Furious_T

Archaeologist/Grad Student

Gotta love the log by the Bomb Squad tech

I could take Buchanan if no one closer is interested

Congrats! All the best to you guys!

Speaking as one who does archaeology for a living, i think it could be a great addition to Waymarking and a lot of fun. The problem is that, at least in North America, most identified archaological sites are on private property, and are only identified due to construction, etc. Now, ruins, cemeteries, and monuments are another story, and i think it would be great to document them, like an amatuer version of HABS/HAER. I know i'd be involved in that.

As i've mentioned before, i love cemetery caches, they're probably my favorite. Befoer i got into geocaching i would spend time driving around finding old forgotten cemeteries, now i can kill 2 birds with one stone.

As a collector and an archeologist, i say go for it, i would love to get meaningful swag like that.

How sad is this...GCVGJ6 is 0.1 Mi from my house...literally around the corner and i couldn't find it

Also, if you're so inclined, try not to take rubbings of graves, as too many people doing this can erode the surface away, and acid rain has already damaged many marble monuments. A good alternative is to photograph the monument just before noon on a sunny day. As most Christian graves face east, the shadow should give you pretty good relief detail.

Well, let's all remember what cemeteries are for. The majority of cemeteries in the country today are a result of a movement in the Victorian era know as the "rural" cemetery. Rather than the cramped and often unhealthy church graveyards of the past, large open cemeteries were laid out on the outskirts of towns across the nation, starting with Mount Auburn in Massachusetts in the 1830's. The idea was that since America was "lacking" in history but had plenty of natural beauty that they could combine monuments with nature to make the perfect place to celebrate the dead and ponder things for "moral improvement." So they imitated the monument styles of classical Greece, Rome, and Egypt, laid out winding roads and ponds, and planted trees for the maximum aesthetic beauty. The public would come to picnic, stroll, ride bikes, and enjoy the natural, historic, and sculptural scenery. Refreshments were sold and cemeteries became the major tourist attractions of the day, with foreign visitors raving about them and the movement soon spread to Europe. The idea that cemeteries are a place to be avoided unless you're there to bury someone is an increadibly modern idea. Having said this, i feel it's right to enjoy these places as they were intended and i see no disrespect as long as the cache is tasteful. Cemeteries are a place for the living just as much as for the dead, and visiting a cemetery, for a cache or not, keeps the memory of those buried there fresh, and hopefully offer some "moral improvement" Sorry if that was a bit long-winded, but i wrote my undergrad thesis on the Rural Cemetery movement and how the layout of Gettysburg relates to it. There are a few great books and articles on the subject that i could point out for those interested...or if you really want i could send a copy of my thesis if you're into torturing yourself If you're into cemetery caches i reccomend at least picking up a copy of Stories in Stone as a guide to the symbolism seen in various cemetery art. Just my 2 cents....

Walkersville, MD out in good ol' Frederick County

The Civil War is my life and I have a lot of respect for the men who fought, but i really admire the men of the Iron Brigade.