Archaearium

More than 20 years of archaeological excavations have re-shaped understanding of life in James Fort, how the first English settlers fashioned a new American society in a foreign land, and their relationships with the Virginia Indians. The Nathalie P. & Alan M. Voorhees Archaearium, Historic Jamestowne’s award-winning archaeology museum, brings to life the stories of the first settlers and the struggles they endured through the objects they left behind.

The Archaearium (pronounced “Ark-ee-air-ee-um”) exhibits, focusing on the 1607-1624 Virginia Company period at Jamestown, present some of the most important examples of the material culture of early English America in the nation. The spectacular finds of the Jamestown Rediscovery project on display include arms and armor, tools, coins, trade goods, personal items, religious objects, and food remains. Some of the highlights include a writing slate covered with words and pictures from 400 years ago, a series of locally-made tobacco pipes impressed with names of the some of the most influential men in England in the early 17th century, and the largest collection of Colonial period American Indian artifacts in Virginia.