Almost ruined a dig by not bagging artifacts properly

I used to just toss pottery sherds loose into ziplocks, but after a 2023 excavation in Santa Fe I had a bag rip and mix up 3 different contexts. Now I double bag every find and label with waterproof paper. Anyone else had a bag failure cost them data?

3 comments

3 Comments

smith.nancy1mo ago

Ask if you're using cloth or paper bags for larger artifacts now, or still relying on ziplocks. I switched to reinforced paper bags after a similar incident on a desert dig where humidity made plastic bags sweat on the inside. Did the sherds get mixed up because the bag broke or because the labels washed off?

jadej501mo ago

You ever have one of those moments where you think you're being clever and then your own laziness comes back to bite you? I learned the hard way that tossing a bunch of sherds loose into a single bag is basically begging for a puzzle you never wanted to solve. Now I'm the weirdo at the lab wrapping each little piece in its own paper towel like I'm swaddling a newborn. Sounds like you had the bad break too, but hey, at least we can laugh about it now while we're still picking ancient gravel out of our gear.

murphy.tessa1mo ago

Know what you mean... it's like when I get too confident packing my lunch and just throw everything in a bag, then wonder why my sandwich tastes like banana. I've started wrapping stuff up separately too, it's like we're all learning the same lesson that taking thirty extra seconds now saves thirty minutes later. It's funny how that pattern shows up everywhere, from packing field gear to just trying to get out the door in the morning without losing your keys in the bottom of your bag.