Survey of Archaeological Specialists

[sadie]

Gwyl- we are stratigraphy specialists! About time that was recognised though I agree. Someone in the higher echelons of a certain organisation once described the field team as 'unskilled labour'- sigh.

[kevin wooldridge]

Sadie - its not just in the UK. The head of the largest museum in Norway employing archaeologists, last year described contract archaeologists as equivalant to seasonal 'strawberry pickers'.....much to the chagrin of a local workforce, where for most jobs the minimum entry requirement is a Masters degree.....

I decided to write in a few mentions of field archaeologists as specialists in the answers on this survey (in the box marked 'Other') and it seemed to go through, so maybe more people should do the same.....

[gwyl]

point taken Kevin
i shall do it the sneaky way...
but as Moreno, Sadie and you acknowledge explicitly, the specialized skills of excavation extend beyond leaning on a shovel while rolling up single-handed while simultaneously downing a mug of tea and recording on those damned rizlas while dodging the rain drops in our army surplus and ripped jeans
but i think that such attitudes are across the board, as the short-term contracts of l'AFAN in France illustrate, as does the word amanuens - manual labourer - in swedish, and i am sure i could go on, but i must go; however, all this despite the expectation if not the requirement in all (?) countries in europe for professional archs to have a first degree at least, preferably in the discipline
there is - need i say it - a disconnect...