Recounting my time as an artifact Photographer
By Christian Kallie
Small Egyptian shabtis, Roman silver coins, Gandharan sculpted friezes, and Byzantine vases. As an artifact photographer in USC’s Archaeology Research Center (ARC) lab, I’ve gotten to handle countless fascinating antiquities from the USC archaeology collection. To outsiders, it may seem like a straightforward undergraduate job, but there’s an art and science involved in capturing the fine details of artifacts in perfect focus. Each photo takes preparation to ensure a high-quality image. Artifact photography is important for capturing the fine and delicate features of fragile artifacts, so adequate lighting and appropriate camera settings are crucial.
One of my favorite memories of working in the lab was when we were tasked with carefully sorting artifacts in boxes that contained materials saved by archaeologists from the Lucas Museum construction site. During those days we found plenty of early modern objects like old Ford hub caps, glue canisters, antique bottles, and plenty of other artifacts from historical old Los Angeles during the years that USC was first becoming a university.
By working in the ARC lab, I’ve gained experience working with photography, photogrammetry, data accessioning, and plenty of other skills that I have been able to use for archaeological and museum work. For instance, this summer, I applied my photography skills on an island in the Caribbean during an archaeology field school in Providencia, Colombia under the supervision of Professor Tracie Mayfield. On the island, the usual routine consisted of waking up early and packing all the gear for each excavation site before heading over to our sites and starting work for the day. I spent most of my time on the northern side of the island, where the environment was bushy and jungly, but if rain caught us by surprise it got muddy, too.
There are so many artifacts on this island where early settlers, enslaved people, privateers, and soldiers from England, Spain, and Africa all collided. Mere seconds after starting to clear the surface for an excavation, we found dozens of pottery sherds. As we excavated each layer carefully, we uncovered more artifacts. We photographed each excavation layer in order to show the variation in material remains that had accumulated over time. IF we encountered particularly interesting artifacts such as rims of serving vessels or large sherds from jugs or plates, we took out a field camera and immediately photographed it before removing it from the soil where it had lain for centuries.
Being in the field was rough at first. I was working in an extremely humid climate and the strong equatorial sun really leaves you sweaty and tired. But, that is nothing that some good old music and singalongs can’t fix. On the flip side, during our free time, in addition to playing countless card games with the others, I traveled all over the island, exploring all the beautiful beaches and local restaurants. The whole time on the island, I don’t think I ate a single dish that wasn’t amazing, especially with the prevalence of seafood cuisine. Other things of note that I got to experience were crazy fowl fights and group parties with community members who allowed us to help cook a communal stew. We also enjoyed friendly competition between our two field teams.
Getting the opportunity to participate in the Providence Island Archaeological Project was a wonderful, eye-opening experience. As a research team member, I learned how the world of archaeology works, the fun of working as with others, and I put my classroom knowledge to the test, including everything I learned about valuing the community in which I was working. They were eager to hear about our results, and I really enjoyed listening to them as they shared their history, traditions, and stories with us.