AN invitation has been made to all budding archaeologists to sample the science at its cutting edge on Orkney.

An open day for anyone thinking of becoming an archaeologist is to be held by the University of the Highlands and Islands Archaeology Institute at Orkney College UHI in Kirkwall.

The event is set for Wednesday March 28 and is open to anyone who is considering studying archaeology at undergraduate or post-graduate level in addition to anyone who is considering one of the institute’s short courses

The organisers say those taking part in the open day will be able to experience “hands on” archaeology, and be able to talk to staff and students and discover what the institute has to offer.

There will also be opportunity to take part in workshops on aspects of practical archaeology, including using microscopes to analyse pollen and charcoal unearthed at the Ness of Brodgar, one of the important sites in the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site.

There will also be the chance to examine finds from The Cairns excavation which has been exciting archaeologists for years.

Exploring 4000-year-old ceramics and examining the whale bones unearthed at Cata Sands will also be available and participants will also be able to experiment in creating a 3D image from a laser scanner.

Institute marketing officer Sean Page, said: “Generally when you go to an open day at a college you get shown round the place but what we are doing is to give people the chance to do an actual bit of archaeology.

“For instance, we will have finds from the Cairns and the Ness of Brodgar and people will be able to handle them.”