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Dig this: Archaeological treasure hunt underway on Boston Common – Metro US

Dig this: Archaeological treasure hunt underway on Boston Common

A team of archaeologists were digging for historical treasures buried in Boston Common on Monday, the start of a two-dayexploration on the storied grounds.

The dig began just after 11 a.m., and the city planned to keep the hunt going through Tuesday between the Parkman Bandstand and the Boylston T stop. City representatives said the site is open to visitors.

City Archeologist (yes, we have one of those) Joe Bagley was on scene overseeing the survey, which is near old Revolutionary War encampments and a Native American site, according to a release.

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“This is an amazing opportunity for Boston history fans,” Bagley said in a statement before work began Monday morning.

There were just a few finds of note by the end of the day on Monday, Bagley told Metro. But the hunt’s not over yet.

“We are finding evidence of Native American artifacts, including a fragment from a quartz stone tool, though the quartz artifact was found in a disturbed context,” Bagley said.

Three of the “test pits” had been disturbed over several centuries, he said, which had an impact on what the team of experts digging and sifting their way through the dirt were finding on day one.

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“We are also starting to find 18th century ceramics, again mixed,” he said. “Definitely was a site there, but since the 18th centurythere’s been some disturbances. We’re hoping to find more intact areas tomorrow.”

The search was scheduled ahead of a project from Eversource, the utility provider.

Digs like this one have found lots of notable things over the years. In the 1980s, archaeologists found two Native American living spaces and a powder house from 1706, the city said in a statement.

October also happens to be Archaeology Month in the state. To mark the occasion on Tuesday, the Tap Trailhouse on Union Street is hosting a food-and-drink night called “Thanks for Mutton: the Archaeology of Food and Drink at the Colonial Tavern.” The event is also being hosted by Bagley, the archaeologist and shoe-in for the most fascinating city job of the month award.