It has all the markings of a reality show on one of those cable music networks; opening theme by Cold Play, goateed host in a sock cap, sped-up camera sweeps. But Time Team America gets down to the serious business of history and archeology pretty quickly, so a little hipness can be forgiven as a way to rope the Twitter crowd into what is a very interesting and at times, entertaining show. The PBS series is a summer event on Wednesday evenings.

The show attempts to capitalize on the tension and fast pace of reality TV. A team of archeologists travels to sites of American history via caravan and gives themselves just three days to uncover a particular objective. The first episode, which is available to view in its entirety on the PBS website, takes the team to Roanoke Island, North Carolina. Sir Walter Raleigh attempted to start his Virginia Colony on this protected island in the Outer Banks more than two decades before Jamestown became America’s first permanent settlement. The area has been the subject of much research and the Lost Colony is now a national historic site, but the Time Team America scientists are there on a specific mission.

The team, as explained by host and team sketch artist Colin Campbell, is there to discover the colony’s dwellings, which have remained elusive in previous archeological digs. Upon arriving, the team meets with local historians and archeologists who introduce them to past findings. The introduction of the local contingent is a smart move for the show because it reveals the true nature of the disciplines of science and history that are involved in these discoveries – that they are painstaking and time consuming. The locals explain what is known: there is still much to learn about the site’s most prominent feature, the earthen Fort Raleigh; a “science building” was a major find in a 1991 dig; and it’s important to seek post holes dug to anchor the dwellings in the sandy soil. Apparently the 16th century explorers had the foresight to study the area scientifically and employ an artist to render findings. The surviving paintings are an important tool for the present-day researchers.

By the time the project gets started quite a crowd has gathered. There’s the usual hero-worshipping, “Will you sign my trowel?” and the introduction of high-tech gear for a mission that’s on a timetable. Ground penetrating radar outputs a series of cryptic views which Time Team America’s experts interpret for clues. To save time a large motorized shovel peels back the topsoil at a suspected site. Now it becomes obvious why there are so many people hanging around. It’s time to pick through the area on hands and knees looking for the small clues that make archeology the patience-trying art it is. But this is the way artifacts will be found to help solve the questions of history.

For those who have never seen an archeological dig on television, Time Team America gives a credible presentation of the field work necessary for the science to achieve results. But the show doesn’t ignore the background and auxiliary work needed in order to have digs yield telling shards of history. There is no question the program includes the necessary elements to make a TV series tick – a group of regular characters with varied roles and personalities, a slick fast pace and a little bit of drama. But these elements balance with the reality of science and history to make Time Team America a source of fascinating knowledge as well as entertaining television.

Tell A Friend:

2 Comments »