November 6, 2013
For the third year in a row the AIA-Milwaukee Society and the Archaeological Research Lab of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee teamed up to sponsor an open house at the Lab in celebration of International Archaeology Day. This year the theme was “Games Ancient People Played” with a total of about 40 attendees, most of whom were families with kids. Local archaeologists and students from the Departments of Anthropology, Art History and Classics at UW-Milwaukee, and from Marquette University and the Milwaukee Public Museum presented a variety of games from all over the world, many of which are still played today. Visitors were encouraged to try their hands and skills at them. In the process they learned when and where these games were first played, who played them, and how archaeology helps us to figure them out. Board games from ancient Egypt, Rome and Scandinavia; stick games played by Native Americans; and throwing games dating back as far as Paleolithic times were just some of the fun, interactive games available to try. Special thanks to Shannon Freire, doctoral candidate in Anthropology at UW-Milwaukee, for her efforts in organizing the event.
International Archaeology Day Blog
