Archaeology: Methods and History

• Archaeology studies human history and prehistory using material remains such as artifacts, structures, and environmental data.
• Material culture includes physical objects that humans create or modify, offering insights into past societies.
• Cultural anthropology studies human cultures and societies and complements archaeology.
• Prehistory is the period of human history before written records.
• Ethnoarchaeology uses modern societies to understand ancient human behaviors and cultural practices.

History of Archaeology

• Culture history documents and classifies the material culture from different time periods and regions.
• Stratigraphy studies layers of sediment or soil at a site to understand the chronological sequence of deposition.
• Processual archaeology uses scientific methods to understand cultural change and human behavior.
• Post-processual archaeology emphasizes subjective interpretation, human agency, symbolism, and the role of power in shaping archaeological narratives.

Methods of Archaeological Research

• Survey systematically searches a landscape for sites, using methods like pedestrian survey or remote sensing.
• Excavation digs and documents a site to uncover and recover material remains.
• Context encompasses the spatial and temporal relationships of artifacts and features and is crucial for understanding their meaning.
• Dating techniques like radiocarbon dating, dendrochronology, and stratigraphy determine the age of artifacts and sites.
• Lithic analysis studies stone tools to understand their function, technology, and use.

Archaeological Theory

• Culture history identifies and describes cultures through material remains.
• Processualism uses scientific analysis to understand the processes that drive cultural change and human behavior.
• Post-processualism critiques the scientific objectivity of processualism, emphasizing subjectivity, symbolism, and the role of power.
• Materialism suggests material culture can provide insights into social structure, economic systems, and cultural values.

Archaeological Sites and Surveys

• Site formation processes are natural and human processes affect the creation and preservation of sites.
• Survey methods identify and map sites, such as walking over a landscape, using aerial surveys, and remote sensing technologies.
• Non-site archaeology studies material that does not originate from a single site.
• Artifacts are objects made or modified by humans that provide clues about past cultures and technologies.

Excavation and Stratigraphy

• Stratigraphy states that layers of earth are deposited in a sequence, with the oldest layers at the bottom and the youngest on top.
• Excavation units are the specific areas of a site that archaeologists dig, often defined in a grid.
• Contextual analysis studies the spatial and temporal relationships between artifacts, features, and ecofacts to interpret their meaning.
• Test excavation are small, preliminary excavations to assess a site's potential significance.

Important Archaeological Methods and Techniques

• Survey systematically searches a landscape for archaeological sites, using methods like pedestrian survey or remote sensing.
• Excavation digs and documents a site to uncover and recover material remains.
• Grid systems, screening, mapping, and documentation tools and techniques are used in surveys and excavations
• Radiocarbon dating dates organic materials.
• Dendrochronology is tree-ring dating.
• Stratigraphy helps us understand the layering of soil and sediment over time
• Remote sensing uses ground-penetrating radar, LIDAR, and aerial surveys to discover and analyze sites.

Key Figures in Archaeology

• Lewis Binford is a key figure in processual archaeology.
• Ian Hodder is a key figure in post-processualism.

Theoretical Approaches

• Culture history focuses on identifying and describing cultures through their material remains.
• Processualism emphasizes the need for scientific analysis to understand cultural change
• Post-Processualism highlights subjectivity, symbolism, and the role of power in historical narratives.
• Post-colonial archaeology and feminist archaeology are newer theoretical approaches.

Site Formation and Taphonomy

• Weathering, erosion, looting, or farming can affect the preservation of sites.
• Taphonomy studies how organisms decay and fossilize, which is important for understanding how archaeological materials preserve over time.

Artifacts, Ecofacts, and Features

• Artifacts includes human-made objects (tools, pottery, etc.) that provide insight into culture
• Ecofacts are organic remains like animal bones and seeds that are not altered but are useful.
• Features non-portable archaeological evidence, such as hearths, walls, or storage pits.

Site Interpretation

• Archaeologists reconstruct past lifeways through material remains.
• Context is important in interpreting the meaning of artifacts and features within a site.

Ethics in Archaeology

• Ethical issues surround archaeology, including preservation of cultural heritage.
• It is important to focus on the handling of human remains, including repatriation of indigenous remains.
• Understanding the role of archaeologists in contemporary societies.

Recent Developments and Challenges in Archaeology

• Public archaeology involves local communities in archaeological projects, and the importance of engaging with the public.
• Cultural resource management involves archaeologists in the protection of cultural resources during development projects.
• Digital archaeology makes use of 3D modeling, GIS, and digital mapping in archaeological work.

Case Studies and Examples

• Pompeii and Stonehenge are major archaeological discoveries and examples for studies them.
• Excavation and remote sensing are methods used to study these sites.