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Damian Renteria, from the L.A. County Parks and Recreation Program, checks out bones on display a

Intellects were stirred and mouths watered Thursday night at an archaeology open house in the Fowler Museum on campus. Students, faculty and the general public got the chance to see archaeology in action and listen to a lecture on the origins and history of chocolate.

Friends of Archaeology, a support group for graduate students interested in archaeology, sponsored the event which entailed a non-guided tour through the Cotsen Institute, allowing students to ask questions and observe the work of archaeologists. The open house ended with a lecture by California State University, Dominguez Hills Professor Janine Gasco, titled “Chocolate: Origins & History of Cacao Cultivation in Mesoamerica.”

UCLA does not offer an undergraduate major in archaeology. Instead, students interested in the field are encouraged to enter majors such as anthropology or classical civilization. The Cotsen Institute is a resource available for all students interested in the field of archaeology.

Helle Girey, archaeology program director, said the Cotsen Institute is a research unit that brings archaeologists from various departments on campus. Students have the opportunity to get involved with a variety of projects that faculty members are working on.

Additionally, the institute also maintains an interdepartmental graduate program that often sends graduate students on archaeological digs to exotic places such as Egypt, Iceland, Greece and Mongolia, Girey said.

She said the open house was meant to “bring awareness to the field of archaeology and to see what actually goes on here.”

On Thursday night people milled through a labyrinth of rooms and laboratories, where archaeologists fielded questions and explained the significance of a variety of artifacts.

At the Mediterranean laboratory, Ernestine S. Elster, a research associate, told students about a prehistoric dig in North Eastern Greece that she participated in. The dig involved the excavation of a mound dating from about 5500 B.C. – 2200 B.C. Archaeologists were able to identify that the natives of that region domesticated grapes and used spiny oysters as currency, Elster said.

The Ceramics Study Group, a program associated with the Cotsen Institute, sponsored an interactive workshop that allowed students to see how ancient people made pottery.

Marilyn Beaudry-Corbett, a research associate and member of the Ceramics Study Group, said “pottery is very interesting and important to the archaeological record. It establishes chronology, among other things.”

Beaudry-Corbett also described the re-use of different clay sources available. A viable clay source was actually found in the UCLA botanical gardens and later used to make a small pot, Beaudry-Corbett said.

Naomi Shiraiwa, a fourth-year psychology student, was present at the event and enjoyed looking at the different artifacts. Shiraiwa said it brought “the past to life” and that she felt like she was rediscovering the past.

Students and the public got a taste of how archaeology functions in the modern world with a concluding lecture on chocolate, by Gasco.

The lecture gave an overview of what archaeologists know about cacao, ancient cacao growers, and how the industry has changed over the years.

Gasco told the audience that cacao was very important to the native people of Mesoamerica. It had a sacred purpose and was used for divination, the art of predicting the future, and also as a form of currency.

Due to deforestation and economic problems, Gasco said native cacao farmers are having a difficult time selling chocolate in the international market. As a result, archaeologists such as Gasco are hoping to connect farmers with the international markets.

The event included a sample of the lecture’s subject: free Hershey’s Kisses for everyone who attended.