 10:30am-3:30pm

Speaker Feature: Shannon Nelson-Maney, M.A., R.P.A.

Understanding the Challenges of Underwater Site Identification

The waters of New England are littered with shipwrecks, ranging from pre-contact Mishoons to World War II German U-boats and small modern dinghies sunk in bad weather. Working with the Rhode Island Marine Archaeology Project, the majority of my diving projects have focused on 18th-century wooden vessels. Identifying these vessels can be challenging, even under the most ideal diving conditions. The decomposition of wooden vessels is accelerated by the presence of shipworms and other detritivores, making ship remnants difficult to identify. In these cases, primary resource data, in conjunction with archaeological studies, can help identify shipwrecks. However, many wrecks still lie nameless beneath the silt.

Shannon Nelson-Maney has received her masters degree in Environmental Anthropology from San Diego State University. She published her masters thesis on the ethics of coral reef restoration in Moorea, French Polynesia. Since graduating, she has worked as the co-PI for Rhode Island Marine Archaeology project leading theis recent transport study in Newport Harbor. She currently works for SWCA environmental consulting.

11/15/2024

Annual Meeting Saturday, November 16th 10:30am-3:30pm
Speaker Feature: Dr. David Landon, PhD

Pits, Post, and Palisades: The Archaeology of Patuxet and the 17th-century Plymouth Colony Settlement

For the last decade, archaeologists from University of Massachusetts Boston have been excavating and studying remains of the original 17th-century Plymouth Colony settlement and Wampanoag settlement of Patuxet in downtown Plymouth, MA. On Cole’s Hill evidence for Patuxet has been uncovered, while on Burial Hill structures from the early English settlement dating from ca. 1620-1660 have been discovered and documented. This presentation showcases the results of our excavations, highlighting the many different artifacts unearthed, the evidence for the earliest English building construction methods, and the relationship between the English and Wampanoag settlements.

Dr. David Landon is the Associate Director of the Andrew Fiske Memorial Center for Archaeological Research. He received his Ph.D. from Boston University with a focus on the archaeology of historical and colonial sites. Since 2012 Landon has been directing “Project 400: The Plymouth Colony Archaeological Survey.” This project was supported by a Collaborative Research Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

11/13/2024

Annual Meeting Saturday, November 16th 10:30am-3:30pm

Speaker Feature: Dr. Caterina Minniti, PhD

Greeks and Phoenicians in Selinunte. Neighbors, enemies, fellow citizens

Selinunte, the westernmost Greek foundation in Sicily, was one of the wealthiest cities of its time. It enjoyed a prosperous existence from the second half of the seventh century BCE through the middle of the third century BCE, and its public spaces, temples, fortifications, and houses are remarkably well preserved. The archaeological evidence also tells a story of complex relationships between Greeks and Phoenicians, from trade and worship to war and conquest, from the siege of 409 BCE to the resettlement and redevelopment of the city during the 4th and 3rd centuries BCE.

Kate Minniti holds a PhD in Classical Archaeology from the Department of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, BC. She has a Master’s Degree in Egyptian Archaeology from UCL and one in History of Art and Archaeology from the Institute of Fine Arts at NYU. Her main research interests are Archaic-Period connectivity and local responses to globalization in the Mediterranean. She has been working as a field archaeologist for more than a decade, and since 2015 she is a senior member of the NYU-UniMi archaeological expedition in Selinunte, Italy.

05/16/2024

Join us on Tuesday May 21 at 7 pm in Danvers for a talk with Eric Johnson. There is NO zoom option for this meeting. Free and open to the public.

05/07/2024

The Archaeological Society of Connecticut is hosting their spring meeting this weekend in Mansfield. Details below!

05/01/2024

Calling all students of archaeology and heritage preservation! Join me for Diggin’ Up Your Future at the Massachusetts Archaeological Society.

This is an inaugural event bringing local and regional archaeology professionals, undergrad and grad students, and career changers in the cultural resources management fields. More into or ? There’s room for you, too!

✅ Tickets at https://tinyurl.com/4xybczb2 and at the door. $10 general admission and $5 for students with ID. Feel extra good about attending because ticket purchases go to help Mass Archaeology!

Meet and speak with CRM firms who are hiring or looking to make connections with potential employees. Catch a talk on how best to get your skills & talents in front of employers. And practice those networking skills in a welcoming space. We are even hosting LUNCH!

Uncover new opportunities, make connections, and grow your CRM skills at Diggin' Up Your Future!