A week worth remembering

It’s nearly impossible to summarize everything that took place at Minelab’s Archaeological Certification Program last week. I was in and out all week and was not a participant of the course, but as a bystander, I was able to watch the team as they worked through the rigorous schedule outlined by Dr. Matthew Reeves, Montpelier’s Director of Archaeology.

Many of you may be asking “So what’s the big deal here?” Let me try to outline a few points that may be worth your time:

1. Archaeologists and Metal Detectorists don’t always see eye to eye on every aspect of life. Opinions vary widely from person to person, but it seems that there’s always been some kind of barrier or blockade between the two communities.
2. Montpelier is the home of one of America’s founding fathers. Besides the incredible history of the estate and the legacy of James Madison, Montpelier is a very unique and special place. From a historical standpoint, this massive estate has seen the entire scope of American history. Luckily for us all, the land has been mostly protected and preserved, and within that land is the history of those who lived and worked on it. If you wanted to see one piece of land that has witnessed the full gauntlet of American history, I’d send you to Montpelier.
3. There’s an obvious refined set of skills with each group, one may be more scientific than the other, but even that is a topic of debate. 

Now here’s what was realized this past week, among dozens of other things, but focusing on those three topics I outlined above.

Course participants received a personal tour of the President's mansion (background) and spent some time with Dr. Matthew Reeves on sites carefully studied and recreated by Montpelier's Archaeology Department.

The Archaeologists and Metal Detectorists who participated in the program realized that they have more in common with each other than they thought: a love of history, the challenge of research, a commitment to recover and preserve artifacts, and a desire to share the story behind what they’ve found. Many said “we’re very much alike in many ways”.

1. The amazing size of Montpelier and the fact that it’s relatively undisturbed has its Pros and Cons. Thousands of acres tell the story of a couple hundred years of life on the land. It’s a major task to properly discover, uncover, preserve, and interpret just one historic site. Can you imagine having hundreds on the list needing the same attention? Montpelier has used metal detection technology in the past to help identify possible historic sites. Last week, there were 11 Minelab metal detectors identifying thousands of targets, all of which were plotted on a map for further evaluation. The point here is that Minelab’s technology saves time, money, resources, and helps get the Archaeologists doing what they do best… uncovering history.
2. After a week of cross-training with Archaeologists, the participants learned how to make detailed survey grids, mark and plot hits on maps, observe trends and patterns, dig less-intrusive test holes, and clean and preserve artifacts. The hands-on time in the Archaeology Lab was extremely valuable, and the course was designed to maximize one-on-one time between the Archaeology Staff and Minelab’s participants throughout every activity on the schedule.
3. I hope that some of the course participants will chime in and provide their personal feedback from the course. It was amazing from what I saw. The two communities got together to learn each other’s trade, to share common goals and desires, and to teach each other how Archaeologists and members of the metal detecting community can work closely together to achieve common goals while preserving very uncommon ground.

In front of a sea of hundreds of blue metal detector survey flags, Gary Schafer (Vice President of Minelab Americas) and Dr. Matthew Reeves (Director of Archaeology at Montpelier) proudly display the Course Certificates that each participant will earn at the end of the week-long course.

Well done Minelab and Montpelier! This is no ordinary seed you’ve planted. It’s a Redwood!

David Shackleton

Learn more about Minelab Americas and James Madison’s Montpelier partnering to use improved technology to discover “lost” history