By Cain Madden

The Natchez Democrat

NATCHEZ — The only thing better than talking about archaeology is being in the field excavating, said Dennis Jones, an organizer with the Louisiana Archaeology Society.

The former discussion was mostly on the agenda for this weekend as the Mississippi Archaeological Association and the Louisiana Archaeological Society met in a rare joint conference in Natchez. Some of the talk revolved around archaeologist Jack Shaffer who excavated the last Natchez Indian fort site in Louisiana, where the last stand was made against the French in 1731.

Less than 1 percent of those items found were on display at the Natchez Historic Foundation’s building downtown Friday evening. From there, they will be donated to the State of Louisiana, which will permanently lease them to the Grand Village of the Natchez Indians.

“That never happens,” Shaffer said. “When they asked me about donating, I asked what they were going to do with it. When they said it would all go to the grand village, I said, ‘Why not?’

“Artifacts like this never end up back where they came from.”

Of course, no buildings exist at the dig site near Sicily Island, so Shaffer thought the grand village in Natchez would be the next best thing.

“I think it’s the proper thing to do,” he said. “I fell in love with Natchez being in the area and have a house here.

“Otherwise, these artifacts would just be sitting in my attic.”

One item in particular stands out to Shaffer — it’s a stone with the image of what appears to be a face on it.

“It was found near these crystals, which would have been in a temple,” Shaffer said. “It’s the damnedest thing. The last Great Sun was supposedly turned to stone.”

Robert Prospere of Natchez used to work with the Grand Village, and was excited to get a look at the artifacts.

“I love history,” he said. “Anytime you get to see some of it, it’s special. This is a neat part of local history, so it’s impressive to see it.”

Skip Newfries came up from Metairie to take in the whole event, but the battle at the fort in Sicily Island stood out in relation to the rest.

“Two of my ancestors survived this battle,” he said. “The husband, Pierre Lambremont died, but his wife (Marie Francoise Martin) and child somehow survived.

“I’m glad they did, otherwise I wouldn’t be here.”

The whole archaeology convention has been outstanding, though, Newfries said.

“I’m not a professional in the field, I’m just interested in the history,” Newfries said. “To hear about the details involved in the work is fantastic.”

Scott said the Mississippi Archaeological Association and LAS don’t always do their conferences together, but this year they thought it was fitting.

“The tricentennial of Natchez by the founding of Fort Rosalie is this year, and we thought that was important to commemorate,” he said. “This is also the 100th year of the National Park Service and the 40th year of the opening of the Grand Village as a state park.

“We thought all three events were worth celebrating.”

Approximately 250 people attended the conference.

“It’s great,” he said. “Everyone is very interested in the artifacts, and they are socializing.

“The whole weekend is going great.”

The exhibit will be called “They Equipped Themselves Like Warriors:” Natchez and French Conflict in La Louisiane.