What Is a Patiche? Ingalls Archaeological Supply Explained

A patiche is a type of handpick used in archaeology, and patiche.com is the domain of Ingalls Archaeological Supply, a maker of handpicks, walking picks, cane picks, and Viking mattocks designed specifically for archaeological use. The company has been producing these tools since 1985, and its handpicks — listed on the site as "Handpicks/Patiches" — come in four sizes based on hoe width.

Why the domain is patiche.com

The name reflects the tool the business is best known for. Rather than using a generic company domain, Ingalls Archaeological Supply registered the term archaeologists actually search for when looking for this kind of digging tool. If you arrived at the site by typing "patiche," you landed in the right place: the handpick and the patiche are the same product category here.

What the company makes

Ingalls Archaeological Supply describes all of its tools as professional-quality products built for archaeological work. The main categories are:

• Handpicks / Patiches — the flagship digging tool, sized by hoe width
• Walking Picks
• Cane Picks
• Viking Mattocks

The site notes that detailed specifications for the handpicks and mattocks live on their own product pages, so if you need exact dimensions or weight, that is where to look rather than the homepage.

Sizing: the four-size system

The one concrete specification given on the main page is that the tools come in four sizes based on the hoe width. That means the size number you choose refers to how wide the hoe end of the tool is, not the overall length. If you are ordering for a specific soil type or dig condition, start by deciding the hoe width you need, then match it to the corresponding size.

Practical notes before you buy

• Gifts: The site explicitly markets handpicks and Viking mattocks as gifts "any time of year," so single-tool purchases are a normal use case, not just bulk orders for field schools.
• Books: The company also sells two books by Bill Ingalls — Snakes, Rain and The Tet Offensive, a firsthand Vietnam War account with the author's own photographs, and Addicted to Love, a fantasy fiction love story. These are separate from the tool line.
• Pricing and ordering: The homepage does not list prices or payment details. Check the individual product pages for current pricing and purchasing options.

Who this is for

If you are an archaeologist, a field school student, or someone buying for one, Ingalls Archaeological Supply is a specialist option rather than a general hardware supplier — the tools are purpose-built for excavation rather than adapted from landscaping equipment. The patiche/handpick is the entry point to the catalog, and the four hoe-width sizes are the main decision you need to make.