Visitors to Historic Jamestowne will be able to get their hands on the past this weekend as part of the celebration of Virginia Archaeology Month.
Historic Jamestowne — the site of the first permanent English colony in the New World — will host several programs throughout the day from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, according to a press release from the organization.
Activities include tours, hands-on activities, kids’ digs, demonstrations and history lessons, among other activities, the release said.
Each of the programs will be held at the James Fort site or the Archaearium Museum, both of which are at Historic Jamestowne.
Guests can join a Jamestown Rediscovery archaeologist to learn the latest about the organization’s ongoing excavations of the James Fort and church, the release said. Tours begin at 11:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. at the Tercentennial Monument.
Visitors can also tour the archaeological museum at 12:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. and learn how artifacts were discovered — including what each piece has taught researchers about the lives and deaths of 17th-century colonists.
Jamestown will host the Kid’s Dig between 10 a.m. and noon, then again from 1-4 p.m. The simulated archaeological dig will help children learn digging techniques, screening activities, and how to identify archaeological artifacts, the release said.
Adults can get involved in the past as well by participating in pottery mending or building their own fort.
Virginia’s Native American tribes were frequent visitors to the James Fort in its early years. Daniel Firehawk Abbott of the Nanticoke people from Maryland’s Eastern Shore will explain the culture and lifestyles of the Tidewater Algonquians and their interactions and trades with the early Jamestown colonists, the release said.
Visitors can learn more about the discovery of the 1607 James Fort and see demonstrations of trades such as blacksmithing and carpentry.
All the events are included with admission to Historic Jamestowne. Admission is $14 for visitors age 16 and older, and includes entry into Yorktown Battlefield.
