ODYSSEY Archaeological Research Fund

The 2015 Odyssey crew continues to work in several excavation units searching for additional mammoth bone and any possible evidence of human activity associated with the mammoth remains (Photos 1 and 2). So far, the crew is encountering mostly soil, and they are moving a lot of it via shovel skimming--but not without minor injury (Photo 3)! All of the earth moving has paid off because additional mammoth bones have been uncovered this week. Now the crew begins the slow, tedious task of carefully documenting, removing, and preserving the bone (Photos 4 and 5).

Photo 1: The excavation area at the Scheuerman Mammoth Site. Rains move around the site to the south and east.

Photo 2: The crew shovel skimming soil within the targeted excavation units.

Photo 3: The effects of daily shovel skimming.

Photo 4. Barb Crable documents weathering on the underside of Bone 63 (unidentified so far).

Photo 5: Leila Joyce works to clean off a rib bone.

Text by Laura Murphy, Photos by Kale Bruner

The 2015 Odyssey crew (Photo 1) is picking up where the 2014 crew left off at the Scheuerman mammoth site (14SC327) in Scott County, Kansas. While we have received a lot of rain back east at the Kansas Geological Survey in Lawrence, the crew has experienced relatively dry conditions so far at the site--a welcome change from 2014. The crew began excavating additional units on June 1st to recover more mammoth bone. They spent the first two days slowly removing upper layers of soil by "skimming" or "shaving" the surface with sharpened shovels (Photo 2). The crew will continue to excavate until Wednesday.

Photo 1: The 2015 Odyssey crew at the Scheuerman mammoth site. From left to right: Lauren Johnson, Leila Joyce, Helen Sangster, Kevin Fenyak, Barb Crable, and Kale Bruner.

Photo 2: Shovel-shaving the B horizon at the Scheuerman mammoth site.

Text by Laura Murphy, Photos by Kale Bruner

• 2016
• 2014