There are few better ways to understand something than to experience it first-hand.
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After a four-day experimental archaeology course at the University of New England, Junortoun man Cam Cowled has a heightened appreciation of ancient artefacts.
He was among more than 20 archaeology students reproducing them to better understand how they were made, how they worked, and how to differentiate normal wear-and-tear from damage accumulated throughout the ages.
Mr Cowled and his peers made their own stone toolkit, which was then used to craft a knife similar to those of the Inuit people.
They had a go at butchering, bone work, and ceramics.
Then, the students trampled on the tools to see what sort of damage they could expect if they unearthed similar artefacts during an archaeological dig.
“The tools themselves are exceptionally good at certain jobs,” Mr Cowled said.
“If you have an obsidian tool you can cut meat as though you were using a razor blade – it’s quite remarkable.”
He said the knowledge and experience gained was worth the trip to New South Wales.
“You come back with a different attitude to a whole lot of things,” he said.
A change of perspective also inspired the 65-year-old’s decision to pursue his interest in archaeology.
Many Bendigonians will remember Mr Cowled from his teaching career.
He has relished his return to studies and was last month recognised by the Golden Key International Honour Society for his academic achievements.
“That’s what an older person who wants to go for it can do,” Mr Cowled said.
He is looking forward to the opportunities a Bachelor of Archaeology can offer.
Mr Cowled will soon complete his degree, after more than three years of commuting to and from La Trobe University in Bundoora.
The experimental archaeology course he attended was the brainchild of University of New England senior lecturer Mark Moore and lecturer Melanie Fillios.
“The past is not around us, so what we have to do is recreate processes in the present, so when we find traces of them in the past we can interpret them effectively,” Dr Moore said.