Awesome Artefacts
Welcome to Awesome Artefacts!
An artefact is an object made by humans which is portable and can be moved to another location. An artefact can be stored in a museum.
Examples of artefacts we use today include:

Crockery such as plates, cups, teapots, jugs

Cutlery such as knives, forks and spoons

Jewellery

Mobile phones
Monument or Artefact?

House
Car
One of the two images above, Car or House, is NOT an artefact, Can you guess which one?
Archaeologists find out about people and places from long ago by looking at the artefacts they have left behind them.
Questions they ask about the artefact are
A What is it?
B Who made it?
C What was it made from?
D When would it have been used?
E What was it used for?
Can you answer the same questions about this artefact?

What happens to archaeological artefacts after they have been discovered?
- Cleaned
- Described accurately
- Measured and weighed
- Photographed and drawn
- Given a reference number
- Studied to see if similar ones exist elsewhere
- Sometimes they are conserved or restored
- Stored or put on display in a Museum
Famous Irish artefacts include
The Tara Brooch Image courtesy Bruce Arnold, Irish Art, 1977
The Book of Kells

Derrynaflan Chalice
Other important but less famous artefacts are

Fragment of a Bronze Age Pot
Medieval Wooden Spoons
Medieval Coins