Museum to hold archaeology exhibit

Questions of the past such as what people ate, how they made their tools and what life was like in ancient cultures leave many people wondering. Saturday those questions will be answered at the Mathers Museum which will host "Discovering Archaeology" from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.\nVisitors will get to experience the range of archaeological research done at IU, as well as throughout the world, said Ellen Sieber, coordinator of the event and curator of education at the museum.\n"I hope people are able to learn how archaeologists work and the projects they engage in," Sieber said. "This year it's important that people achieve an understanding of cultural differences."\nThe event will feature over 40 Indiana University archaeologists presenting information and demonstrating hands-on activities. They will explore the archaeology of food and drink, primitive technology and flintknapping, a process of making tools. \nKaren Vitelli, a professor of anthropology, digs her own clay and makes her own tools, so she can understand the way prehistoric people made their pottery. She will be leading the experimental pottery-making activity Saturday.\n"There will be a collection of things we've made and the tools we use that people can look at," Vitelli said. "What draws the most attention from people is that we have some clay and simple tools and we invite people to try and make something. They can just join in and make whatever they feel like." \nMark Braun, director of medical pathology, School of Medicine, will be host an exhibit showing how birch bark canoes were built. \nHis interest in Native Americans diseases led him to examine how canoes were made. He will display a full-sized 16-foot canoe that he built, as well as tools and a small model to show the various stages of building. He will describe each step of construction, and bring photos to illustrate the process.\n"People will be able to see, touch and actually get in a canoe that the French and Native Americans used," Braun said. "They will be able to touch a bit of history."\nArchaeology is not just the study of people, but animals as well, said doctoral student Kristian Carlson. He will be at the display called "Archaeology of Non-Human Primates." \nAt his exhibit, Carlson will play a tape of birds dropping rocks on clam shells to open them. \n"The whole reason behind my involvement is so people think about what the definition of archaeology is and raising awareness that animals use tools too -- also, seeing if it's possible to study an animal archaeologically," Carlson said. "Usually a lot of kids find it interesting." \nSieber said "Discovering Archaeology" will demonstrate the importance of archaeological research and its role in the community.\n"This isn't just a family event," Sieber said. "Students come and they learn about possible careers and they get to know an aspect of campus that they may not know"