About the CMC Archaeological Sites Office and Sites Database

The CMC (Canadian Museum of Civilization) Archaeological Sites Database is the product of a ministerial agreement between the territories and CMC. Archaeological Sites Regulations in effect in the territories stipulate that a permit must be obtained to undertake archaeological field research and that this research and any resulting artifact collections must be fully documented. The collections and all related documentation must be deposited and/or filed with designated agencies. The Sites Office, Canadian Museum of Civilization is the designated agency for maintaining the official registry of archaeological sites located in Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and, by special arrangement, Prince Edward Island. The Sites Office has been accepting site data for registration for nearly forty years. The inventory presently holds information on more than eighteen thousand archaeological sites spanning more than ten thousand years of human occupation including traces of Amerindian, Inuit, European and Canadian presence.

Core activities at the CMC Archaeological Sites Office include:

• Borden System administration with comprehensive map files and master Borden logs;
• development of classification and standards for archaeological data;
• compilation of geo-spatial data cross-referenced by cultural attribute data, history of research data, collections data and bibliographic data;
• development of database and mapping applications;
• liaise between CMC and territorial/provincial agencies regarding Borden attribution and permit requirements;
• dissemination of information.