Funniest Context Sheets

[Blacktusk]

I worked with a particular young lady who described brown soil as `fawn coloured` and another person when filling the context sheet section 'excavated by' said `me`. The same person on a photographic register for direction facing wrote "down"....

[BAJR Host]

just looked at one recent one...

Discussion:

Ask David.

"No job worth doing was ever done on time or under budget.."
Khufu

[Smaze]

whilst currently excavating an 800m trench, we came up with the descrition for the archaeolgical horizon as that of " Baby First Effort" when describing the colour :-)

[kevin wooldridge]

Many years ago I was site assistant to a supervisor who was very sensitive regarding the public image of archaeology. He was particularly keen to promote a scientific ethos when filling in context sheets and he once pulled me up, as I had described a 500mm thick dump deposit over most of the area of the trench as 'consisting largely of broken flower-pots'.

He told me, "The phrase you are searching for Kev is 'horticultural earthenware'......

[Beardstroker]

quote:Originally posted by kevin wooldridge

Many years ago I was site assistant to a supervisor who was very sensitive regarding the public image of archaeology. He was particularly keen to promote a scientific ethos when filling in context sheets and he once pulled me up, as I had described a 500mm thick dump deposit over most of the area of the trench as 'consisting largely of broken flower-pots'.

He told me, "The phrase you are searching for Kev is 'horticultural earthenware'......

Or, as one supervisor I once knew, who had a thoroughly evil sense of humour, called it "Billanbenware" Managed to convince a group of terrible ernest MA students it was an obscure type of 15th century Bavarian pottery.
[8D]

[Dirty Dave Lincoln]

Several years ago i told a novice digger that the small pit he had with loads of cobbles in was probably prehistoric and these were pre-worked hand axes,i must have been very convincing as he then wrote all i had said on his context sheet and had bagged the lot!needless to say the supervisor was A)not amused and B)knew exactly who to blame as my name was quoted on the sheet![:o)]

[BAJR Host]

Right... this is getting so pant wettingly funny... iw ant to ask a favour!

Can I add some of the best ones (that folk around the world will get) to the next issue of Past Horizons..

a kind of "Archaeologists write the funniest Things!"

The next issue comes out in MAy... so plenty of time for more!

if you have not seen it yet!!!! http://www.pasthorizons.com/magazine



"No job worth doing was ever done on time or under budget.."
Khufu

[Dirty Dave Lincoln]

I for one say feel free to do so Sir,you know-its not just the witty things people write on context sheets that are funny but the many stories that folks can tell,little things they have witnessed (or even have had happen to themselves) over the years.[:I]

[Dirty Boy]

Excellent! MUst be added to {ast Horizons!


A perennial favourite is the "excavation conditions" box on a sheet. I tend to fill it in with

"slightly overcast and drizzly. Excavator very hungover and in need of a bacon sandwich. Mattock head slighlty wobbly". :face-thinks:

Do remember telling a newbie on a training dig on a Roman villa that we'd excavated a mongoose run. He even wrote it in his site diary!

[Dirty Dave Lincoln]

What fun can be had with new (innocent) diggers,some can be conned into doing and writing anything when they first start!but even us old hands had to go through this when we first started,as for some of my early mistakes....well,at least i can look back and laugh without cringing anymore!
Hmm sounds like a good topic: "cock-ups when first starting to dig"?
what do you think Mr. Badger?