archeology

Archaeology

The study of the human past through material remains.

Prehistoric Archaeology

Archaeology before written records.

Historical Archaeology

Archaeology using artifacts and written records.

CRM

Archaeology that protects sites from construction.

Pseudoarchaeology

Claims about the past that lack scientific evidence.

Thunderstones

Tools once thought to be fossilized lightning.

Antiquarianism

Early, unsystematic artifact collecting.

Steno’s Principles

Rules for understanding layers and their ages.

Three Age System

Stone, Bronze, and Iron Ages.

Catastrophism

Earth changed through major disasters.

Uniformitarianism

Processes today also happened in the past.

Archaeological Record

Evidence left by past people.

Artifact

Portable object made or changed by humans.

Ecofact

Natural material found at a site.

Feature

Non-portable evidence of human activity.

Site

Place where archaeological remains are found.

Context

An object's relationship to its surroundings.

Matrix

Soil surrounding an object.

Provenience

Exact location of an object.

Association

Objects found in relation to each other.

Assemblage

Group of artifacts found together.

Activity Area

Place where a specific activity happened.

Region

Physical area.

Landscape

Area shaped by human use and meaning.

Antiquities Act

Protects artifacts on federal land.

NHPA

Law protecting historic places.

SHPO/THPO

State/tribal historic preservation offices.

National Register

List of important historic places.

Section 106

Requires review of effects on historic sites.

ACHP

Advises the government on historic preservation.

ARPA

Protects archaeological resources on federal/tribal land.

NAGPRA

Protects Native American remains and cultural items.

Scientific Method

Question → hypothesis → test → evidence.

Theory

Well-supported explanation.

Hypothesis

Testable explanation.

Processualism

Archaeology focused on science and environment.

Post-Processualism

Archaeology focused on people, ideas, and meaning.

Hyperdiffusionism

Ideas spread from one main culture.

Archaeological Survey

Searching for archaeological sites.

Ground Reconnaissance

Searching from the ground.

Aerial Reconnaissance

Searching from the air.

Pedestrian Survey

Walking to find surface artifacts.

Shovel Test Pits

Small holes used to find buried remains.

Random Sampling

Samples chosen randomly.

Stratified Random

Random samples from different sections.

Systematic Sampling

Samples taken at regular intervals.

Transect

Line used for systematic sampling.

Crop Marks

Plant changes showing buried features.

LiDAR

Lasers used to see the ground through vegetation.

GPR

Radar used to find things underground.

Site Testing

Determines what is at a site and if more study is needed.

Excavation

Carefully digging to find remains.

Vertical Excavation

Digs down through time layers.

Horizontal Excavation

Digs across an area to study activities.

Screening

Sifting dirt to find artifacts.

Phase 1 CRM

Find sites.

Phase 2 CRM

Test sites.

Phase 3 CRM

Fully excavate important sites.

James Ussher

Said Earth was created in 4004 BCE.

Nicolas Steno

Developed principles of stratigraphy.

Thomas Jefferson

Early American archaeologist.

C. J. Thomsen

Created the Three Age System.

Boucher de Perthes

Connected stone tools with ancient animals.

Charles Lyell

Popularized uniformitarianism.

Lewis Henry Morgan

Proposed stages of human development.

Heinrich Schliemann

Excavated Troy and Mycenae.

Pitt-Rivers

Promoted systematic archaeology.

Franz Boas

Promoted cultural relativism.

Vere Gordon Childe

Coined 'Neolithic Revolution'.

Dorothy Garrod

First female Cambridge archaeology professor.

Lewis Binford

Father of processualism.

Ian Hodder

Father of post-processualism.

Piltdown Man

Fake human fossils that fooled scientists.

Science vs. Pseudoscience

Science uses evidence and testing; pseudoscience does not.

National Register Criteria

Events, people, design, or research potential.

Slack Farm

Native American site badly damaged by looters.

Kennewick Man

Ancient remains involved in a dispute over Native American ownership.

Contour Map

Shows elevation and artifact patterns.