Old bones from long-dead animals came alive at the Zooarcheology and Osteology Academy, a hands-on archaeology workshop held Feb. 10-11 at Rice University — just days before World Anthropology Day Feb. 15.
The sold-out event, hosted by the Texas Archeological Society and the Department of Anthropology at Rice, included more than 50 archaeologists and hobbyists from throughout the state of Texas. Under the guidance of Rice anthropologists Mary Prendergast and Manuel Domínguez-Rodrigo alongside graduate and undergraduate teaching assistants, participants learned everything there is to know about how archaeologists study ancient animal remains through hands-on practice with skeletons ranging from bison, deer and alligators to tiny turtles.
“People came from all over the state to be here — as far away as El Paso — and there was a huge range of participants, from professors to undergrads and hobbyists,” said Prendergast. “Everyone was very enthusiastic, and they kept saying how impressed they were by the hardworking Rice student teaching assistants.”
The event was held in a Rice archaeology lab that is home to the William L. McClure Faunal Collection, which includes the skeletons of more than 800 Texas animals and was donated to Rice’s Department of Anthropology by the Houston Archeological Society in 2020.
More information on the lab is online here.
Photos by Gustavo Raskosky/Rice University.