Dig Deep: Connecting Archaeology, Oceans and Us by Nicole F. Smith (Orca $21.95)
“I first learned about the rich heritage of this coast as a grade 3 student from the lovely and wise Snuneymuxw elder, Dr. Ellen White, who visited my classroom at Seaview Elementary School in 1983.”
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MIDDLE SCHOOL REVIEW
— Nicole F. Smith
BY GRAHAM CHANDLER
H
THE THRILL OF
jude isabella photo
ave you ever found a seashell on land and wondered how it got there? The question is a fitting opener for this educational volume aimed at 9-to 12-year-olds curious about archaeology. Did you know you can look for clues that might help you figure out who moved it from the beach? Hints and clues as used by archaeologists abound. As a practising professional archaeologist since 2000, Nicole F. Smith knows what to look for. Clearly too, Dig Deep: Connecting Archaeology, Oceans and Us shows Smith has the knack to captivate her targeted middle school crowd. Or, heck, even much older readers with her easyto-read coverage of archaeological concepts—some complex—that she has encountered specializing in coastlines. Smith’s work has been mainly with BC coastlines, but she’s worked on other coasts around the world as well. One thing that ties all coastal communities together, no matter where in the world we live, is our connection to the sea, she says. And what people have used and left behind can give us important clues about how our oceans have changed or stayed the same over hundreds and thousands of years. Dig Deep has an ocean focus but offers readers a look into just what archaeologists do. Dig, yes. But, not surprisingly, there’s a whole lot more to it. For example, people often wonder how archaeologists find their sites in the first place. Smith delves into this. “We start by imagining how our surroundings may have been different hundreds or thousands of years ago,” she writes. “We need to ask what a place would look like if we took away the houses, buildings and roads. And what would the area look like if the bodies of water were different?” You then look for places that would have been good for people to use, for example a hill, rock shelter or cave. Once you’ve found a suitable place, search around for evidence like discarded or lost stone tools, or charcoal from a fireplace. Here
THE DIG Archaeology reveals how coastal peoples used to live, and surprisingly, changes we can make for our future. Smith rightly cautions that if you find one as an amateur, most countries have laws that forbid collecting in order to protect and preserve national heritage sites. Stimulating and thought-provoking questions are interspersed, presented in a style befitting a grade school teacher, making Dig Deep valuable as a classroom teaching aid. Smith’s field experiences will appeal to middle school readers even if archaeology is not all like the Indiana Jones life made popular in movies. Smith shows how finds can be exciting in other ways. Like the time she was working with the Nuu-chah-nulth Nation along the
west coast of Vancouver Island and the Mukah People from the Olympic Peninsula, both of whom have a long tradition of whale hunting. Smith spent a summer with them in the Broken Group Islands off Vancouver Island’s west coast excavating a structure built from whalebone. Four metres down they found the skull of a humpback whale with a remnant of a harpoon blade made of mussel shell embedded in its skull. Who could resist picturing the action story behind that? Where interpretations tell a story, Smith is careful to use ‘needing more evidence,’ ‘indirect evidence,’ or ‘suggesting,’ as any scientific explanation
should be so qualified. And speaking of science, Smith covers methods used by archaeologists to date artifacts. Many non-archaeologists have heard of radiocarbon dating. But how many have heard of optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating, which is commonly used in the field as well? Smith doesn’t shy away from this one; very simply she gives readers all they need to know for a basic understanding of the OSL concept. (In case you’re wondering, OSL is a technique that dates when sand grains were last exposed to sunlight). Archaeological science is an important and specialized part of the profession. But especially in places like our coastlines, Smith emphasizes, it should be supplemented or blended with Indigenous knowledge, which has been passed down through hundreds of generations. Like rock wall gardens used to capture fish, for example. Overall, Dig Deep is a well-illustrated volume, including images of youngsters happily working on a dig. There’s good discussion in the early chapters describing what archaeologists do and the “hows” and “whys” of their doing it. Kids will be fascinated by some of the lesser-known and surprising specialties like garbology (guaranteed to elicit an “ee-ew” response). Speciality fields like these lead up to showing how archaeology helps reveal humans’ effect on our environment, our oceans and our climate: the Industrial Revolution with all its pollution; modern fishing boats with their high-tech gear vastly overfishing our oceans; and, importantly, the latest damaging impact of humans with our use of plastics. We might as well call this The Plastic Age. Smith takes care to include information about what we can be doing about the damage we have caused, and continue to cause. For kids excited by the stuff in Dig Deep and wanting more, a brief list of resources, both print and online, wraps it. Every school library should have copies of this volume. 9781459826083 Vancouver-based archaeologist and freelance writer Graham Chandler has worked on projects in Belize, the High Arctic, Turkey, Greece, and Pakistan. He holds a PhD in archaeology from the University of London.
“My name is Sam George. In spite of everything that happened to me, by the grace of the Creator, I have lived to be an Elder.”
The Fire Still Burns is a frank and powerful personal story by Squamish Elder Sam George on the horrors of the Indian Residential School system, the healing power of one’s culture, and the resilience that allows an individual to rebuild a life and a future.
Order now from your local bookseller or at www.ubcpress.ca 30 BC BOOKWORLD • SPRING 2023
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