"Archaeology" means learning about people from the things they've left behind (called 'artifacts'). Sometimes, when people lived a long time ago, this is the only way we can know anything about them. Archaeologists must measure and record every artifact they find, and where they found it. Each artifact (whether it's a stone tool, a broken pot, or a piece of trash) tells a story, and by sharing these stories with each other, archaeologists can figure out what life was like for people in the past.

Links:

• Egyptian Tomb of Menna Reconstruction Use VRML to explore the tomb of the Ancient Egyptian noble Menna in 3D!
• Ice Treasures of the Inca - Join John Reinhard as he climbs Mount Reinhard in Peru in search of traces of the Inca civilization.
• The Not-So-Lost City of Ubar - Read about how satellite technology was used to find this ancient lost city from "The Thousand and One Arabian Nights."
• Maya Quest '97 - Bicycle through the Central American rainforest in search of ancient Mayan cities.