SFU Archaeology Blog

Were Neandertals able to make and control fire? Or were they reliant on fire created by natural phenomena such as lightning strikes?  Dennis Sandgathe talks to Slate about the debate.

The October 2012 issue of The Debitage is here!

New excavations at La Ferrasie, France have led Dennis Sandgathe and colleagues to question whether Neandertals deliberately buried their dead.
Read about it in Science.

First Nation gathers voices from the past to prepare for the future

-by Randy Shore

Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/First+nation+gathers+voices+from+past+prepare+future/7183495/story.html#ixzz25jBktoXn

Read the March issue of The Debitage here.

The Human Evolutionary Studies Program held its first annual symposium entitled "Environmental Influences on Human Genetic and Cultural Evolution" on February 16, 2012.

View a copy of the program here.

Click here to read the February 2012 issue of The Debitage.

During reading break, students from Barbara Winter's Archaeological Conservation class will be driving up to Chase, a small town near Kamloops, where the Chase Museum and Archives suffered two devastating fires. The first fire was caused by arson and was put out in time. Many of the collections suffered water damage, so large fans were brought in to speed dry the artifacts. Unfortunately, this caused an electrical fire, which gutted the building and destroyed many of their collections and archives. The Students are travelling to Chase to help restore and clean the remaining collections and get some hands on experience in the field.

The students are also calling for donations to help their cause. Contributions will go towards helping to pay for brushes, sponges, masks, etc. Donation money left over from the trip, and any funds collected afterwards will go towards helping the Chase Museum rebuild. Any and all donations are greatly appreciated!