Archaeology is the study of human history using material remains. Archaeologists excavate and study features and artifacts, like this clay sculpture unearthed in Cerro de las Mesas, Veracruz, Mexico. Archaeologists determined this artifact is pre-Columbian, meaning it was created in the Americas before the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1492. The history of archaeology is a long and checkered one. If there is anything archaeology teaches us, it is to look to the past to learn from our mistakes and, if we can find any, our successes. What we today think of as the modern science of archaeology has its roots in religion and treasure hunting, and it was born out of centuries of curiosity about the past and where we all came from.
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