Indiana Jones: Myth, Reality And 21st Century Archaeology

This first decade of the 21st century has witnessed two major wars resulting in serious injuries to numerous American soldiers. Returning veterans have come home to a depressed economy and uncertain futures. They confront job markets often out of reach to those with skills not readily transferable to the civilian world. As part of the American Recovery and Repatriation Act (ARRA) the Obama administration allocated funds to rehabilitate veterans by teaching them to curate artifact collections, stored in dusty facilities for decades. The project was initiated and administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (St. Louis District) who merged veterans’ rehabilitation with curation of archaeological collections, considered to be a pivotal part of our nation’s patrimony. In this episode we discuss the emergence and achievements of this program with the archaeologists who initiated and administered it as well as with the program directors and veterans who have contributed to its success.