The archaeologist paused briefly from the painstaking work of clearing debris from the dig to glance at the sun that was continuing its inexorable progression up the sky. It was frustrating – hours of what should have been the final day of the expedition had already been wasted after last night’s fierce storm scattered muck throughout the site. Yet the expedition leader had been adamant that it was time to move on. Regardless of the delays caused by the storm, they’d still be packing up tonight to depart at first light tomorrow. Chafing or arguing at the decision would amount to nothing; the only way the expedition leader’s decision could be overruled would be by substantive vote, and the team was restless, eager for something new. There would not be a vote.
One last day. One last night.
Most of the team had been concentrating on the central ruins. It had clearly once been a large settlement, with a population that might have been as many as fifty thousand individuals. The centre of the settlement had clearly been more heavily populated than the outlining areas, and it made sense to concentrate the dig in that area. That approach had paid off – the primary dig teams had found a treasure trove of details that had revealed much about this lost civilisation: their history, art, writing, style of government and familial structures. It became clear to the expedition team early in the dig that the heart of the settlement had been a government, commercial and cultural hub for the people who had lived there. As the forest covering the settlement was cleared for excavations, it also became obvious that travel from the centre to the surrounds was frequent, with many paths servicing the residents, resulting in a very mobile population. As this was a hitherto unknown civilisation for the area, there were new discoveries almost daily – so much so that the nightly updates and discussions between the teams were frequently even more exhausting than the labour of each day.
Yet the archaeologist was fascinated in the micro view as much as the macro view. Societies invariably existed as a growth from individuals to family units, from family units to tribes, then ever increasing tribe sizes. As a result, understanding the individuals and family units that formed the foundation of a society was critical to understanding the society. What did the society give back to its members? Was it fair, or tyrannical? These things were best understood by learning the minutia of the mundane members of the society. It was for this reason that the archaeologist had shifted his research to the outlying areas of the settlement. The centre of the settlement may have been its operating heart, but the true heart was in the homes of the those who lived at the edge.
Aerial photography of the region, combined with laser mapping of the topology had allowed the archaeologist to select for his dig an outlying area near the end of some of the paths leading into the settlement. Unlike the large, multifunction buildings in the centre of the settlement, the simulated layout of this region suggested modestly sized buildings, more likely to house individuals and families.
Briefly requisitioning one of the teams of students who had accompanied the dig, the archaeologist had been able to clear an area of vegetation that had covered maybe ten or so dwellings. It was sometimes difficult to tell how many family units may have lived in these dwellings – clearly there had been socioeconomic hierarchies in this primitive society that resulted in some families and individuals occupying more than one building, and the records uncovered thus far had suggested a highly variable birth rate for families.
The archaeologist had worried when requisitioning the student team that some would want to linger and help once the initial clearing had completed. Another reason he’d wanted to work at the edge of the settlement was a genuine preference towards quiet solitude. Coworkers gabbled and distracted, but out here by himself he could spend each day contemplating the ruins without the need to preemptively speculate on each item uncovered. Thankfully, those worries had been unfounded: the students found the idea of working on smaller ruins at the edge of the settlement tedious, and almost immediately griped at being so far away from the action at the centre. As soon as the archaeologist had declared enough of the site cleared, they had all flocked back to the core teams, leaving him to his thoughts and his silence.
The damn storm! The archaeologist had been confident when wrapping up the dig yesterday that he was nearing something important. While still in a ruined state, this particular dwelling had yielded several small discoveries – trinkets, toys and even a small sculpture that suggested this building had at least been partially saved from the worst ravages of time. The tropical region this settlement was situated in was fiercely humid and hot at the best of times, but it was also prone to unexpected and fierce storms. Normally fastidious in laying protective covering over the dig at the end of every day, the archaeologist had rushed back to the centre of the dig yesterday afternoon at the news of an exciting last-minute find, and had completely forgotten his end of day tasks.
Fully exposed to the elements, several artefacts he had been carefully clearing tightly packed earth from were now covered again, and the sculpture, half freed had been smashed by a falling tree limb. This was the problem with excavating objects made hundreds or more years ago. Even in the best preserved state, they were still persistently fragile.
Still, there was hope that despite the destruction of the storm the site might be salvaged in the remaining time. As he bent and pulled away some of the larger detritus, and doing his best to avoid looking at the smashed sculpture, he noticed a white, gleaming surface now exposed by the storm. All frustration vanishing, he rushed to grab a fine-brush sweeper from his work kit then squatted and started urgently, carefully brushing away the dirt, mud and leaves. Within minutes he was certain he knew what had been exposed by the storm, and given the remaining time left to the dig he worked quickly to confirm the layout of the area he’d have to excavate. Once he’d confirmed the layout, he got to work with getting the dirt and sediment away from the skeleton with as much swiftness as could be afforded without damaging the remains. He became intently focused on the task, knowing that this was the last opportunity for discovery for him at this particular site. He knew the expedition leader had been reluctant to let him operate so far removed from the core team – it was only the support of several of the leading researchers that he’d been afforded the autonomy, but he was not yet confident he’d achieved the results that would guarantee him that same autonomy at the next expedition site. Something important – more important than jewellery or a sculpture would guarantee that.
It was thirst that drove him to become aware of the passage of time. He realised, with a start, that he was parched, and rose from the skeleton he’d been freeing from the earth to drink. As he drunk his head turned to the sky; the sun had passed its zenith and there was less than four hours of daylight left. Quickly swallowing enough to keep the thirst at bay, he knelt and continued with the work.
As he worked, he found himself reflecting on the time they’d spent at this site. The expedition was considerable – over two hundred fellow archeologists and students and converged on the site once it had been identified, and they’d been at the ruins long enough to become accustomed to the turning seasons. There was no support team, as such. Everyone either worked at the dig or, despite the inevitable grumbling that came from it, found themselves periodically rostered onto camp maintenance activities, such as meals and general clearing duties. Security was minimal – there was no particular evidence of large predators nearby, and so even the security teams eventually started pitching in with the expedition work to stave off boredom. While many of the team found the demands from the expedition leader for frequent reporting frustrating, no-one recalled ever seeing her not busy with activities around the dig herself.
This had been a sprawling civilisation. While aerial footage had picked out this starting site for the expedition, ongoing mapping had identified several other nearby sites – and advance teams recently dispatched to those sites had confirmed them as suitable candidates for further investigation. When the last team had returned and reported the discovery of ruins of a significantly larger settlement than this one, everyone had known it would only be a matter of time before the expedition leader moved them on.
Eventually, with the sun starting to kiss the horizon, the archaeologist stepped back to admire his results. A fully formed human skeleton lay exposed. He would need to request assistance to transfer it for study, but knew a team would be assembled, even at night. They had found few skeletons in this settlement and every one was an invaluable find. Unlike all previously discovered skeletons, this particular one seemed completely intact. Whatever had caused its demise had not been violent; in a fully supine position, the individual may have even died in his or her sleep. This was, without a doubt, the best find the archaeologist had ever made in his career, and it would guarantee his autonomy at the next dig site. Instincts may be indulged, but results were inevitably rewarded. He found himself suddenly quite cheerful and looking forward to the praise this find would undoubtedly bring. Returning to his bag he pulled out a tablet and started meticulously photographing the exposed skeleton as it lay in situ, sending each photo as he took it to the lead archaeologist on the expedition.
The unexpected shout of a child brought the archaeologist’s attention to the surrounds beyond the skeleton. Many of the expedition team had brought their children with them, and once the ruins had been declared safe by the adults, they were generally given free reign – so long as they promised not to touch anything, and report anything ‘interesting’ they found. Of course, what they found interesting was not always what the adults were interested in, but there were at times happy synergies at chance discoveries made by the curious little ones.
Bounding down the hill with the joy and enthusiasm only children seem to muster, the child excitedly waved at the archaeologist and blurted out, “The expedition leader is calling everyone back!” before coming to an abrupt stop at the sight of the skeleton.
“You found another one?”, the child whispered.
“Yes”, replied the archaeologist. Noting the slight look of hesitation, he reached out to reassure the child. “It’s nothing to worry about. The people here died many centuries ago. It’s just bones.”
Feeling more comfortable, the child stepped up for a closer look. “They look so different. How did the humans die, progenitor?”
The archaeologist sighed, unfurling his vestigial wings to gently agitate the hot, humid air around him. “There are several theories based on what we’ve gathered from their historical records so far, and we’re hoping to find more records at the next dig site. But as close as we can tell they reached a point in their society where opinion became more important than fact for too many of them. Once that reached critical mass, their leaders ignored the warnings of their scientists and climate change ran away on them to the point that the planet couldn’t support their species any more. That’s what we’ve been able to piece together from the electronic record systems that survived, anyway.”
The child gave a sad little smile. “Pity. They made such nice music.”
“That’s true”, said the archaeologist. “We’ll make sure to take some of it with us when we leave.”