The UC Davis Department of Anthropology invites the public to learn how to throw spears, dig for artifacts and make arrowheads in celebration of National Archaeology Month.

The department is hosting a number of events throughout May, including a weekly speaker series about ongoing archaeology projects and an open house for children and adults alike.

The open house will be held 10 a.m-1 p.m. on Saturday, May 7, on the lawn in front of Young Hall (A Street side) and in rooms on the second and third floors of the south wing of Young Hall. The event is free and will have activities suited to people of all ages.

Guests will be able to try their hand at throwing a spear using an atlatl (a barbed spear-thrower), grind seeds using Native Californian grinding implements, learn the basics of flint knapping (the art of stone-tool manufacturing), watch native basket making techniques and measure their own cranial capacity.

Children will have the opportunity to dig for artifacts in a mock excavation. A slide show of recent field work from Western North America, Greenland and China will be shown every 15 minutes. Archaeologists will be available to answer questions and demonstrate archaeological investigation techniques.

In addition to the open house, four UC Davis field projects will be highlighted in weekly talks by faculty and graduate students who are involved in research throughout the world. The one-hour presentations, to be given at noon every Friday in May in 302 Young Hall, have been created expressly for people with little or no background in archaeology.

• May 6: Graduate students Shannon Tushingham and Clint Cole will talk about their projects in Redwood National Park in northwestern California and eastern Nevada.
• May 13: Graduate student Christopher Morgan will present his research in the Sierra Nevada.
• May 20: Anthropology professor Robert Bettinger and graduate student Loukas Barton will discuss their research on the origins of millet agriculture in China.
• May 27: Assistant anthropology professor Christyann Darwent, faculty affiliate John Darwent and graduate student Trine Johansen will talk about their work in north Greenland.

Young Hall is located at the corner of Second and A streets in Davis; street parking on the weekend is free.