I think the most important thing to realize about modern day archeology is that Indiana Jones is practically a documentary for about 50% of what we do. I personally have beaten scores of Nazis and recovered several priceless artifacts from the clutches of countless nefarious ne’er-do-wells. However, since the movies describe that half of what I do so perfectly, it seems like it’s up to me to describe to you the rest of the job of the archaeologist. The most important thing to understand about archeology in the context of Indiana Jones is the time and care that it takes to complete even the simplest of tasks. The reason for this is multifaceted: Physically we are working with things that are infinitely old and are therefore breakable. Also, there are limits to the senses and when covered by the dirt of the ages, bone, pottery, metal and glass can be indecipherable from each other, not to mention the earth that they’re taken from. There is also a methodological rationale for the pace. Within the context of the discipline, you cannot un-dig something. That is simply to say that once you have taken something out of the ground, that is the context in what it is discovered, you cannot just bury it again. Notes, drawings, charts and photography then become necessary so that you can understand the context in which a discovery is made and leave a record of action for others interested in the sight. Even if a relic “belongs in a museum” by not taking the time to record the proper context in which an item is discovered is tantamount to stealing such an artifact from the historical record, by robbing both the site’s ability to explain the object, as well as the object’s ability to explain the site.
This should then point towards the true goal of the archaeologist. It is not to mine the past for aesthetic value, nor is it to produce the biggest material finds. It instead should seek to construct a proper narrative of the past, borne out of the material circumstances of particular sites put together in a methodical and logical fashion. Even Spielberg’s movies understand the necessity of the methodical process. Indiana Jones is never in it to find treasure. Instead he primarily works to prevent bad practice, usually in the form of the extractionary archaeological technique of the Nazis. In its original context, “it belongs in a museum” is a cry of retribution, not of action. In all forms then, the goal of the archaeologist is to simultaneously preserve, create and destroy. When stated in these terms it makes perfect sense as to why anyone would want to dramatize the profession.