Indiana Archaeology Month starts Sept. 1

This year’s celebration starts Sept. 1, which Gov. Eric J. Holcomb has declared Indiana Archaeology Month Kickoff Day.

All month long, Hoosier history buffs can meet archaeologists and learn about the state’s fascinating past. Through the past years’ celebrations, thousands of members of the public have been able to experience archaeology in this and many other ways.

A variety of events for all ages will be offered by universities, museums, organizations, and individuals throughout Indiana. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources Division of Historic Preservation & Archaeology (DHPA) coordinates the activities. A schedule of events is at on.IN.gov/archaeologymonth.

"Archaeology tells us about the past, but it also helps us figure out more about ourselves today and what we might be like in the future," said Dan Bortner, DNR director and State Historic Preservation Officer. "This month provides a fun way for Hoosiers to learn how.”

This year’s commemorative poster focuses on the diversity of Indiana’s Late Precontact ceramics. The ceramics of the Late Precontact period (1000 to 1500 CE) of Indiana indicate that Native American groups were not static but were diverse, dynamic, and complex. 

“Archaeologists examine the different decorative styles of pottery to interpret shifting movements and cultural interactions of people through time in areas that would become Indiana and the Midwest,” said State Archaeologist Amy Johnson.   

The poster and an in-depth discussion of the design are available at on.IN.gov/archaeologymonth.

Overall, archaeologists have recorded more than 75,000 sites in Indiana since the early 1800s, helping shape public understanding of the precontact and historic people who also called the land we now call Indiana home.