Wesley Parrish

View CV 

Bio

I am a first year graduate student specializing in Archaeology, specifically I specialize in the study of archaeological ceramics. I am interested in testing the effectiveness of using a portable X-Ray Fluorescence (pXRF) in provenience and provenance studies of clays used in the manufacturing of archaeological ceramics.

During my undergraduate time at Western Carolina University (WCU) I worked as a work study lab assistant/research assistant in the Western Carolina Human Identification Laboratory (WCHIL) and the Tali Tsisqwayahi Archaeological Collections Facility (Archaeology Lab). During my time working in the archaeology lab I was given the opportunity to do an independent study research project on using a pXRF to deduce whether the Napier ceramic ware type was manufactured using the same or similar clay sources as the Connestee ceramic ware type found at the Cullowhee Valley School Site (31JK32). This project was presented at the 2022 Western Carolina University Research and Scholarship Conference (RASC). I have also had the opportunity to operate a Bartington Grad-01 601 Gradiometer/Magnetometer at a few different archaeological sites in Western North Carolina. Finally, during the summer before attending NC State I worked as a field assistant for the Western Carolina University Field School.

Area(s) of Expertise

Southeastern Archaeology, Geochemical Analysis of Archaeological Ceramics, Ceramic Analysis, Indigenous Rights, Mississippian Culture, Archaeological Ethics, North Carolina Archaeology, Cultural Resource Management