One of the most amazing things about the site of El Hibeh is the sheer amount of ancient material visible on the surface.  The hot, dry climate of the desert in this region has preserved even the most fragile objects.  Surveyors must get used to the sound of pottery sherds crunching beneath their feet as they cross the tell.  As the picture above shows, it's simply unavoidable.  For archaeologists such exceptional preservation is a blessing and a curse.  On the one hand, nearly all traces of earlier activity at the site are preserved.  On the other hand, collecting, sorting, cataloguing, and storing all this material is a nearly impossible task.  For the time being though, it's a lot of fun to walk the tell with your nose to the ground to see what remains to be found.  Want to try your hand at being a survey archaeologist?  Click on the links below and try to find the objects somewhere in the picture that appears.  The objects get harder to find as you go.  Good luck!