I finally compared hand excavation vs a shovel in that dry Texas site

Spent last weekend digging test pits at the old Wilson homestead outside Austin. Hand troweling was slow but I caught a tiny arrowhead flake the shovel absolutely would have mangled. Anyone else stick to gentle tools even when time is tight?

3 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In

3 Comments

the_alice3mo ago

Weren't you worried about missing stuff with the shovel?

3

the_brian3mo ago

About three feet into my first hole I already knew I made a mistake. I ended up digging twice as wide as I needed just to be sure I wasn't missing anything. Now I always use a sifter or just take it slow with a hand trowel in the initial spot.

4

the_sean3mo ago

The shovel thing" - that's exactly why I side with @the_brian on this. If I'm digging a test hole, I want to see every last bit of what's down there, not just what stays on a shovel. Missing a tiny sherd or a lead soldier because I was rushing with a shovel would drive me crazy forever. A hand trowel is slow and boring but at least I know I've looked at every fistful of dirt before it leaves the hole.

3