|
Dr
David Frankel
What
is your current position?
Reader in Archaeology, La Trobe University
http://www.latrobe.edu.au/archaeology/staff/frankel.html
Where
did you study archaeology?
University of Sydney (BA, MA) and University of Gothenburg, Sweden (PhD)
How
did you become interested in archaeology?
At school I developed an interest in the history of ancient Greece and Rome and intended to continue to study this at university. I only enrolled in archaeology because it seemed an appropriate supplementary subject: I hadn’t really thought that there were actually real archaeologists. I soon discovered that archaeology provided a far more exciting and challenging approach to studying the past, dealing with a wider range of materials, societies and problems.
What
archaeological projects are you working on at the moment?
My main research is on the Bronze Age in Cyprus. I am completing the major report on a ten-year-long excavation project at a settlement site at Marki and have begun a new long-term study of an extensive series of cemeteries at Deneia. I am also working on aspects of Victorian Indigenous archaeology, dealing with material from the Grampians-Gariwerd Ranges and the Western District.
Tell
us about one of your most interesting archaeological discoveries.
In the earliest deposits at the Bronze Age settlement at Marki we came across a large storage jar buried up to its rim. At the bottom of the soft soil inside we were the remains of a small child. We normally don’t expect burials in the settlement, and finding the fragile bones of this one-year old had an emotional impact on everyone. But beyond that immediate and personal response, this jar-burial contributes to broader discussions of prehistoric attitudes and the origins of the Bronze Age way of life in Cyprus.
Tell
us about a funny/disastrous/amazing experience that you have had
while doing archaeology.
What’s
your favourite part of being an archaeologist?
The dynamic and complex nature of archaeology provides a continuous series of challenges on all levels. The flow of new information from excavations and other studies is matched by developments in ideas, approaches and techniques. There are always new questions to ask – and sometimes to answer. I enjoy the complexity of fieldwork, which requires flexible responses to a wide array of situations. These include the logistics of organising and maintaining a team working hard in difficult circumstances for long periods of time, the constant need to solve puzzles on the site and the analysis, explanation and publication of the results. The need to develop and employ many practical skills in the field, laboratory, library and study is always stimulating.
Follow
up reading:
D. Frankel, 1991. Remains to be Seen: Archaeological Insights into Australian Prehistory. Longman Cheshire, Melbourne.
|
