CONTEMPORARY AND RECENT ARCHAEOLOGY IN PRACTICE

Abstract

The archaeology of the 20th century has been studied since the 1960s, but it is only more recently that explicit theoretical and methodological issues have been explored by the wider archaeological profession. This paper explores some of those issues in the contexts of developer-funded archaeology and community archaeology. Ways in which the archaeology of the more recent past may both help and hinder the discipline are considered, together with the relevance of archaeology to society at large.     

ARCHAEOLOGY IN A GEECHEE GRAVEYARD

Abstract

Archaeological investigations were carried out during May 2010 within Behavior Cemetery, a historic African American graveyard used for more than 120 years by the Gullah-Geechee communities of Sapelo Island, Georgia. Designed in close partnership with the local residents, this project sought to address their concerns about disturbance to unmarked graves when new graves were dug. This paper provides a historical overview of the cemetery and then discusses the methods, results, and outcomes of the field research. The success of the Behavior Cemetery Project serves as a positive example of community-oriented archaeology, a mutually beneficial partnership that simultaneously serves public, academic research, and cultural resource management needs.     

NEW PERSPECTIVES ON MISSISSIPPIAN OCCUPATIONS IN WESTERN TENNESSEE AND NORTHWESTERN MISSISSIPPI: RECENT CHRONOLOGICAL AND GEOPHYSICAL INVESTIGATIONS AT CHUCALISSA (40SY1), SHELBY COUNTY,TENNESSEE

Abstract

Investigations at Chucalissa (40SY1) in Shelby County, Tennessee, have been instrumental in establishing Mississippian period chronology for southwestern Tennessee and much of the surrounding region. Excavations conducted in 2003 produced a suite of new radiocarbon dates that has provided a refined developmental lineage of occupations in West Tennessee and northwestern Mississippi, while geophysical investigations in 2011 have clarified our understanding of the late prehistoric occupation of the site and validated suggestions of distinctive mound architecture in a region extending over a large portion of the Southeast.     

THE SHELBY FOREST SITE IN SOUTHWEST TENNESSEE AND EARLY MISSISSIPPIAN RED-FILMED POTTERY IN THE CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI VALLEY

Abstract

The Shelby Forest site in southwest Tennessee is an Early Mississippian component characterized by Varney Red Filmed ceramics. Comparison to other sites in the Reelfoot Lake area of west Tennessee and the Upper St. Francis Basin of Missouri and Arkansas allows refinement of the direction, timing, and characteristics of influences from these areas northeastward to American Bottom and southward into the Yazoo Basin of Mississippi. Subsequent influences from the Cahokia area into the southern Yazoo Basin and northeast Louisiana are also discussed.     

ARCHAEOLOGY, ECONOMICS AND EARLY MEDIEVAL EUROPE

This paper assesses the contribution Richard Hodges has made to the archaeological study of the early medieval economy. After a review of methodology, three themes are considered: reciprocal exchange; the emporia; and regions and markets. The nature of exchange may be more complex, and more difficult to characterise, than Hodges allows. It is argued that the role of the king in exchange has been exaggerated, particularly with regard to Dorestad, while the extent to which inland regions and inland ports were involved in exchange may have been underestimated; this has led to a false appreciation of the emporia. Further work is needed to characterise the economy of the regions of early medieval Europe.     

科学考古与历史货币研究

发现和掌握各时期的历史货币是研究历史货币的物质基础,科学考古和运用科学考古成果来补益货币之研究,是深入认识历史货币的一把钥匙。 20世纪,是中国历史货币发现与研究双双取得瞩目成就的一个世纪。在这个世纪内,中国历史货币中一些疑难问题因科学考古而得以揭示,考古成果又因历史货币的发现研究而得以丰富。     

LECHAION,WESTERN PORT OF CORINTH: A PRELIMINARY ARCHAEOLOGY AND HISTORY

Lechaion was the western port of the prosperous city of Corinth, and thus much of the Corinthia, Argolid and Peloponnesos. The position of Lechaion ensured that the port was used for traffic with the western Mediterranean as well as central Greece. Lechaion was separated from the city by agricultural land, but remained a dependent entity; in the classical period the port was connected to the city by long walls. The port contained an outer and inner harbor with a combined area of approximately 150,000 m² The outer harbor works consisted of two large moles; the inner harbor was artificially excavated. Multiple periods of construction are suggested by the archaeological remains. The construction phases of the harbor may be related to the expansive economic activity in Corinth at the beginning of the sixth century B. C., c. A.D. 45, and perhaps again c. A.D. 355.