Satellite Remote Sensing Methods for Monitoring Archaeological Tells in the Middle East

Abstract

Using a variety of types of satellite imagery (SPOT, Corona, Landsat, and Quickbird) and concentrating on archaeological sites in the Egyptian floodplain, this paper proposes methods for monitoring the rate of archaeological site destruction in the Middle East. This image analysis shows how tells can be documented and monitored from computers anywhere in the world, emphasizing the multispectral capabilities and applications of satellites. The effects of population growth, looting, urban expansion, and war on archaeological sites in Egypt are reviewed, and a system is proposed to record sites by focusing on their individual spectral profiles. The analysis demonstrates how satellite imagery analysis can be applied to similar flood plain environments in Israel, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, and Iraq.     

The meaning of 1970 for the acquisition of archaeological objects

Abstract

Many museum and professional associations, particularly in the United States, have adopted a 1970 standard for the acquisition of archaeological materials–that is, in recognition of the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property, archaeological objects should be documented has outside of their country of origin before 1970 or have been exported legally after 1970. This article explores the extent to which this standard has been adopted, its influence on restitutions and claims for restitution of archaeological objects, and the policies that this standard attempts to promote.     

Botanical Archaeology at the Norman P Site in Ohio

Abstract

Continuous prehistoric occupation of northern Ohio from 9000 B.P. to 5000 B.P. has often been questioned. Its demonstration is difficult to support. Stratigraphically intact archaeological evidence for this Late PaleoIndian-Early Archaic period is not common in the eastern United States and is generally found in dry rockshelters or in alluvial bottomlands. In northern Ohio, rockshelters are rare and bottomlands have recently been subjected to deep-plowing. The controlled comparative germination of viable seeds in such recently disturbed strata yields an Index of Plowing which can determine the lower limits of such disturbance in the absence of other pedological or archaeological indications. The application of this Index to the Norman P site in Summit County, Ohio, reveals an intact PaleoIndian-Archaic Transitional occupation.     

The Kartomat: A Field Drawing Machine

Abstract

An aid to more expeditious and accurate recording of archaeological features requiring neither a power source nor specialized training to operate has been developed in Germany and is currently in use on excavations in several European countries. This article presents the specifications of the Kartomat field-drawing machine, provides examples of its application, and offers suggestions for its production and use in the United States.     

Archaeology in Megalopolis: Updated Assessment

Abstract

Because of the “disturbed” nature of the terrain, archaeologists working in builtup “urban” situations frequently underestimate the possibilities for the survival of useful archaeological information. Recent experience, most of it in connection with federally-mandated historic resource surveys, has demonstrated that such disturbances are often quite superficial, and that important sites and features may exist, intact, beneath them. In fact, since all human activity disturbs the locale in which it occurs, the evidence of past construction and destruction may be the very resource that gives an area its historical and cultural importance. This paper presents examples of successful recovery of archaeological data in urban contexts in the northeastern United States, and discusses some as yet unsolved problems associated with this relatively new field of archaeological endeavor.     

Review Article – The Industrial Heritage of Australia and New Zealand: an essay in bibliography and criticism

Abstract

Historical archaeology, which includes industrial aspects, has become well established in Australia and New Zealand in the last few years. The growing number of field and archaeological investigations has led to the establishment of a theoretical underpinning which is probably better developed than in Britain and the United States. An exciting range of publications is critically reviewed in this article.     

Editorial Introduction

Abstract

International response to the problem of looting of archaeological sites has been hampered by the difficulty of quantifying the damage done. The scarcity of reliable information negatively impacts professional and public policy making, rendering consensus about the scale of the problem and the effectiveness of policy responses difficult to achieve. We report here on the use of publicly-available satellite imagery for quantifying the damage caused by looting of archaeological sites in Jordan. The ease of use and affordability of imagery such as that provided by Google Earth make the identification, quantification, and monitoring of archaeological site looting possible at a level previously unimagined. Our findings about looting at archaeological sites in Jordan shed light on the potential for a broader application of the method.     

Variation in strontium isotope ratios of archaeological fauna in the Midwestern United States: a preliminary study

Strontium isotope values (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) in bone and tooth enamel have been used increasingly to identify non-local individuals within prehistoric human populations worldwide. Archaeological research in the Midwestern United States has increasingly highlighted the role of population movement in affecting interregional cultural change. However, the comparatively low level of geologic variation in the Midwestern United States might suggest a corresponding low level of strontium variation, and calls into question the sensitivity of strontium isotopes to identify non-local individuals in this region. Using strontium isotopes of archaeological fauna, we explore the degree of variability in strontium ratios across this region. Our results demonstrate measurable variation in strontium ratios and indicate the potential of strontium analysis for addressing questions of origin and population movement in the Midwestern United States.     

From conflict archaeology to archaeologies of conflict: remote survey in Kandahar,Afghanistan

ABSTRACT

Emerging from research with the Afghan Heritage Mapping Partnership, a multi-year project using satellite imagery to detect, record and manage archaeological heritage, this paper examines the potentials of remote-sensing to not only monitor archaeological material culture, but also contemporary materiality as it is violently (re)assembled through conflict. Through systematic remote-sensed archaeological survey using diachronic imagery in Kandahar, Afghanistan, this work expands archaeological understanding of an under-surveyed region while exploring the impact of the region’s expansive military infrastructural footprint on cultural heritage. Further, this research considers the long history of landscapes of control and successive military occupations. Remote survey allows for continued generation of archaeological data during conflict, thereby enabling more thorough heritage management. Finally, this survey demonstrates that, although remote aerial technologies have been criticized as tools of violence, surveillance and control, satellite imagery can be used analytically to generate new understandings of and challenges to military infrastructural reach.     

THE PREHISTORY OF MR. ELI LILLY

Abstract

The disciplinary mythology of North American archaeology grudgingly acknowledges Eli Lilly’s financial support for research. At the same time it systematically devalues and even deletes his role as a productive scholar, the author of original works on the prehistory of Indiana, the creator of an effective archaeological seminar on the prehistory of Indiana and the Eastern United States, and the guiding force in the establishment of several enduring archaeological institutions. This paper documents the scholarly contributions of Eli Lilly. It shows how his mind and management skills were even more important to the development of archaeological research in the Midcontinent than was his financial support for many important archaeological research projects.     

A History of Archaeology in the Republic of Armenia

Abstract

This article traces the development of archaeological inquiry in the former Soviet Republic of Armenia, from its antiquarian roots in the 19th century, through the Soviet era, and into modern times. The resurgence of western attention in the region since the end of the Cold War has been driven by collaborative research projects from the United States, Germany, Austria, France, Italy, England, Russia, and Canada, that employ a variety of methods to understand the archaeological heritage of Armenia. Research problems are related to the Palaeolithic, Neolithic, Chalcolithic, Bronze and Iron Ages, as well as to the Urartian, Achaemenid, and Hellenistic periods.

For those unfamiliar with Armenia, this article is meant as a primer to the history of the discipline as it has been practiced in the region. For those already engaged in archaeology there, it is our hope that this discussion will lend an added historical dimension to ongoing field projects.     

PAPERS ON GEOPHYSICAL INVESTIGATIONS OF WOODLAND AND CADDO SITES IN THE CADDO AREA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN UNITED STATES

Abstract

Geophysical investigations on archaeological sites in the Caddo area of the Southeastern United States have become in recent years a critical part of the investigation of prehistoric and early historic Caddo sites, from small farmsteads and hamlets to large mound centers. The various articles gathered here provide substantive examples of the range of geophysical research that has been undertaken on Woodland and Caddo sites in southwestern Arkansas, eastern Oklahoma, and East Texas, and how that research has led to a better understanding of the spatial structure and internal organization of habitation sites and mound centers.     

Fought under the walls of Bergida: KOCOA analysis of the Roman attack on the Cantabrian oppidum of Monte Bernorio (Spain)

As conflict archaeology has matured as a discipline, there have been calls for more unified analytical techniques. Several researchers advocate the adoption of codified analytical and planning concepts used by the United States Army. One of these concepts, KOCOA Terrain Analysis, shows promise as a locational and analytical aid in archaeological contexts. Defining terrain features are identified and categorized according to well-defined terminology, allowing for a detailed analysis of the effects of terrain on military operations. KOCOA’s structure and codification render the concept transferable between researchers and diachronically across different site types. KOCOA has only rarely been utilized outside the United States and only on historical battlefields. The ongoing archaeological research at the Monte Bernorio oppidum (Palencia, Spain) provides an opportunity to utilize KOCOA in a classical, proto-historical archaeological context.     

Editorial

Abstract

A recent online article in The Daily Beast listed archaeology as one of the thirteen most useless undergraduate degrees. The article failed to identify transferable job skills gained while engaged in archaeological work. Further, archaeological field programmes and labs offer an alternative learning environment that benefits some students. This article reviews two archaeological projects that used archaeology as a form of social activism to provide employment and education to an under-served community as a fundamental aspect of its goals. The Hopedale Archaeology Project is an archaeology field project based in a north-east Canadian community that provides education and work opportunities for Inuit students. The Veterans Curation Program based in the United States provides temporary employment to recently discharged military veterans in an archaeological and archival curation lab. These programmes assist individuals to re-establish themselves within the workforce and add to their academic and professional growth, as well as incorporate a public outreach component that makes archaeology and history more accessible to the public.     

2010 cultural heritage legal summary

Abstract

The year 2010 was a relatively quiet one for legal developments with respect to archaeological heritage. Some court decisions that were expected this year, such as that concerning foreign sovereign immunity for artifacts on loan from Iran to the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, did not materialize, while other disputes remain on appeal, such as that involving the disposition of 500,000 gold and silver coins taken from an early 19th century Spanish shipwreck by Odyssey Marine. One of the most closely watched cases, the trial in Italy of the former J. Paul Getty Museum curator, Marion True, ended inconclusively when time ran out for the prosecution. Nonetheless, recovery and restitution of cultural objects that were brought illegally into the United States continued, as did controversies concerning the bilateral agreements concluded between the United States and other nations, pursuant to the 1983 Convention on Cultural Property Implementation Act, the United States' legislation implementing the 1970 UNESCO Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property. The following review focuses on legal developments primarily in the United States, as the United States participates in international treaty regimes to protect cultural heritage.     

ANALYSIS OF EARLY-NINETEENTH-CENTURY MUSCOGEE CREEK FUR TRADE AT A UNITED STATES FACTORY STORE

Abstract

We conducted an analysis of economic transaction records from the Fort Wilkinson Factory Store in central Georgia in an attempt to understand trade behaviors by the Muscogee Creek people of the southeastern United States. Between February 4, 1804, and November 29, 1806, factory personnel recorded 2,168 trade transactions at Fort Wilkinson. During this period, 38,226.5 deerskins and skins, 482 hides and rawhides, and 569 furs entered the fort. In exchange for these items, the Creek Indians primarily received cloth, followed by manufactured items such as kettles, gun supplies, and consumable groceries. We analyze the month-by-month exchange trends and compare the trade-good assemblages to archaeological sites that represent Creek occupations that date to the same time period in Georgia and Alabama. Further, we assess the biases of the data and interpret the data in relation to existing historical and archaeological studies of the Muscogee Creek people.     

The Stone Quarry Cottage Site: Mid-Nineteenth-Century Settlement on Grand Island

Abstract

Archaeological testing was recently conducted at the Stone Quarry Cottage Site on Grand Island, Michigan. The site is a mid-nineteenth-century homestead situated on the shore of Lake Superior. The recent rehabilitation of the cabin by the United States Forest Service allowed the placement of archaeological excavation units within the footprint of the cabin. The site has produced a distinct pattern of artifact deposition that has provided baseline data for ongoing studies of the mid-nineteenthcentury settlement on the island. Despite its provisional nature, the data generated at the Stone Quarry Cottage identified patterns of site occupation reflecting domestic and transient use of this site, for the island as a whole, and possibly for other nineteenthcentury frontier settings. This paper outlines the results of the archaeological testing and offers a discussion concerning the interpretation of the site.     

Vernacular memorialization in the military: personal acts of remembrance at RAF Thorpe Abbotts

ABSTRACT

In September 2017, an archaeological excavation at RAF Thorpe Abbotts (also known as Station 139) uncovered 7 identification ‘dog’ tags belonging to airmen of the United States Army Air Force (USAAF). It is the thesis of this article that these were purposefully buried by individuals within the 100th Bomb Group (Heavy) as acts of remembrance. Alongside the dog tags were a number of other artefacts, including coins, bottles, and a canteen cup. These likely formed the material culture of self-developed grieving rituals established by the primary group responsible for the deposition of the dog tags.     

A Portable Differential Proton Magnetometer

Abstract

The principle, construction, and operation of a portable proton magnetometer is described. The low cost of this instrument is within the means of the most modest archaeological budget. Its wide applicability to a variety of situations renders it a useful tool in many archaeological endeavors.     

2006 Cultural Heritage Legal Summary

Abstract

During the past year; there has been continued incremental progress in the ratification and implementation of international conventions, particularly the 1970 UNESCO Convention. Countries of origin, particularly Italy and Greece, have become even more active in seeking the restitution of looted antiquities, as with the ongoing trial of former Getty curator Marion True and agreements with several U. S. museums for the return of numerous artifacts. The litigation concerning Iranian artifacts in various U. S. institutions has become even more complex, however, and the outcome is still uncertain. Finally, United States case law, particularly in the western part of the country, is pointing out some of the weaknesses in federal laws designed to protect archaeological sites and artifacts on federal land.