There is some agreement that the presence of plastic in the archaeological matrix serves as a stratigraphic indicator of the Anthropocene1. We have decided not to contribute to this depositional trend, and -- as a small gesture that hopefully connects with wider changes in consumption - have broken with the habit of storing artifacts in plastic bags. On site, we collected the artifacts in metal buckets, paper bags and then transferred them to cloth bags. For any artifact where moisture content was a concern, we brought glass jars.
In the process of deaccessioning archaeological repositories, we frequently encounter the cloth sampling and collecting bags of our esteemed predecessors. It seems to have worked fine for them, why not return to this custom? -- J.B.
1Zalaciewicz, Jan, et. al. 2016. "The geological cycle of plastics and their use as a stratigraphic indicator of the Anthropocene" in Anthropocene, February 8, 2016.
