NLAS update

Our new logo!

The Newfoundland and Labrador Archaeological Society is picking up steam.  We have our first public event coming up at The Rooms on October 19th for International Archaeology Day and have tentatively scheduled an Annual General Meeting for November 4.  We have a guest speaker confirmed for the AGM and I'll share more details when we have a time and venue confirmed.  We've struck a nominating committee to work on finding the NLAS an executive committee and board of directors ahead of the AGM.  Our constitution is nearly complete and will be adopted at the AGM.

Dedicated volunteers

At our latest planning meeting we accepted our Code of Ethics.  You can read the complete Code of Ethics on our facebook page, but in essence, we expect members to protect, rather than disturb, archaeological sites, to value archaeological objects for their scientific and cultural significance over any sort of commercial value, and to respect Federal, Provincial and Aboriginal heritage legislation.  We also adopted a logo for the organization.  Here's the thought process behind the design:

We are proud to introduce the new Newfoundland and Labrador Archaeological Society logo. Like the missing pieces of a puzzle, the NLAS acronym is cut from a backdrop of two artifacts that, individually, are typical of the archaeology of Newfoundland and Labrador but when taken together create a combination unique to this corner of the North Atlantic. Like the grass and trees overlaying the ground where archaeologists search for this Province’s history, a green English wine bottle is positioned stratigraphically above an earthy, ochre-stained Maritime Archaic harpoon head; one of the most recent cultures overlaying one of the earliest. The wine bottle represents Historic archaeology, European history, trade, the movement of people, the domestic sphere of hearth and home, and connections to faraway places. The sealing harpoon head represents Pre-Contact archaeology, the Aboriginal history of the Province, and the connection to the bounty of the land, and especially of the sea, that was common to all people who made this place their home. The scattered pieces of the broken bottle have been recovered, catalogued, and refit, calling to mind all of the effort that goes into the archaeological process from planning and permitting, to work done on the land, underwater, and in the laboratory, and on into the realms of conservation and museum curation, all with the goal of preserving and interpreting the past for future generations.

Whenever possible, we'll use the colour version, but it was also important to us that the logo could be simplified and  that it would work in greyscale or black and white as well.

If you'd like to help out, please let us know:
nlas (at) nlarchsociety.ca

We just received word today that the Canadian Archaeological Association has agreed to host our NLAS website and e-mail.  This is a very generous in kind contribution and show of support from our national archaeology organization.  We are just now beginning to build the website, but you can contact the NLAS by e-mail now at: nlas (at) nlarchsociety.ca.

If you'd like to learn more about volunteering or becoming a member, drop us an e-mail or come and see us on October 19th at The Rooms.  The planning committee has been working hard to create the organization, but we want your input on how to grow it.  What role would you like the Newfoundland and Labrador Archaeological Society to play in your life, education, career, or community?

Photo Credits:
1-3, 5: Tim Rast
4: Elaine Anton