Authorship and Acknowledgements

The Small Finds portion of the Diagnostic Artifacts in Maryland website is a work in progress, with new artifact categories and new collections being added as time permits. Specific sections may have different authors, so please see “How to Cite the Website” for up-to-date authorship information.

The sections of the website on leather ornaments, bridle bosses, spurs, bodkins, smoker’s companions, linked buttons, and religious artifacts were written and compiled by Sara Rivers Cofield, Curator of Federal Collections at the Maryland Archaeological Conservation Laboratory (MAC Lab). Conversion to web format was completed by Sharon Raftery, MAC Lab Administrative Assistant. This website is also made possible by MAC Lab staff members Patricia Samford, Ed Chaney, Rebecca Morehouse, Erin Wingfield, Alex Glass, and Annette Cook who provide editorial assistance and aid in locating artifacts.

Special thanks for help with background research is extended to several current and former members of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation staff: Richard Nicoll, James Kladder, Jay Howlett, Mark Hutter, Al Saguto, Neal Hurst, Linda Baumgarten, and Janine Skerry. The willingness of these individuals to look at the artifacts and offer insight into how they might (or might not) have fit their respective areas of expertise was invaluable. The author also thanks Mary C. Beaudry, author of Findings: The Material Culture of Needlework and Sewing (Yale University Press, 2006), who first brought bodkins to the author’s attention. Barbara E. Mattick graciously read and commented on the bone toothbrush essay and offered suggestions for its improvement.

Finally, we extend our appreciation to our partner institutions, The Anne Arundel County Lost Towns Project, The Maryland-National Capital Park & Planning Commission, Prince George’s County Archaeology Lab, and The Archaeological Society of Delaware. These organizations have all offered their collections for inclusion on the Diagnostic Artifacts in Maryland website, helping us to build a larger body of data and therefore a more valuable product.