As a criminal justice major, I didn’t see this class as being particularly important to the field of study I want to go into. I thought this class sounded extremely interesting and I’ve always been intrigued by anthropology. However, learning about the techniques of excavation described many similarities to how a crime scene would be investigated. Before taking this class I never knew the care and exactness that went into excavating archaeological sites. I assumed it was a bunch of shovels flying every direction. The care and measurement that goes into it was surprising to me. The same way that detectives take pictures of crime scenes to preserve the scene and how they collect evidence is much like the way that archaeologists collect artifacts. Sometimes artifacts and evidence alike cannot be touched by humans in fear that it might be contaminated. I find it extremely interesting that some artifacts that are to be carbon tested for dating cannot even be breathed on! Each instance is a way to collect information about a person or an area.
Before any excavation can take place, a plan needs to be in place in order to get approval to start a dig. Archaeologists have an idea as to what they might find under the surface. On the other hand, investigators have to throw together a plan in a short amount of time in order to get the maximum amount of evidence in the smallest amount of time. They do not know what they are going to find and many things can come as a surprise. Surprises can sprout up in many different ways in both excavations and investigations that could have the possibility to switch up the plan that was carefully laid out. This can slow the process and change how things are handled. It is important to be able to explain why some anomalies are there. With archaeology many things can be askew due to bioturbation from rodents and other animals bringing foreign material from one part of a site and depositing it to another. During crime scene investigations it may not always be as easy as attributing discrepancies to rodents. It may take more time to be able to explain things until more evidence it collected to corroborate.
Like many professions, both of these trades have simple and complex experiences. The Pyramids from Egypt have both complex constructions inside that include Kings tombs, Queens tombs, and hallways to the son’s tombs, along with large galleries. Others may only have a few burial sites within. Drawing similarities between criminal justice and archaeology makes it much easier to understand the discoveries and the process of excavation and the care that is put into it to ensure the preservation of the sites.
I found your connection between archaeology and crime scene investigation to be very interesting. Before this class, I also never thought about archeological excavations to be taken out with great care and precision. The organization and time it takes to correctly excavate a site surprised me greatly and I can see how it can be very closely compared to a crime scene.
Working in a forensics lab myself, I can see that there are many similarities between the two fields. Both require great care and accuracy while marking, documenting, and removing either the evidence or the historical artifacts. As talked about in class, when taken out of context without accurate documentation artifacts have very little use. The same can be applied to evidence found at a crime scene.
Unlike in archaeology, the media covers crime scene investigation in great quantity through TV shows like CSI and Bones, where the investigators are working in the field. Although TV’s portrayal of CSI work is not accurate, it still gives us a decent idea of how crime scenes and crime labs are processed. Media’s version of archeology is nowhere near as accurate, with the main depictions being of adventure and mystery like in Indiana Jones or The Mummy. Because of the media’s growing fascination with archeology and forensics, both fields have to work closely with the public and their increasing interest. Media’s skewed interpretation of both fields causes many misconceptions in both fields as well, causing professionals to have to correct and explain the true nature of their work continuously.