The “N.C. Digs!” traveling archaeological exhibit features artifacts from the Berry site in Burke County and other western North Carolina sites. The Western Office of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources will host the exhibit April 16 to May 30.
The exhibit features five different types of archaeological sites found across North Carolina: Native American, battlefield, plantation, trash pit and industrial. “N.C. Digs!” includes interpretive panels explaining each site type, and reviews techniques and methods used to excavate and analyze the materials discovered.
Archaeologists have confirmed that the Berry site was the location of the Native American town of Joara and the Spanish Fort San Juan, established by Juan Pardo in 1567. Fort San Juan was the first European settlement established in the interior of what is now the U.S., predating the Roanoke and Jamestown colonies. Artifacts from the Berry site and others will be on display.
Three special evening programs will accompany the exhibit:
April 19. “The Berry Site Artifacts and the Stories They Tell.” Dr. David Moore, Warren Wilson College.
May 10. “Mounds and Towns in the Cherokee Heartland of Western North Carolina.” Dr. Ben Steere, Western Carolina University.
May 24. “North Carolina’s Petroglyph and Pictograph Archaeological Sites.” Scott Ashcraft, U.S. Forest Service-Asheville.
The Western Office of the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources is located at 176 Riceville Road, Asheville. For additional information about the exhibition and special evening programs please call (828) 296-7230, email jeff.futch@ncdcr.gov, or visit https://www.ncdcr.gov/about/history/western-office.