Kneel, brush, haul

Notes from an archeology dig

Greetings from Italy where I’ve spent the week at a Tuscan archeology site.

It has been an amazing week, with modest finds amid the ruins of a Roman home by the sea and a road some 2,000 years ago. There was no cataclysmic end to the home, they believe; it simply was abandoned.

This is not a name site, not historically significant. It was an eye into a family home, and an eye into family life.

When the dig produces something new, staff come up with theories about what it may be — and then see if new findings uphold the theory or not.

Mostly we found roof tiles and sherds of amphorae. Some floors, composed of Roman tiles, have been restored — and there is a fresco which also is being restored.

I am told no writing has been found at the home site - except for letters on a stamp pressed into an amphora.

We could not take photos inside the site and I cannot share proprietary information at the moment. These are the terms to which I agreed beforehand.

Pro tip: It helps if you learn to embrace dirt.

What I learned:

Roman homes had glass windows, they think. Maybe the glass was for something else.

Those wonderful amphorae were used for shipping and storage (of wine and oil), but not reused.

Otherwise, there was a lot of dirt and dust, kneeling, brushing dirt, breathing dirt, wearing dirt and being one with dirt. In other words, a blast.

I worked with other volunteers, five Americans I probably otherwise never would have met. We live in different states, avow different tastes and have our own sets of passions. Over meals we had spirited discussions. When we get home, we are going to share a list of books and movies we recommend to each other.

And I’ve never eaten this many vegetables in my life.

Debra J. Saunders is a senior fellow with the Discovery Institute’s Chapman Center for Citizen Leadership..

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