new avenues & scope of archaeological methods

7/29/2019 new avenues & scope of archaeological methods

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Methods of Archeological Research :

New Avenues and Scope

Submitted By: Amita Gupta

Pre-Ph.D.

Dept. Of Archeology

H.N.B.G.U.

Chauras Campus,

Srinagar, Garhwal

Uttarakhand


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Archaeology DefinedArchaeology is thestudy of humanculture throughmaterial remains from

humans in the past. Inthe Old World, themethods used inrecovering them and

the theoretical andphilosophicalunderpinnings inachieving the subject'sgoals.


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The main aim of archaeology is to aid in the reconstruction of human past,especially when written records are absent. Even when written records are

available, they rarely deal with the activities of common man and his daily

life. When the written records are totally absent, archaeology is the only

source by which we can know the past human activity. Though mans cultural

past began more than 2 million years ago, when he started using stone

artifacts for the first time, written records are available only for the past

5,000 years or so. To probe the human past beyond this 5,000 years,

archaeology is the only source. It has been aptly said `where ever man has

been on this planet for the last two million years, archaeology can be of use.

Thus archaeologist can best be described as `detective of the past cultures.

SCOPE OF ARCHAEOLOGY


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Finding a site

How do archaeologists find sites to explore?

1. They think about whatpeople need to stayalive. Some of thosethings include access to

clean drinking water, aprotected place to live,and easy access to traderoutes. With this in

mind, archaeologistslook for remains ofcivilizations along thebanks of rivers andstreams.


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2. They check out reports of artifacts that have beendiscovered. Artifacts have been discovered by farmers

and construction companies while working at theirjobs.

3. They check the land from the air, looking for largedepressions that could be the ruins of an ancient living

area.

4. They use scientificinstruments like radar and

sonar to look for ruins.


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Permission to Dig An archaeologist must receive

permission to explore a site. Theowner of the land must grantsometimes permission.Sometimes the government of a

country must issue permits.

Once permission is received,archaeologists work in teams with

other archaeologists. A teambegins to explore the area.They look for evidence that peopleonce lived in the area.Evidence includes fossils

and artifacts.


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Since archaeology isa destructive scienceand non-repeatable,we must accept the

limitations inherentto our currentscientific methodsand our own recordkeeping.


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Before You DigConduct a Survey of the Site


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Put Together the Team


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New avenues of discovery andinvestigation

Sites or landscapes?

Sampling in landscape survey

Field walking

Recording and topographic/earthwork

surveying

Underwater survey

Remote sensing

Airborne prospectionAerial photography Geographical Information systems (GIS) Geophysical and geochemical surveying


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Grids & Labeling

Before they begin digging, archaeologists designa grid on the ground using rope and string.

what was found next to it.

Each square in the grid must be carefully searched. A

record must be kept of anything found, including


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Preparing the Site Once the excavation

plan has been preparedby the Director andsenior staff, the first

step is to clear the siteof the vegetation thathas grown since the lastseason. This procedurefacilitates photography,makes surface featuresstand out, and gets theteam used to workingtogether sometimes in a

difficult climate.


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Excavation Methods

Ten or fifteen metersquares are laid outwith string and sand bags

and initial levels are takenso that the supervisorswill know starting andending points for each

days work and they candetermine the exact depthat which significant findsare made.


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Excavation begins bybreaking the soilwith shovels and picks,but this may quickly

turn to finer work usingbrushes, ice picks, andtrowels when an artifactis discovered or a floor

is found signaling theemergence of a changein stratigraphy.

To be continued.


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When an importantfeature or artifact isdiscovered, a level is

taken to determineexact location withinthe square.

To be continued.


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Excavated soil isscreened to uncoverbones, carbonizedorganic matter, small

pieces of pottery, orother objects that mightotherwise be missed.

Organic remains arelater tested using C14dating methods.

To be continued


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Unusual finds are alsophotographed in situto establish a clear

provenance and provideas much data aspossible for laterinterpretation.

To be continued.
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v692/pdmclerran/?action=view&current=gezer7.jpg


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All tagged buckets and

boxes are taken to thecollection supervisor forwashing or cleaningwith an eye out for

inscriptions or fordiagnostic examplesthat will help establish aceramic chronology ofthe site, indicate

possible tradingactivity, and in the caseof coins a clear date fora particular stratum or

building.
http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/wsrp/educational_site/ancient_texts/heshbon2_e.shtml


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Recording Data All pottery and otherartifacts areplaced

in tagged buckets orboxes for laterexamination. The tagsindicate which square

and at what level theywere found. Therecording process inthe field will besystematized in laterfield reports by thesquare and areasupervisors.


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Analyzing Data

At the end of theexcavation season, theentire staff completesand submits their field

notebooks and thesenior staff spends thenext several monthsanalyzing this data

while the artifacts aresent to laboratories forscientific tests andclassification.


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Interpreting Artifacts


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Back in the Lab

Once objects are labeled and removed from a site, theyare taken to a lab, relabeled, and placed into a database.Archaeologists use this information to put togetherpieces of the past.

It takes a greatdeal ofeducation,training,patience, andattention todetail to workas anarchaeologist.


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Dating the past

Relative dating Stratigraphy

Typological sequences

Pollen dating

Faunal dating

Varves & tree rings

Geological timescales

Climatostratigraphy Palynostratigraphy

.

Dating the past has been

a central issue inarchaeology throughoutits development andremains fundamentallyimportant.


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Absolute techniques

Radioactive decay

Radiocarbon dating

Potassiumargon(40K/40Ar)and argon

argon dating (40Ar/39Ar Uranium series dating

Fission-track dating

Luminescence dating

Tephrochronology


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Report writing and Publication

A final report of the excavation of the site over aseries of seasons should appear in a timely mannerfor the benefit of the scholarly community.

Senior staff should publish articles and presentpapers on the findings.

Publication and Presentationof the seasonsfindings should follow as quickly as possible.


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Conclusion

Field archaeology is, not surprisingly, what archaeologists doin the field. However, it also has a considerable pre-fieldelement and an even more considerable post-field element.

Sometimes the term field archaeology is used only to referto techniques, other than excavation, used by archaeologistsin the field. Ultimately the precision of dating attainable foreach periods helps determine the kinds of questions we askabout the past- for the Paleolithic, questions are about long-term change; for later periods, the question are more usually

concerned with the shorter-term variations in worldwidehuman development.


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new avenues & scope of archaeological methods

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