Anth 112 - Chpt 1+2

Intro to Anthropology and Methods of Studying the Past

what is Anthropology

the study of humankind

studies human culture and evolutionary aspects of human biology

4 subfields of Anthropology

1. Cultural Anthropology

2. Linguistics

3. Archaeology

4. Biological Anthropology

we focus on 3 and 4

Cultural Anthropology

study of contemporary or modern-day cultures, social groups

two fields of study within

1. ethnography

2. ethnology

Ethnography

an aspect of cultural anth

the detailed observation and recording of a culture, often through participant observation

Ethnology

an aspect of cultural anth

comparative study of culture

ex. compare marriage practices

Linguistic Anthropology

the study of language, including the historical development of language, the relationship between language groups and how language use and structure changes over time

Archaeology

• the study of the human past through the examination of its material remains

• things people have left behind, traces left on the landscape, building remains

• foods consumed, water drinking, walkways and paths - today we contribute to the archaeological data

Prehistoric Archaeology

focuses on the period before written records, most of what we will be studying

writing wasn’t used until 5000 years ago

Historical Archaeology

make interpretations based on the combination of material remains and documentary sources, combine writing and traces

Biological (Physical) Anthropology

the past and present biological aspects of humankind

biological perspective in the approach to the study of humans and the non-human primates, characteristics we share

looks at human evolution, interaction between biology and culture

• survival depends on our ability to use culture : agriculture, technology, fertility (birth control), medicine, gene therapy

• how culture has impacted human evolution, how it led to increase brain size

Culture

the invented, taught, and learned patterns of behavior of human groups

when we can see changes from our ancestors using it

culture is transmitted through learning and not by biological or genetic means

important developments in the discipline of Archaeology (3)

• understanding how ancient the Earth is

• knowing how ancient humankind is

• development of a theory of evolution

Antiquarian

someone who is interested in the past and digs up antiquities unscientifically

became popular, more like treasure hunts or looting

some of the earliest historic accounts of excavations were for religious reasons

• Thutmose IV (1412-1402 BC) excavated the sphinx at Giza, used to be covered in sand, thought that if he uncovered it he would become king

• Nabonidus in 556 BC excavated temple ruins very methodically, wanted to reconstruct to honor the gods

Christian Jurgenson Thomsen (1788-1865)

developed Three Age System : Iron Age, Bronze Age, Stone Age

his assistant tested the system - based on the layer of Earth found, relative dating, stone lowest and therefore oldest

one of the first to organize and systematically show artifacts, based on what they are made of, what things were made of were based on what time they were made and used

marks the beginning of people wanting to understand the past, what do they represent

how old the universe and Earth

today we understand that the universe is about 14 billion years old

Earth is about 4.5 billion years old

• this is a relatively new understanding

• cosmic calendar - the entire timescale represented by a monthly calendar, humans don’t enter until December 31st

Georges Cuvier (1769-1832)

French paleontologist

introduced Catastrophism : a quick series of catastrophic events accounted for changes in the Earth and the fossil record; to explain extinctions but not the gradual way we know now

still believing in the unchanging of species, no evolution

James Hutton (1726-1797)

a Scottish geologist; estimated the age of the Earth as a few thousand years old

introduced Uniformitarianism : theory stating that Earth’s features are the result of long-term processes that continue to operate in the present as they did in the past

• erosion, weathering

• these processes took many years and these rates can be measured

Charles Lyell (1797-1875)

founder of modern geology

built on ideas of uniformitarianism

• more accessible writer, examined more specific geological data, how long certain formations formed

• thought the Earth was millions of years old, we know its billions

• evolution study relied on

what is human antiquity

understanding that humans have been here for a long time

humans were not the first ones here on Earth, there were forms of humans that came before modern humans

• evidence of human remains found with extinct animals built up in the 1800s

• neanderthal skull found

• hand axes found below layers containing the bones of extinct animals, beneath woolly mammoth and saber tooth tigers

Jacques Boucher de Perthes (1788-1868)

discovered ancient stone tools with the bones of extinct animals

found together, indicated that clearly humanity had been here longer that the 6000 years religious scholars believed; controversial

Great Chain of Being, what did it indicate

• hierarchical system with all the species linked in chain

• each held a permanent place with no concept of extinction or evolution

• this way of thinking was an obstacle to the development of a theory of evolution

  • widespread belief in the unchanging nature of species

Jean Baptiste Lamarck

one of the first scientists to attempt to explain the evolutionary process

proposed the theory of inheritance of acquired characteristics

dynamic relationship between organisms and environment

Lamarck Theory - Inheritance of Acquired Characteristics

suggested that of the external environment changed, and animal’s activity patterns would change to accommodate the new circumstances

this would result in the eventual modification of body parts

some body parts would change based on how much and how it was used

• giraffes neck, grew based on eating habits

this does not make sense today, as we know about genes being passes, how you physically change yourself does not affect your children

Charles Darwin (1809-1882)

developed the theory of evolution by natural selection

was the first to document the mechanism through which evolution occurs, published his book in 1859

didn’t invent the theory of evolution, studied it and had a grasp of the concept

Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913)

independently arrived at the theory of evolution by natural selection

• spent his time on the Indonesian islands

• both him and Darwin presented this idea, both has books, however Darwin is more well-known

Natural Selection

refers to the genetic changes in the frequencies of certain traits in populations due to differential reproductive success between individuals

nature selects who has a better chance at survival to continue reproduction, the adaptive traits pass on

Evolution is gradual and continuous

Three Main Principles of Natural Selection

1. Variation - some are better at adapting than others, variation of traits

2. Heredity - genes from parents

3. Differential Reproductive Success - frequency of adaptive traits gradually increase over time

Examples of Natural Selection in action (3)

Peppered Moths : changes in coloration, based on camouflage, light and dark grey moths, which tree bark was most common would determine what color was most likely to survive, they blended in to the bark

Galapagos Finches : what Darwin studied, beak sizes based on what they have to eat, sizes of plant seeds based on drought

Bacteria : antibiotics won’t kill every bacteria, the surviving bacteria, now drug resistant, will reproduce

Fossil Locales

places where fossilized remains of once living organisms are found

Fossil

preserved remain of a plant or animal that have become mineralized over time

• silica or calcium carbonate replaces the organic material

• conditions have to be right for fossilization to occur, rare

• soft parts of organisms disappear, the hard parts preserve - bones, teeth

Trace Fossil

evidence preserved in rock that records the presence of an organism

impressions, footprints

ex. 3.6 million-year-old footprints in Tanzania, early upright walker prints, volcanic sediment hardened like concrete

Unaltered fossil

remains preserved without mineralization

• preservation of tissues, Siberia cave lion found as permafrost was melting, fur intact; baby mammoth found in Canada, skin preserved

• more of these discoveries being found today because of all the ice melting

• waterlogged (bog people), drying, freezing - consistent temp and environment

• incredibly rare

Archaeological Site

a place where evidence of past human activity is found

there are many kinds usually identified based on the type of activity that was carried out there - habitation site, kill site, processing site, burial sites

Material remains found at sites (3)

1. artifacts

2. features

3. ecofacts

Artifacts

portable objects manufactured or altered by a human or human ancestor

ex. pottery, bone tools, arrowheads

Features

non-portable items made by humans, or a combination of artifacts/ecofacts at a site, reflecting the location of human activity

ex. hearths, trash pits, building foundations

Ecofacts

organic items that reflects the human activity but are not manufactured by people

ex. burned seeds, butchered animal bones

Archaeological Legislation and Ethics

• you must attain the proper permits before you can do anything at a site

• there are laws in place and ethic codes that must be followed to protect sites and other heritage resources

• CRM - Cultural Resource Management - survey, investigate material, making sure that archeology material is undamaged

Site Survey

the process of discovering the location of archaeological sites, sometimes called site reconnaissance

going out and looking for site materials

Site Survey Methods (5)

1. Pedestrian

2. Shovel Testing

3. Remote Sensing Methods

4. Geophysical Survey Techniques - 3 types

5. Side Scan Sonar

Pedestrian Survey

walking back and forth in straight lines called transects while visually inspecting the ground surface looking for artifacts or surface irregularities

• looking for traces, artifacts, features (building impressions) mark the area (pin flags, gps position) mark any cultural artifacts found

• limitations : overlook (small, underground), human eye only, vegetation (debris)

Shovel Testing

involves digging small test pits to determine if there are sites below the surface

• combine pedestrian, get around the poor visibility

• small areas, pass though mesh/screen

• shovel, auger (more likely to go through material without seeing)

Remote Sensing Methods (2 types)

non-invasive methods of locating sites applied from a distance, overhead view

1. Ariel photography/satellite imaging

2. LIDAR - light detection and ranging - uses pulsed laser to map the location of archaeological sites; maps and measures subtle differences in elevation

   • can go through vegetation, rainforest

   • able to find crop terraces, discover larger civilizations, building remains covered, large scale features

Limitations : not physically at site, can’t see small things

Geophysical Survey Techniques (3)

non-invasive techniques that use specialized equipment to locate objects beneath the surface

no digging, excavation is destructive

1. Electrical resistivity - measures variation in the electrical resistance of materials, useful for identifying anomalies near the ground surface like hearths, filled excavations and stone walls; probes introduce the current and measure the voltage, recorded and mapped

2. Magnetometry - measures the relative magnetism of objects, especially useful for locating fired clay objects such as pottery, fire pits, and kilns, all sediments have a magnetic field, maps irregularities in the magnetic field

3. Ground penetrating radar - uses electromagnetic energy signals to detect subsurface anomalies, pulses are directed into the soil and these signals are reflected and detected by receivers, depth of buried objects can be determined by measuring the amount of time it takes for the signal to travel to the surface; good to find burial sites without disrupting them

Side Scan Sonar

used in underwater archaeology to detect objects on the sea floor

a sonar scan of the sea floor revealed one of the missing ships from the Franklin expedition

Excavation of Sites - datum

establish a datum before anything else

a fixed, permanent reference point that everything is measured relative to

Excavation of Sites - how to record

create a grid and carefully record the location of all materials encountered

most time consuming stage is artifact analysis and preparation of the site report

• its a non-renewable resource, excavation is destructive, so recording is very important

• how deep objects are found, might be from a different time period from other artifacts

• some leave artifacts on a pedestal to see how it interacts with other things found

• common to take soil samples

• photographed, mapped, taken to lab, what does it represent

• most time is spent in a lab, studying objects, get information out

• may focus on horizontal or vertical excavation

• sites may be come back to repeatedly

Stratigraphy

study of how different layers of sediments and soils, artifacts and fossils are laid down in successive deposits or strata

bands present in a wall profile, each band represents different occupation level, different time periods, changes in soil

The Law of Superposition

older layers at an archaeological site are generally deeper or lower than more recent layers

as people live in a settlement, debris will build up, sites get buried, look for disturbances (like and igneous intrusion) things that do not belong compared to the time layer is may be in

Spatial Context

pay attention to the clues and associations around an artifacts found

the context, where, depth, horizontal location is crucial to understanding how and why and artifact was used

what remains that could be found near an arrowhead, could have been used for hunting but if found with human remains it could have been a battle ground, or even placed in memory in a grave

Association

relating to the spatial relationships among archaeological artifacts, ecofacts, and features

objects found in proximity to each other are said to be in association

Primary vs Secondary Refuse

Primary - archaeological materials left at the place where they were used or produced

Secondary - archaeological materials removed from the place they were originally used or produced to a designated refuse area

ex. trash pit or garbage dump, midden

Cache

a collection of items of the same type stored in a hidden or inaccessible place

Midden

a dunghill or refuse heap

what is most likely to survive in an archaeological context

inorganic matter will remain much better than organic

ex. doll - all stuffing and clothing gone, but porcelain remains

biases in preservation - what to remember

have to remember that there are many materials and tools that are not present at a site, lots of clues are going to be missing to explain how they lived

site formation processes

environmental and cultural factors that affect how and where materials are deposited at an archaeological site

erosion, soil chemistry, temp, water level, bacteria all effect how material deteriorates

some places don’t even preserve bone well based on its soil acidity

taphonomy

how materials become part of the paleontological or archaeological record

study of how organisms decay and become fossilized or preserved in the paleontological record

• cracks in bone, where, type of break, what caused

to be considered - how much time people had, did they have time to take things, like Pompeii

Analysis of human and prehuman skeletons (4)

1. sex

2. age at death

3. geographic origin

4. pathology, diet, disease

Skeleton analysis - Sex

• angles of the pelvis - females have a larger angle, make room for the birth canal

• males have a more curved tailbone

• skulls - area of muscle attachment, male’s rougher

• brow line, shape of chin

• size of canine teeth

Skeleton Analysis - age at death

easier to determine if juvenile

• tooth eruption/development - what is present in the jaw

  • deciduous dentition - baby teeth

• epiphyses - the endcaps of the long bone

• diaphysis - the shaft of a long bone

  • these bones fuse together and grow with age

Skeleton Analysis - geographic origin (2)

1. isotopic analysis - strontium isotope analysis can reveal info about geographic origin and migration patterns

   • part of teeth enamel, these isotopes are unique based on area, food and water you consume

   • bones constantly evolve with growth, enamel will not change, will show where an individual was in early childhood

2. genetics - some DNA, certain haplotypes are linked to particular regions, able to study human migration

Skeleton Analysis - pathology, diet, disease

evidence of diseases and malnutrition can also leave marks on the skeleton

ex. enamel hypoplasia - horizontal bands that form in tooth enamel might be indication of childhood disease or malnutrition

calculus - hardened plaque, can study this composition and determine diet

Paleopathology : study of pathological conditions in ancient remains, includes the study of ancient disease, trauma, and dietary deficiency

Dating Methods - what does it do, what to consider

determine the age of artifacts and fossils 

consider - nature of site, how ancient, what type of material is it

Indirect vs Direct Dating

Indirect - age of fossil/artifact obtained by dating something directly associated with them, like dating the stratigraphic layers directly above and below the object

• can’t directly date stone arrowheads, so would date the animal bone the arrowhead was in

Direct - apply the dating techniques to the objects themselves

Relative vs Absolute Dating

Relative - creates a relative chronology

• places objects in a temporal sequence not directly linked to calendar dates

• older or younger than something else, not assigning age

• ex. stratigraphy, rock strata, law of superposition

Absolute - also called chronometric dating

• provides an actual age, often with a margin of error

• stated in calendar years

Radiometric dating methods and half-life 

techniques that measure the rate at which certain radioactive isotopes decay

Half-life - the time in which one half the amount of a radioactive isotope is converted chemically

• some isotopes have a really long half-life, can study very ancient material 

Examples of Absolute Dating Methods (4)

1. Potassium-Argon and Argon-Argon

2. Radiocarbon

3. Dendrochronology

4. Luminescence

Potassium-Argon and Argon-Argon Dating

based on radiometric decay

measures amount of argon-40 buildup in volcanic rock 

• volcanic eruption, argon is released into the atmosphere (argon level becomes zero) when rock solidifies the potassium decays into argon, ratio of potassium to argon can be used to study age 

• argon-argon dating studies the ratio or argon-39 to argon-40

radioactive potassium has a very long half-life of 1.25 billion years

these methods are useful for dating early hominin sites

Radiocarbon Dating; AMS

method for dating organic material up to 50,000 years old; after this time there is not enough carbon-14 left to be able to determine age

measures the decay of radioactive isotope of carbon, carbon-14, has a half-life of 5730 years

• most often used, can’t use for stone, glass, pottery (only organic material)

• all living organisms are taking in carbon-14 from the atmosphere, after an organism dies carbon no more carbon will be absorbed, carbon-14 present in organism will decay at a slow rate

AMS - Accelerator Mass Spectrometry : method of radiocarbon dating that allows much smaller samples to be dated

• few milligrams can be dates, rather than destroying samples you can use one thread, carbonized food residue

• this is a very expensive process

Dendrochronology

tree ring dating is used to determine the age of wood samples by examining annual growth rings

has been used to assess the accuracy of radiocarbon dating

• doesn’t have a margin of error , physically counting and comparing tree rings

• in the right climate a tree will add a ring, comparing rings from other trees (within the same area)

• ring size is determined by climate fluctuation

• scientists have made master keys of patterns in many areas

Luminescence Dating 

measures the amount of energy an object has accumulated during its existence 

scientists use laser light (optically stimulated luminescence) or heat (thermoluminescence) to release this energy as light

can determine the age of an object by measuring the amount of light that is emitted 

• accumulating radioactive decay from surrounding soil, when you know what the soil release rate is 

• ex. pottery - when pottery is fired, heated to an extreme temp and releases energy present, will accumulate new energy when places in site