By Emma Anderson
Archaeology is in hot water. Ever since 1981, it has been harbouring a dark secret. Unbeknownst to many, archaeology is unfortunately not the discipline of punching Nazis and raiding lost arks; it is, instead, the study of human evolution and the deep past. And, in 2021, the government unfortunately found this out. Their response? An announcement by the former education secretary, Gavin Williamson, that the government would be cutting their funding for English University Archaeology courses by as much as 50%, stating that they wanted young people to focus on the STEM subjects rather than “the dead-end courses that leave young people with nothing but debt.”
The government, however, has got it all wrong. Not only is archaeology vitally important, but it can make some people preposterously rich and it is crucial to preserve it as the impressive subject it deserves to be perceived as.
We’ve all heard of Tutankhamun’s curse. Well, would you be surprised if I told you that the curse of the ancient pharaoh’s mummy has links to climate change? Well, maybe not directly but there is a lesson to be learned. A short summary of the mysterious Egyptian curse is that succeeding the excavation of his resting place, multiple archaeologists, museum employees, and visitors would die shortly after coming in contact with the sarcophagus. In Paul Bahn’s “Archaeology : A very short introduction.” The idea of a dormant virus in scabs, tissues, and bits of mummified King Tut is attributed as the source of this ‘curse’ and that the deaths were caused by some ancient disease. In the light of Global-warming many ancient pathogens have reared their ugly heads, seeping out of the melting permafrost; an example would be the tragic outbreak of Anthrax in a remote Russian village that is thought to have emerged from the melting ice, fortunately archaeology poses an unusual defence: paleopathology.
Paleopathology is the discipline that studies ancient diseases and accompanying conditions in soft and skeletal tissue from long-dead humans and animals that lived from prehistory to the recent past. Thanks to an ever-increasing number of archaeological excavations, paleopathology has been supplied with a plethora of historical artefacts that would allow for the paleopathologists to investigate and identify a great variety of diseases and come to an understanding of the evolution of diseases over time. Knowing and understanding these deadly diseases before they are able to break out of their icey prisons could be key in protecting humanity against this new threat and would in fact be a “priority of the nation.”
Archaeology can also make us better people. Through archaeological investigations, we can gain an understanding of not only our past but of individuals who have been previously omitted from the history books, meaning that we are able to discover rich and diverse cultures and incorporate them into documentaries which are then broadcasted to a wider public. This would mean that many people would be able to learn about ways in which people of colour, for example, are linked to their own ancestry and heritage - hopefully broadening their beliefs.
A dinosaur with arthritis.
Finally, in a more practical and immediate sense, archaeology is beneficial to the economy. Excavations uncover artefacts for museums which are then plagued by visitors, as a volunteer at a museum myself I can say for certain that you can not go anywhere without a visitor in your immediate vicinity. In 2022, the charity, English Heritage, reported a £116 million increase in income from 2021/2020 and a £5 million increase in membership income; furthermore, the popularity of English Heritage sites only incentivises the tourists to arrive, en masse, and to bring in the shiny, gold, coins for the economy. This aspect of archaeology is only becoming more and more relevant in the current state of affairs.
An English Heritage Site: Warkworth Castle.
Archaeology, like every other subject, is important. It is important that the government funds the ideas and interests of the younger generations, if they truly care about our needs and “priorities.” Hopefully, the government will recognise the skills and specialities of archaeologists before it is too late but, for now, we can just keep digging until we find something that really proves it to them!
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