This summer I could again take part in an archaeological excavation in Laitila, eastern Finland, like I did two years ago. The last time I found some pretty fascinating stuff including a huge bronze necklace.
I was not as lucky this time, but enjoyed enormously nevertheless. My finds were the usual pieces of burned human bones and crumbs of pottery, and an occasional piece of bronze. The place we were digging at is an ancient burial ground from approximately a 1000 years ago where the ashes of the deceased were scattered after their bodies together with their belongings (and even dogs!) had been burned in the funeral pyre. The site was then covered with big stones.
Bronze...
It's a ring!
It is hard to explain the fascination of this work to me. It is manual, physical labor where you really get your hands dirty, and you do it in open air in the countryside. Everyone just has their square they have to dig one layer deeper, keep their eyes open for possible finds, and afterwards sieve all the soil in case something went unnoticed the first time.
The finds.
A piece of bronze with ornamentation.
When I am digging I just concentrate in doing that and there is no other thought in my head. The only mental effort is to keep my eyes open and be alert for certain kind of signals - white color for bones, red for pottery, green for bronze - and in general anything which doesn't look like stones or dust! It is an absolutely meditative feeling, a radical change from my usual work of studying scores or working with musicians. It is a strange combination where I am on the other hand surrounded by the remains of a life lived a long long time ago and taking part to the unending project of human curiosity finding out how the life was during those times - and on the other hand I have found a unique way of unwinding and forgetting all about my usual worries. It is an experience I can recommend to everyone - except maybe those with bad knees who will find it difficult to sit on the ground for several hours in a row.
My hand after five hours of digging... Dirty.
I heard the next year might be the last one at this excavation site, because the project is running out of funds. That's a great pity, since there might be a lot more to find! Anyway, my work timetables permitting, I would love to take part again next summer. I wish you could join me there!