updated archaeloglklg notes
2 - History of Archeology
Nabonidus is considered the first archeologist
Last king of the neo Babylonian empire 538 BC
First person to have dated told things on a larger scale
Until the 18th century, scholars were only concerned with the past as depicted by the christian bible, man only existed ~6000 ya
The discovery of stone tools found with extinct mammals changed some opinions of scholars
The tools were dated with biblical reasonings and middle eastern histories and the timelines did not add up with the biblical retelling
By 1859 the antiquity of humans was accepted
Darwin published The Origin of Species and it popularized the idea of evolution
Early archeology was developed primarily in Britain
British Archeology
Two branches - Geologic time and long-term evolution and classical archeology, mostly dedicated to ancient Rome and Greece
American Archeology
Some places had massive complexes, others had smaller, “more primitive” structures. Theory was that the larger structures came from immigrants from Israel, Egypt, or even Atlantis
This was based on a racist assumption that the native americans of the area could not be capable of such advancement
Eventually they discovered that there are living descendants of these structures and they were used to date and give insight about these structures and societies
New World archeology
Anthropological archeology
Aims to understand past human cultures and relate it to modern day
Influential Figures
Giovanni Battista Belzoni (1778-1823)
One of the earliest antiquarians (one who studies antiquities/objects, not the cultures or people associated with them)
Born in Italy, got a hydraulics degree but was a strong man in a travelling circus where he met an egyptian leader to do hydraulics, but he got fired
Eventually got hired at the british museum to collect/loot antiquities for the museum
Jens Jacobs Amussen Worsaae (1821-1885)
First professional archeologist
Alfred Vincent Kidder
Founder of anthropological archaeology
Scientific meticulous study
Excavations at Pico
Came up with a relative chronology of south american societies
Gerturde Caton-Thompson (1888-1985)
Interdisciplinary work, did a lot of studies that she used to archaeology
Worked a lot in at Egyptian settlement, first to excavate that kind of site
Involved in the Great Zimbabwe site in South Africa
Site was used to justify colonizations, Gertrude dated a lot of things within the site that disproved biblical significance
Antiquarians (late 1700s-early 1800s) —> Professional Scientific Archaeology (Mid 1900s)
Antiquarians usually supplied personal collections, archeology was for public, looting and treasure hunting
Antiquarians just cared about the objects themselves, not their historical significance
More formal training in modern day archaeology
Professional archaeology emphasizes culture history
Explaining changes in artifacts through time by identifying changes in cultures or ideas
Professional Archaeology specializes in one geographic area rather than all over
H. Marie Wormington (1914-1994)
Second woman to be admitted into Harvard Archaeology dept.
Specialized in paleo-indian archaeology
Wrote Ancient Man in North America, constantly came out with new editions as scientific theories and methods evolved
Written to be accessible to general public
Lewis R Binford (1931-2011)
Started thinking about more complex questions about our species as a whole rather than site-specific
Advocated for modern technology and quantitative techniques in archaeology, said that using scientific methods in archaeology is just as important as other scientific fields
Resulted in the New Archaeology in the ‘60s
Focused on understanding the past and the underlying cultural processes and the use of the scientific method (processual archaeology)
Wanted archaeology to be less interpretive and more scientific
Archaeology today
Significantly more diverse, more specializations and jobs
Common employment includes academic, museum, government, and cultural resource management (CMR)
2.1 - Science and Archaeology
Archaeology is considered one of the branches of Anthropology in the U.S.
Anthropology - “The study of all aspects of human kind, extant and extinct”, holistic
4 subdivisions - linguistics, biological, cultural, archeological
Archaeology uses all of the other subdivisions to some degree
Ethnographic Archaeology
Linguistics can help determine migration patterns and which groups are related/come from the same ancestors
Biological archaeology can be used to determine evolutionary relationships and
All use a holistic and comparative approach
What is Culture?
“That complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, laws, customs, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society.” -Sir Edward Burnett Tylor (1871)
Integrated belief system that governs a person’s behavior
Culture is LEARNED and can change
Culture is shared and symbolic
3.1 - Archaeological Survey, Pt 1 - Discovering Sites
Part of Field Work in Archaeology
Archaeological Survey is used to…
Discover sites
Study sites
Non-destructive
What is a Site?
“Concentration” of material evidence about the human past
“Concentration” has no real definition, it depends on research questions, the landscape, the nature of the materials, etc. Contextual and subjective.
Contained and distinguishable, often not that neat
Accumulation of material through time, often disturbed by natural processes or human interferences
Different agencies have different definitions of sites for the sake of uniformity
Non-site Archaeology
“Archaeological patterns manifested on a scale of kilometers of hectares rather than patterns on a specific site”
Groups all materials from a geographical area rather than single site
State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) or Reservation Historic Preservation Office (RHPO)
Keeps record of all archaeological sites of respective state or reservation
Goes into a catalog with Smithsonian number
State Number Alphabetically, County abbv., # of site found (10AD0001 for first ever ada county site in Idaho)
Discovering sites
No “typical” site
Pedestrian Survey
“Boots on the ground”, walking around finding sites
Most common survey practice
Cheap, easy, thorough
Systematically or non-systematically
Non-systematic means a couple things:
“Gumshoe Survey” - walking around and seeing what’s there. Usually accessible to the everyday joe and is actively investigated
Accidental discovery through something like natural disasters
Some sites are obvious or well known, like a huge pyramid
Systematic:
Accurate picture of archaeology across a landscape
Unbiased and objective
Steps involve:
1. Defining survey area
2. Decide on Sampling Strategy (sample from grid section, transects (straight line), combined, etc.
3. Decide on Survey Method (collection vs. non-collection, surface only vs. shovel tests)
Aerial/satellite survey
Usually done before pedestrian survey
Produces aerial images of an area
Satellite photography
Modeling (LiDAR)
Laser scanning, creates a sort of 3D model of an area and can detect different layers (YOU CAN SEE THROUGH TREES)
Not as precise, can be expensive
Generally accompanied by pedestrian survey for most precision
3.2 - Archaeological Survey, Pt 2 - Studying Sites
Why use survey to study?
Inform where to dig and if it’s even worth it
Non-destructive
(Sometimes) cheaper and/or faster
Enhances what we can see
What are the disadvantages
Sometimes more expensive, depending on the method
May not work in all contexts
Limited by technique, might not be able to see everything
Methods
Surface Study
Pedestrian, aerial/satellite
Usually first step in investigation
Looking at stuff on the surface
Pros:
Generally doesn’t use fancy equipment, simpler
Reveals extent and layout of a site and assesses damage and disturbance
Drawbacks/Limitations:
Materials need to be on the surface
Doesn’t necessarily reveal what is beneath the surface
Subsurface Study
Invasive:
Shovel Testing
Low tech, time consuming, very destructive
Probing/Auger
Metal rods pushed into the soil, can feel changes in the soil or materials under the surface
Augers are like probes that take soil samples (like those golf grass videos)
Periscopes:
Using an auger to make a hole and lowering a camera into the hole
Remote:
“Use of some form of electromagnetic energy to detect and measure characteristics of an archaeological target”
Raw electricity, light, heat, or radio waves
Methods:
Seismic/Acoustic
Involve sending seismic or sound waves at the ground, they bounce back to a machine that translates them into images
Good for finding caves
Mostly used underwater to find and map underwater remains
Geochemical
Taking soil samples from top soil and measuring things like phosphates that can measure activities in sites
Can find where fires were lit or animals were keps
X-ray fluorescence XRF can give detailed chemical comp. of soil
Electromagnetic
Ground-penetrating radar sends radio waves to bounce back into sensor
Locates changes in soil and disturbances in soil
Longer it takes for the waves to hit the sensor = deeper subsurface area
Gives a 3D map of what is underground
Limited to ~30 meters underground
Doesn’t do well with wet soil or clay-heavy soil
Electrical
Soil Resistivity
Wet soil more easily conducts energy, less resistivity
Put electrodes into the ground, resistivity shoots electricity into the ground and the meter translates the resistivity into an image
Disturbed sediments retain more moisture than compacted or undisturbed soil
Can be used in areas where magnetic methods can’t be used
Doesn’t go deeper than GPR
Magnetic
Using a device that measures magnetic field, takes magnetic data and creates a chart that highlights magnetic anomalies in the soil
Can’t be used in urban areas or clay-heavy soil but is useful to find clay artifacts
Good at finding pits and ditches due to less compacted soil
Different features have different magnetic signatures
These methods are not good for large areas
More commonly used to study sites once they have been found
Likely won’t replace excavation but answers some questions more efficiently
GIS:
“Computer program for storing, retrieving, analyzing, and displaying cartographic data”
Displays spacial data visually
Allows for statistical spacial analysis faster and at a larger scale
“Do all of these sites cluster in certain areas?”
“What are the highest/lowest resistance paths between sites?”
Landscape Archaeology
“The study of ancient human modification of the environment”
How people interacted with the environment, how they used it and modified it
Chacoan Roads
Thermal Infrared Multispectral Scanner (TIMS) used to determine the site
Measures infrared thermal radiation given off by the ground
Could detect buried road systems due to compact nature of the ground
TLDR - The roads were abnormally straight and didn’t necessarily follow the lowest resistance paths
Over 250,000 square kilos of road despite Chacao people not having wheeled transportation
One theory is that these roads facilitated movement of food or other goods
Another (more supported) theory is that these roads were ceremonial.
There seemed to be significance to the cardinal directions, similar to other societies at that time
Because of the somewhat difficult and strange composition of the roads as shown by GIS, it is generally doubtful that the roads were economically centered.
They could have been used ceremoniously or possibly to integrate foreigners to the landscape and culture of the Chacoa
Ultimately we won't ever know for sure, but landscape archaeology helps us understand and make inferences about how societies lived
4.1 - Archaeological Excavation and Doing Fieldwork
Why excavate?
Checking accuracy of surface surveys
Gives more detail
Allows for dating and other analyses (sourcing, pollen analysis, useware, etc.)
Excavations are systematic and detailed
Context is EVERYTHING!
Excavating a site destroys it, so you must be careful and meticulous
Usually one doesn’t excavate the entire site, just samples
How do archaeologists excavate
Step 1 - Test excavation
“Small, initial excavation to determine sites potential for answering a research question”
See if a site is present, see if site can be used to answer questions
Determining excavation strategy
Finding size and layout and depth of site
See materials and preservation
Stratigraphy (strata, stratum)
Looking for layers or uniformity in the dirt
How are the layers presented?
Keeps track of vertical context (vertical control)
Lower = older, higher = younger (law of superposition)
Natural Levels
Vertical subdivision of excavation square that is based on natural breaks in the sediments
Called “natural” because they are already there
Formed by natural AND/OR cultural processes
Arbitrary Levels
Designate a thickness (standardly 10 cm levels)
If there is no discernible pattern in soil or if the layers are really thick
If present, always excavate by natural level
Each stratum represents a specific time period
Materials from respective time periods should be studied separately
Preservation
What materials are preserved depends on the materials themselves and their conditions at the site
Inorganic materials preserve pretty well in most conditions
Organic materials only preserve in certain conditions - cold, dry, anaerobic (no oxygen)
Fort Rock Cave, OR
Sagebrush sandals
Found dozens of pairs buried near the back of the cave, varying in sizes, some new, some worn
No moisture in the cave, excavated about ~9000 years later and the sandals were very well preserved
Preservation plays a role on how we excavate
Test excavation Strategies
Shovel test pits (STP’s)
Trenches, usually 20-50m long)
Usually only done on really large sites, pretty destructive
Usually done in salvage archaeology
Units
Excavating a square (usually 1x1 m)
Excavating just like you would in the greater site
Step 2 - Set up a grid
Keeps horizontal control
Preserves as much contextual information as possible
Usually 1x1 m units, 1 unit at a time
Square makes it easy to record artifact location within the unit
Step 3 - Establish Datum point
Ref. point for entire site
“The zero point to keep control over locations of artifacts, features, and so on”
Something like a big nail, just used as a marker
Leaves the point there
Measure things from the datum point below
Ground surface varies, datum point is used to standardize
Excavation
First measure the surface elevation relative to the datum
Excavate in levels, whether natural or arbitrary
Make sure to keep the walls straight
Take data measurements at beginning and end of level
Sketch out a plan map
Keep materials from each level together
Point Provenience (location) artifacts
Instead of removing artifact/feature with layer, if found in place, record precise location and leave it
X, Y, Z measurements of artifact
Total Stations
Used to record provenience
One person has a prism, one has another pole thing idk
Uses a beam of light to determine the provenience
Can have millimeter accuracy
Works from pretty far away
When do you stop?
Ideally you dig until you can’t anymore (bedrock),
or until there are no more artifacts (sterile soil)
Sometimes you have to stop before those for safety reasons
Take a picture with site number, name, initials, date, etc. and then you draw it out
What happens after you dig?
1. Artifact/ecofact recovery
Screening
Dump excavated materials onto a mesh screen, dirt falls out
Types:
Shaker screen - stands up on hinges, rocks back and forth manually
Box screens - small and portable
Big screen - hooks up to a motor and shakes automatically
Often times archaeologists make their own so it varies a lot
⅛” mesh is the most common
Water screening
Recovers small artifacts
Used with high clay content and wet soil
Fast and efficient
Portable
Easy
Limitations
Mesh size - depends on research question, materials, and time
Floatation
Used to collect small light objects (charcoal, plants, small animal bones/bone fragments that would slip through a screen)
Process:
Take dirt and put it into water
Dirt sinks (heavy fractions), the stuff you want floats (light fractions).
Common devices:
Floatation machine - uses overflow to catch materials
Buckets - put soil in bucket, agitate, strain through cloth or fine mesh
Benefits:
Can be cheap
Simple
Drawbacks:
Typically just sorts through samples rather than all of the sites soil (would take too long)
Bulk Matrix processing
Hand sorting of processed bulk soil samples for minute artifacts and ecofacts
Deflocculation
Removal of clay
Pollen analysis
Takes soil samples and analyzes them for pollen grains under a microscope
Bagged and labeled separately
2. Cataloging
Details vary by organization/whoever is in charge
Everything gets labeled
Provenience gets labeled separately
Can be separated by unit, level, and/or type
After labeling, artifacts and info goes back to the lab
All of the info is entered into a database
The key is duplication
Data is duplicated so no contextual information is lost
3. Analysis
Sent to a specialist to analyze
Salvage archaeologists sometimes skip this step due to lack of time or money
4. Curation
Museums, universities, archaeological repositories
Generally they are running out of room
Some places have poor conservation conditions, some are really really picky about what they accept
We curate for the future
Curation is important for future archaeologists to study with new questions or better materials