Experiments in which recently excavated artifacts were soaked for at least four hours in 40 g/liter aqueous solutions of CalgonTM (sodium [hexa]metaphosphate), then rinsed off in a colander under tap water, show this method to be 1.5 to 6.4 times more thorough than traditional scrubbing while taking only two-thirds the time. This method, particularly effective in cleaning large batches of small or intricately surfaced objects, is a practical cost-saving procedure in both public and private-sector research.