Excavations: The Different Stages and The ProcessAnush Shirvanyan

What is ArchaeologyArchaeology is

● A systematic approach to uncovering the past, learning about ancient people - how they lived, what they looked like, what tools they used, what their cultures were like.

Archaeologists are● The scientists who study the remains of past civilizations and groups of people

through excavations.

Excavations are The digging, recording, and interpreting the physical remains of the people (artifacts,

fossils) who lived in an area in order to understand their culture.

The Main Reasons Archaeologists Decide to Excavate❏ They may have a

research question

about the past

that they think

can only be

answered by

digging in a

particular area.

❏ Human

development, such

as building roads or

houses, or natural

causes may

endanger a site, so

archaeologists

excavate before the

site is destroyed.

Starting Places for ArchaeologistsBefore archaeologists conducts a dig

They do research.

They locate the most likely places with the knowledge of certain things that helped people stay alive (access to water, trade, migration routes, food sources).

● They look at buildings, ruins or sunken spots in the land .

● Use aerial photographs and get clues from books, documents and maps.

The ProcessArchaeological sites are divided up into squares.

The plowed soil from the top of each square is removed.

The surface of the layer is trowelled.

The soil stains (called features) are mapped.

The features to recover their contents are excavated.

Then, the excavated areas with soil are refilled.

The ProcessSquares Trowelling

Example of A Pit

The ExcavationIn a full excavation, archaeologists:Excavate the full site,Map,Measure,Collect the artifacts,Sort,Count the findings,Draw the artifacts

Analyzing the FindingsIn this stage, archaeologists study the artifacts they found.Uncover the results of the findings, such as:Age,

Material of the artifact,

Its usage and frequency

What Archaeologists Look For When Digging“Buried treasure”. Artifacts such as tools that people could have

moved or carried.

“Eco-Facts”. Clues about past environments in things like seeds, animal bones and soil types.

“Features.” Things like walls, floors or fireplaces that can’t be moved.

“Midden”. Things found in the garbage dump - animals bones, shells, plants.

❏The Excavation is the surgical aspect of archaeology - the surgery of the

buried landscape

❏All forms of archaeological excavation, from design to execution, require

great skill and careful preparation.

ReferencesBasics of Archaeology for Simulated Dig Users. AIA Education

Department. Retrieved 16 October 2016, from https://www.archaeological.org/pdfs/education/digs/Digs_basics.pdf

Establishing the site grid - Excavating Occaneechi Town: An

archaeology primer. (2016). Learnnc.org. Retrieved 16 October 2016, from http://www.learnnc.org/lp/editions/occaneechi-archaeology-primer/1711

excavation | archaeology. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 16 October 2016, from https://www.britannica.com/science/excavation-archaeology

What is Archaeology?. Saa.org. Retrieved 16 October 2016, from http://www.saa.org/ForthePublic/Resources/EducationalResources/ForEducators/ArchaeologyforEducators/WhatisArchaeology/tabid/1346/Default.aspx