Public Information and Education

SC Standards and Guidelines for Archaeological Investigations

SHPO Guidance for Archaeological Surveys

What is Archaeology? Here is a definition: "[It] is the scientific study of the physical evidence of past human societies recovered through collection, artifact analysis, and excavation. Archaeologists not only attempt to discover and describe past cultures but also to formulate explanations for the development of cultures. Conclusions drawn from study and analyses provide answers and predictions about human behavior that add, complement, and sometimes correct the written accounts of history and prehistory (ref. http://www.cr.nps.gov/seac/terms.htm).

Information and guidance about archaeology is available through many different agencies and organizations. On these pages, you will find information about archaeology in the state of South Carolina as well as links to a variety of other sources.

Block excavations at an early eighteenth-century rice plantation