Speaking Archaeologically™

Each coin has a story to narrate, which may either be outlined on it's either side or hidden inside the covers of rust and dust. To get familiar to these hidden tales and to unfold the mysteries veiled in the metallic discs, the first workshop that was organised for the New Volunteers of Speaking Archaeologically was the Coinage Workshop.  The history of coins extends from the ancient times to the present, and is related to economic history, the history of minting technologies and the history shown by the engraved words and images. A single metal piece, unfurling a number of secrets is what attracts the lovers of this subject.  The workshop was held on the 4th of September at   S Cafe  and Bar, Chandigarh. The dim lights and the dusky-wooden shades adorning the walls of the Cafe created a perfect atmosphere. Without any delay, Shriya opened up the coins album which was welcomed all the energy that was present in the room. The enthusiasm and...

As a pleasant, windy November melted into a foggy December , the First Season of Speaking Archaeologically Volunteers came to an end, too. I was going to miss these loons I had spent the last one month working with and tutoring. All of us were going to miss them! That's why, there had to be a proper farewell, because some of them were leaving SAV for good. You'd think, it'd take time for a bunch of college students and an archaeologist, who has never met them outside the formal work environment, to bond. Don't be deceived! These kids know how to dig stories and anecdotes out of you, even the cringe-worthy personal details, and it's only fair they dig so well-they are archaeologists-in-making, after all! A lot happened over coffee and lunch that day-enough to get us kicked out of the restaurant. I'll shut up now and let you watch what happened before you go on to read the End-of-the-Season Report!

Or shall we call it, The Second Half of the Workshop on Coinage ? I am very Shakespearean about names. What's in a  name after all?  I am sure the whole thing would still be a workshop on Medieval Painting even if it happened right after we finished working with those gorgeous coins.  So, there we were, still at The Rumour Mill , fed and watered and finally ready to start working on the gorgeous Basholi and Kangra Paintings, Speaking Archaeologically had been lucky enough to procure from private collections. Now to say that those paintings were a work of art is an understatement! The phrase"work of art" doesn't even begin to describe the intricate brushwork and the gorgeously innovative use of molten gold and silver for painting, that these paintings employed so heavily. Humayun, in the court of Shah Tahmasp I I suppose, I cannot  leave a bit of the history of these paintings out , if I have to do justice to what we did on the workshop. So, basica...

One of the first things we'd been hearing about SA Volunteers, when we enrolled, was the Volunteers'  Workshop and most of us could hardly wait. By the time the Workshop became a reality, we had already finished our first week of assignments and had started interacting briefly with each other on WhatsApp Task Forums and Facebook.  A Standard SA Observation Sheet on Coins A few days before the workshop,  the we started receiving picture messages on WhatsApp, showing us the coins we would be studying and asking us to bring along any old ones we might have at home,  for the purpose of study.  Those of us who were bringing coins were also asked to make a preliminary observation sheet such as this one, right here.  Soon, a message was circulated on the Volunteer Workshop Kit, which was basically a list of odd items we were supposed to carry with us to the workshop.  Finally, after a last minute venue change, the day for the first S...