Innovative Internship

Philip Williams doesn’t know precisely where his future career in archaeology will lead. For now, he is content to learn and contribute to the field as a sophomore through an internship at Berkshire Museum.

Williams, an Archeology, Geography, and Applied Anthropology (AGAA) major from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, is working with Berkshire Museum and the Castleton University Digital Archaeology Project to document and preserve the museum’s collection of ancient Palmyrene funerary reliefs through a series of high-resolution 3D scans. He is working with funding from a Castleton University StudentFaculty Summer Research Grant.

“It’s really hard to say what is most valuable from this experience; so much of it is brand new to me, working with artifacts, the process of 3D scanning, the entire concept of digital archeology,” Williams said. “All of this is both practical knowledge for my major but also will help me as a student while I progress through the program.”

When the project is complete, Berkshire will receive a 3D-printed copy of a bust that can be used in classrooms and other locations around the county.

Photo Credit: Stephanie Zollshan, The Berkshire Eagle