Handbook for Basic Archaeological Specimen Processing

The Missouri Basin Project was established in 1946 as a large-scale archaeological and paleontological salvage operation. The laboratory of that project, located in Lincoln, Nebraska, processes large quantities of archaeological specimens each month. This laboratory is neither a museum nor a permanent repository for specimens. It is a research laboratory in which specimens brought in from the field are cleaned, prepared, cataloged and repaired preparatory to technical analysis and preparation of interpretive reports. After the specimens are processed and analyzed, and the reports are completed, they are temporarily stored here until they are transferred to the National Museum or other permanent repository.
This handbook is designated to outline procedures for processing specimens brought into this laboratory. It is based upon more than a dozen years of experience with these specimens and is intended as a guide for the processing of a maximum quantity of items within a minimum of time. It is specifically intended to provide the processors in this laboratory with a written guide to their duties and with written instructions as to how to perform each of the many specialized tasks that arise in processing these specimens.

密苏里河流域项目（Missouri Basin Project）于1946年设立，作为一项大型考古与古生物抢救性作业项目。该项目设于内布拉斯加州林肯市的实验室，每月需处理大量考古标本。该实验室既非博物馆，亦非标本永久馆藏机构，而是一所科研实验室：野外采集的标本在此完成清洗、整理、编目与修复，为后续技术分析及阐释性报告的撰写做好前置准备。待标本完成处理与分析、相关报告撰写完毕后，这些标本将在此临时存放，直至被移交至国家博物馆或其他永久馆藏机构。
本手册旨在概述送入本实验室的标本处理流程。本手册基于十余年的标本处理实践经验编写，旨在为在最短时间内完成最大批量的标本处理工作提供实操指导。其核心目标是为实验室的标本处理人员提供书面的岗位职责指引，以及针对标本处理过程中各类专项任务的标准化操作说明。