Photo Credit: Jo Grabas Sr.
This month's artifact is a jasper tear drop projectile point, recovered from Turkey Swamp State Park during Monmouth University's 2015 field school season. This is a prehistoric artifact. The point was one of several exciting finds discovered this season. The park plans to eventually erect a display that will show several artifacts recovered from the park. Field school instructors and staff will analyze the data collected during the season over the next year.
Photo Credit: Dr. Rich Veit
This month’s artifact is from a local museum display, located at Historic Walnford in Crosswicks, New Jersey. The Monmouth County Parks website has this to say about Walnford:
“Picturesque after a snowfall, full of fascinating history throughout the year, any day is a great time to visit this wonderful historic site and learn more about the Waln family and the evolution of Walnford over two centuries - from an 18th century industrial village and family farm to an elegant country estate. At the heart of the Crosswicks Creek Park (1436 acres), the site showcases over 200 years of social, technological and environmental history through the Waln family.”
Photo Credit: Dr. Rich Veit
In the nineteenth-century a German officer was traveling through the area with two other officers. They approached a creek on the property and decided to wade through to the other side. One of the officers became separated from his horse during the crossing after his horse suddenly sank into a hole in the creek. The two eventually made their way back to shore, it was then that the officer noticed he had lost a spur during the ordeal. The boy who witnessed this event eventually grew into an old man and would later discover a spur during a construction project along the same creek. This spur is on display at the Walnford museum along with corresponding letters which describe these first-hand accounts.
Special thanks to Dr. Rich Veit for this Artifact of the Month submission.
Do you have an artifact or object you'd like to submit to ASNJ’s "Artifact of the Month" website posting? If so, please send a photograph, a brief description and a photo credit to asnjwebmaster@gmail.com, subject heading: “ASNJ Artifact”.
Thank you!
Photo Credit: Allison Gall
This curious object is a scale weight. This weight could have been used by merchants to weigh money. Apothecaries once used similar weights to weigh medicinal herbs or other ingredients. This artifact dates to the 18th century and is associated with the Verree family of Burlington City, NJ.
Special thanks to Michael and Allison Gall for this Artifact of the Month submission.
Do you have an artifact or object you'd like to submit to ASNJ's "Artifact of the Month" website posting? If so, please send a photograph, brief description and a photo credit to asnjwebmaster@gmail.com, subject heading- “ASNJ Artifact”.
Thank you!
The Archaeological Society of New Jersey will begin publishing one ASNJ member highlight on the website each month. To achieve this goal, ASNJ needs your help to make this happen! If you are an archaeology student, professional, or otherwise involved in ASNJ, please send a brief biography of yourself to the webmaster. The bio should address the following questions:
What is your name and your research interests? What projects have you worked on, volunteered or interned with? How do you currently contribute to the field of archaeology? If you are writing a thesis, what is the central focus of the thesis project and what do you hope to achieve with your finished work? If you are in an academic program, what is your expected graduation date? What is your program and the name of your university? Optional information may include: your contact information, an academia profile link, a short list of your pending publications, professional photo of you at work, additional professional associations or degrees (Ex: RPA, MA, BA, etc.). If you are a member of ASNJ and not a professional archaeologist or student, we still want to hear from you. Tell us about a recent museum exhibit or event you've attended. Submit a photo of yourself attending the event, if you have one. Where was it, what was it about, etc?
Biographies should not exceed 300 words. Please send your biography to asnjwebmaster@gmail.com, subject heading needs to read “ASNJ Monthly Highlight”.
Please submit your biography by the 10th of each month to allow time for additional editing. These posts will be published on the 15th of each month. Please send yours soon, we want to hear from you!
The Wentworth Institute of Technology hosted the first (hopefully annual) digital technology conference, entitled "Mobilizing the Past for a Digital Future." The conference informed attendees about the uses and misuses of digital technology in archaeological fieldwork and preservation projects. ASNJ Webmaster, Tabitha Hilliard attended the conference in Boston and ASNJ Treasurer, Michael Gall, attended via live webstream. Topics throughout the conference included: photogrammetry, drone implementation, GISPro, 3D scanning, etc.
If you missed the conference, feel free to watch it now! The Wentworth Institute of Technology has planned to archive all presentations, most of them are already available for viewing. Click here.
We are happy to report that our first meeting of the year was a great success! We kicked off the new year with our first annual Artifact Show and Learn, an event where archaeologists and enthusiasts were invited to bring their collections to show and discuss. Professional archaeologists were available throughout the event to provide interpretations of any artifact brought to their attention. The meeting concluded with a presentation, The I-95 Project, presented by URS Archaeologists. We were happy to see so many new faces and familiar friends, thank you for coming out! If you were unable to attend the January meeting, please continue to check our webpage and Facebook for information pertaining to future meetings and events. Also, be sure to check out these candid shots we nabbed over the weekend:
Like what you see? Check out more photos from this event and updates for future meetings on Facebook , we hope to see you soon!
With great sorrow, I have to report that Archaeological Society of New Jersey member and friend to New Jersey Archaeology, retired SHPO archaeologist Debbie Fimbel passed away suddenly on Nov. 1. She was a lovely and kind person with a twinkle in her eye but who was passionate about protecting NJ's archaeological sites.
http://www.nj.com/hunterdon-county-democrat/index.ssf/2013/11/obituary_deborah_rinker_fimbel.html
