Archaeology 1

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History pros and cons

Back 1

Pros: written records, precise dates, 1st person POV, insight to intangibles

Cons: dominion of rich, focus on "important" individuals, agendas, incomplete

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Archeology pros and cons

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Pros: stories of the ignored, longer time depth, "checks" history

Cons: intangibles are difficult, imprecise dates, incomplete

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What is archaeology?

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The study of the past through systematic recovery and analysis and remains

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Early attempts to date humanity and the age of the Earth

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Renaissance thinking "how long has humanity been here?"

Archbishop James Ussher (AD1581-1615) chronology building, desire to put things in order. Dated earth creation as October 22, 4004 BC

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Problems with Archbishop James Ussher's chronology

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Dinosaurs/artifacts associated with extinct animals

Geology (James Hutton, William Smith, Charles Lyell) and Uniformitarianism

Evolution by natural selection (Charles Darwin)

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Uniformitarianism

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the same gradual geological processes that we observe today were operating in the past

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Antiquarians

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Studied antiques for the sake of the objects, not to understand people or cultures

-Giovanni Battista Belzoni

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Alfred Vincent Kidder

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1885-1963

Born in Michigan, Harvard PhD, stratigraphy

study of things < study of people

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culture history aka the cultural-historical approach

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pre-1950's

archaeological paradigm focused on description, chronological/spatial ordering of data

viewed cultures as static, explained through diffusion of ideas or migration

overall descriptive, not explanatory

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threats to the archaeological heritage

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resources are finite

destruction of antiquities through development, agriculture, natural processes, collectors/looters/black market, wanton destruction, pseudo-archaeology

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four subfields of anthropology

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Archaeology

Cultural Anthropology

Biological Anthropology

Linguistic Anthropology

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Processualism

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1960's+

dissatisfaction for archaeology prior to 1950's

pushback against cultural history, benefitted from new science methods

Archaeology as history (old world) vs. Archaeology as anthropology (new world)

"anthropology or nothing"

"Culture is man's exosomatic means of adaptation." - Leslie White

paradigm explaining socio/econ/cultural change as primarily a result of adaptation to material conditions

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key points of processualism

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-explicitly scientific/objective

-views culture from systemic perspective/defines culture as adaptation

-emphasized evolutionary generalizations/regularities, not historical-specific

-downplays importance of individual, focus on explanations/material factors

-attempts to remain ethically neutral, claims to be explicitly nonpolitical

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Lewis Binford

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grandfather of processualism

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Anthropology Definition

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study of all aspects of humankind, holistic/comparative approach and concept of culture

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culture definition

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integrated system of beliefs/traditions/customs that govern or influence behavior

learned/shared beliefs and behavior

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theory definition

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explanation for observed empirical phenomena; explains relationships between variables, answers "why?"

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low-level theory

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observations/interpretations that emerge from hands-on archaeological field and lab work

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middle-level theory

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hypothesis links archaeological observations with human behavior or natural processes that produced them

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high-level theory

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seeks to answer large "why?" questions

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paradigm

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overarching framework (often unstated) for understanding a research problem

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post-processual archaeology

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critique of processualism as dehumanizing the past by focusing on ecology, subsistence, technology, and economy

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The Moundbuilder Myth and its investigation

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Colonial Americans' justification for taking over land from the Native Indians

Mounds contained anything from burial remains, to intricate artworks and stoneware, some were effigies made in animal-likeness, and sizes ranged from a few meters in diameter to the size of great pyramids

Early Colonists deemed these mounds to be the work of practically anyone except the ancestors of Native Indians, instead deciding that the Indians were "late-arriving marauders" that had killed off the moundbuilders

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Archaeological site

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any place where material evidence exists about human activity (in concentration)

uses categorization, often based on site function, such as residential, burial, ceremonial, or logistical (hunting/quarries/field sites)

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The Fallacy of the ‘typical’ site

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cannot locate and excavate just one type of site because no matter which one you select you'll likely come away with a biased reconstruction because no site is typical of an entire settlement system

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Settlement Pattern vs. Settlement System

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Settlement Pattern: distribution of archaeological sites across a region

Settelement System: movements and activities reconstructed from settlement patterns

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Sample fraction

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percentage of sample universe that is surveyed

areas with a lot of variability in archaeological remains require larger sample fractions than areas with low variability

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Non-site archaeology

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analysis of archaeological pattersn manifested on a scale of kilometers or hectares rather than patterns of a single site

ex) Robert Kelly's research in Carson Desert of Nevada

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Archaeological survey

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intensive: locates every site

predicitive: uses sampling to determine location of sites

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Three major sampling schemes for archaeological survey

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Systematic: set of strategies for arriving at accurate descriptions of the range of archaeological material across a landscape

Simple Random: sample drawn from a statistical population such that every member of the population has an equal chance of being included in the sample

Stratified: survey universe divided into several sub-universes that are then sampled at potentially different sample fractions

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soil resisitivity examples

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roman iron bloomery, waterpipe, electricity cable, land drains, plastic pipe, metal fence

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Remote sensing

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space, airborne, ground-based tools allowing users to better visualize features that would remain unseen using traditional archaeological techniques

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Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR)

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non-photographic survey type

uses bouncing lasers

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Proton Magnetometer

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form of ground-based subsurface detection along with metal detectors

used in geomagnetic survey

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Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR)

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form of ground-based subsurface detection

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Intrusive subsurface detection methods

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probe, shovel tests, auger

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Transect

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a sample area usually in the form of a long, continuous strip

has spacing (transect intervals), GPS/compass

must know how land is divided for region

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Meridian and Base

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Meridian: y-axis

Base: x-axis

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Township and Range, Section, Quarters

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township 6 miles square range

section 1 mile square

quarters 1/4, 1/4, 1/4 small to large

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key points of post-processualism

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-less enthusiastic about scientific objectivity

-rejected systemic view of culture in favor of ideational perspective (meaning behind things more important that materialism/why?)

-rejected search for universal laws/regularities, instead takes historical perspective

-emphasizes role of individual, sees negotiation of power, status, gender relationships as drivers of change

-argues all archaeology is unavoidably political

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Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinate system

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coordinate grid system with 60 zones (6-degree longitude in width), Eastings and Northings, point of origin

provides a location anywhere in the world, precise to 1 meter

uses metric system

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Geographic Information System (GIS)

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computer program for storing, receiving, analyzing, and displaying cartographic data

has mapping, resource distribution, least cost distances, model population, growth/settlement patterning, elevation, landscape use, layers

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Landscape archaeology

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study of ancient human modification of the environment

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Elements of a good plan map

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title, scale, North arrow, legend, datum, topographic relief, author(s), date

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Elements of a good photograph

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framing, concise description, scale, compass direction (as appropriate), photo data log

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The Folsom Site and Humanity’s Antiquity in North America

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question of human antiquity in the new world came down to animals and whether or not artifacts could be found in undisputed association with bones of extinct fauna from Pleistocene era (Ice Age)

ex-slave named George McJunkin (1851–1922) found the Folsom site—the place that proved the extent of human antiquity in the Americas

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The Ozette site, Washington

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beachside village once occupied by the ancestors of the Makah people

oral traditions helped lead Richard Daugherty to the site in the first place

saturated dirt and clay cap preserved entire houses with all their furnishings and gear

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Artifact vs. features vs structures vs ecofacts

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artifacts: any movable object that has been used, modified, or manufactured by humans

artifacts include stone, bone, and metal tools; beads and other ornaments; pottery; artwork; religious and sacred items

features: nonportable archaeological evidence such as fire hearths, architectural evidence, artifact clusters, garbage pits, and soil stains

structures: non-portable architectural elements, usually made of durable materials as soil, stone, or wood

ecofacts: plant or animal remains found at an archaeological site

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Provenience

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an artifact's location relative to a system of spatial data collection

is 3-dimensional, has foundational concept/objective of excavation

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Law of superposition

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aka Steno's Law

geological principle that in any pile of sedimentary rocks that have not been disturbed by folding or overturning, each bed is older than the layers above and younger than the layers below

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Stratum and stratigraphy

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Stratum (strata=plural): natural or cultural layer of rock/soil with characteristics (incl. material, texture, compactness, color, content) that distinguishes it from other layers

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Datum

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fixed reference used to keep spatial control of everything on site; usually used for both horizontal and vertical provenience

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Stratigraphic vs arbitrary levels of excavation

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Stratigraphic: slower, goes layer by layer but you cannot know the layers before you begin excavation

Arbitrary: faster, but may mix layers and artifacts. usually around 10cm deep at a time, but this varies

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Vertical vs horizontal excavation

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Vertical: faster (gives snapshot) and can quickly find large structures, but mixes layers

Horizontal: slower, but gives broader context/more information

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Joel C. Janetski’s three maxims of archaeological excavation

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1. use the coarsest tool appropriate for the job

2. go from known to unknown

3. proceed with caution, but proceed

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Organic preservation favorable conditions

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microorganisms need food/water, warmth, and oxygen

environments that are cold, anaerobic (lacking oxygen), dry are best

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Inorganic bias

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inorganic remains last longer and preserve better therefore are more easily found and identified by archaeologists

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context

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relationship of artifact or feature to other artifacts/features/geological strata in site

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in-situ

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Latin for "in-position"

secondary context

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Thermal infrared multispectral scanning (TIMS)

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measures infrared thermal radiation

non-photographic survey type

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how to find archeological sites?

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chance discoveries, documents/recordings/oral traditions, surveys

ex) 1845 Franklin Expedition