Hot take: A random comment on a dig reshaped how I look at pottery shards

I was out at a site near Santa Fe two weeks ago and this volunteer, maybe 70 years old, points at a shard I was about to bag. She said those little brush marks on the inside tell you more about the potter than the design on the outside. I used to just scan for painted patterns or rims, but now I'm checking every surface for tool marks. She showed me how a single groove can show if they used a reed or a stick, which links to local plants. It hit different because it made me realize I was skipping the small details for the flashy ones. Has anyone else had an old hand on a site drop a piece of knowledge that totally changed your method?

2 comments

2 Comments

jennifersmith11d ago

Three shards into my first dig, I was already treating them like potato chips - just bagging the pretty ones. Now I'm the creep on the site tilting every broken piece toward the sun like it's a diamond.

jesse_west11d ago

That "treating them like potato chips" line hit me hard. I used to think y'all were just being dramatic about the sun thing, but now I get it.