From Excavating Ancient Ruins Abroad to Juggling Meetings and Papers of The Grueling Daily Life of an Archaeologist

From securing the budget to guarding against looters, the challenges are endless

There is a rather unique field of study. It is archaeology, a discipline where researchers investigate ruins and their surrounding areas in harsh natural environments, excavating and analyzing artifacts such as pottery and stone tools from hundreds to thousands of years ago, in order to contemplate the way of life during that time.

It’s not just about digging the ground to find artifacts. The duties are diverse. There are university lectures, student meetings, faculty meetings, research funding applications to the Ministry of Education, various conferences, entrance exam duties, academic-related tasks, and outreach activities—there is a mountain of responsibilities. Kazuo Aoyama, a professor at the Department of Human Culture, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at Ibaraki University, and the author of “Though I’m an Archaeologist, I Can’t Conduct Excavations. My Too-Busy Daily Life” (Poplar Publishing), talks about the challenges faced by archaeologists.

“In order to go abroad for excavation research, I have to secure a budget. For the research at the Seibal site in Guatemala, I applied for the Ministry of Education’s Scientific Research Grant and was fortunate enough to be selected twice in a row from the humanities and social sciences field at universities nationwide, receiving nearly 600 million yen in research funding over five years.

Laser surveying using aircraft allows us to survey ruins that would take decades to do on the ground in just four or five days, but it costs about 20 million yen each time. Starting from the application documents for such work, I also have to arrange pilots and research team members, and greet landowners and nearby residents.

Effective communication with local workers is essential for efficient excavations. We try to hire workers fairly and evenly from villages near the ruins as much as possible. After we leave the site, to ensure that they continue monitoring the ruins, we cannot hire only people from the same village or ethnic group. We must consider fair employment to avoid jealousy.

It takes at least 10 years to research one excavation site. Many of the Maya civilization sites are in dense jungles, which makes them prime targets for looters. Natural disasters and other problems can happen at any time.”

The largest and oldest public ceremonial architecture of the Maya civilization

Professor Aoyama has been studying the Maya civilization for nearly 40 years. The Maya civilization originated around 1100 BC and has a history spanning approximately 2800 years. It spread across the southeastern part of Mexico, including the Yucatán Peninsula, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. The Maya developed writing, a calendar, and astronomy, but the civilization was invaded by the Spanish in the 16th century, with the last Maya city being conquered in 1697.

Professor Aoyama has conducted research for ten years in the Copán Valley in Honduras from 1986, and for over twenty years at the Aguateca and Seibal sites in Guatemala. Since 2020, he has been conducting research in the state of Tabasco in Mexico, where he discovered and named the Aguada Phoenix site, which features the largest and oldest public ceremonial architecture of the Maya civilization, stretching 1.4 km. His findings were published in the scientific journal Nature in the same year.

“I discovered the oldest and largest public ceremonial architecture of the Maya civilization in the southeastern part of Mexico, which is believed to have been built around 1100 BC. This discovery pushes the origins of the Maya civilization back by 150 years, and it was such a significant find that textbooks had to be rewritten. After excavating artifacts, I analyze them and write papers in Japanese, English, and Spanish. The work of an archaeologist is a combination of excavation, research, and publishing papers.

Though there are times when I suffer from diseases like dengue fever or get bitten by mosquitoes and fleas, overall, it is a very enjoyable job. The joy of uncovering histories spanning hundreds or thousands of years is incomparable.”

The area around the Guatemalan ruins is in a harsh jungle environment, and of course, there are no restrooms. In contrast, the area surrounding the relatively safe Aguada Phoenix site in Mexico is a pasture and cornfield, but there are still no restrooms, so one must relieve themselves in the bushes.

Being able to wash your whole body with a bucket of water means you’ve become independent

“Everything becomes easier with time. I stay in villages near the ruins, and power cuts and water shortages are just a part of life. When the power goes out, I just think, ‘Maybe there’s something wrong with the power lines because of the heavy rain yesterday,’ and accept it. However, water shortages are a life-or-death issue. In Honduras, we had to fetch water from mountain springs. Water is so precious, and once you can wash your whole body with just one bucket of water, you feel like you’ve become independent (laughs).

During excavation, I wake up at 4 AM before dawn and work under the scorching sun, which can reach 40°C, until 3 PM. Afterward, I carry the excavated materials to a rented two-story house where I analyze them. If there’s electricity, I send emails to the university, academic conferences, or family. By 9 PM, I go to sleep and get at least seven hours of rest to prepare for the next day’s excavation. When I’m tired, I sleep even earlier and get up earlier the next morning to do paperwork. It’s important to have a good balance. Archaeologists who can fall asleep quickly and adapt to their environment are best suited for this job.

The Aguateca ruins in Guatemala are located on a steep cliff about 15 meters high. The crevasse is 70 meters deep, and if you fall, there’s no guarantee of survival. The howling cries of howler monkeys act as an alarm clock, and sometimes I find wild jaguar paw prints near my tent.”

In the tropical rainforest, mosquitoes swarm in large numbers. The mosquito repellents sold in Japan aren’t very effective. There are no toilets, so I relieve myself in the grass, but if I don’t finish within 30 seconds, I become food for the swarm of mosquitoes. Locals burn Coconuts, a species of palm tree, to ward off the mosquitoes. What has been passed down locally is much more useful.

“Venomous snakes, scorpions, mosquitoes, and ticks are terrifying, but what’s even scarier is humans. There are those living outside the law, such as drug trafficking organizations and looters.”

At the Ceibal ruins in Guatemala, drug traffickers were hiding nearby, and a murder occurred in a village close to the ruins. Near the Passion River, which borders Guatemala and Mexico, secret transactions often take place. To avoid getting involved, I avoid approaching those areas and limit my movement to only between the hotel and the ruins. Drug dealers won’t attack unless provoked.

“The more you hear, the more you might think of Harrison Ford’s character, Indiana Jones, who braves hordes of snakes and scorpions in search of treasure. But Professor Aoyama doesn’t wear a fedora or carry a whip. He works in the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences at Ibaraki University, spending his days buried in paperwork and meetings.”

The more I listen, the more I imagine Professor Aoyama as Indiana Jones, searching for treasures across the world, battling swarms of snakes and scorpions, much like Harrison Ford portrayed the character.

But Professor Aoyama doesn’t wear a fedora or carry a whip. At Ibaraki University, he belongs to the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, spending his days buried in paperwork and meetings.

When conducting research abroad, my health actually improves

“In 2004, the shift to an independent administrative agency led to a reduction in operating grants, and the university had to earn its own funds. Now, to advance my research, I have to secure external funding from organizations like the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

There are many meetings now—faculty meetings, department meetings, major meetings, various committees, etc. These meetings are frequent, and each professor is expected to produce results in the form of papers and books.”

While being caught up in paperwork and meetings, the environment is quite different from that of the excavation site. Archaeologists seem to be busy no matter where they are.

“When I’m in Japan, there are so many things on my mind, but when I’m conducting research abroad, I don’t even have time to think about unnecessary things, so the mental burden is much lighter. Early to bed, early to rise, and staying active has improved my health.

In the villages around the excavation sites, we have to be careful with water from taps because of concerns like dysentery and cholera. But in Japan, tap water is safe to drink and can be heated. There is rarely any disruption in the water or electricity supply, making life more convenient and hygienic. But in Japan, you also have to be careful about relationships with people and manage your time, with pressure to deliver results in a short period.

When I’m at the excavation site, I can directly feel the rise and fall of civilizations spanning thousands of years, and I think it’s a fulfilling life. I want to continue as much as I can.”

Although excavation work is grueling and a world of endurance,with passion burning and my body moving, I want to continue research on-site until I reach the age of 70. With a soft expression, Professor Aoyama expresses this sentiment, and his appearance seems to convey everything.

Professor Kazuo Aoyama (courtesy of Ibaraki University).

In addition to Professor Aoyama, the busy daily lives of three other archaeologists—Professor Michinori Oshiro and Associate Professor Ryosuke Kado of Komazawa University—are also introduced.