Documenting Archaeological Mortuary Features using High Dynamic Range (HDR) Imaging

This technical note presents a refined technique for photo‐documenting archaeological mortuary features using High Dynamic Range (HDR) imaging. Mortuary features in archaeological context can be complex and delicate given the wide variability in grave constructions and preservation of human skeletal remains. It is therefore critical to obtain the greatest detail possible when photo‐documenting these features. HDR techniques represent more contrast in photographs and provide greater detail across the DR of illumination within mortuary features—where complex arrangements of human remains can obscure or darken other elements or associated funerary objects, making them difficult to identify in traditional photographs. HDR can be employed with most standard digital single lens reflex cameras used for archaeological field projects, is easy to learn and employ (as described here), can be processed and produced with commonly used photo editing programs, and is ideal for use in unpredictable conditions that are often encountered with archaeological mortuary features and in field conditions. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mapping Submerged Landscapes Using Multibeam Bathymetric Data: a case study from the north coast of Ireland

This paper outlines work currently being undertaken to reconstruct submerged archaeological landscapes off the north coast of Ireland. This research uses the recently‐completed Joint Irish Bathymetric Survey (JIBS), which has provided full‐coverage high‐resolution multibeam bathymetric data for the sea‐bed off the north coast. This data has been examined for evidence of past sea‐level change and been used to produce palaeo‐geographic reconstructions of the past landscape, which in turn have facilitated the identification of ten areas of high archaeological potential. The results presented here will form the basis of a future programme of archaeological survey and prospection. © 2010 The Authors     

Using Sector‐Scan Sonar for the Survey and Management of Submerged Archaeological Sites

This article reports the results of using a sector‐scan sonar to record diverse submerged archaeological sites in shallow and deep water. The Kongsberg MS1000 sector‐scan sonar was developed for commercial applications, typically underwater inspections of bridges, dams, ports and harbours. The ability of the device to rapidly generate high‐quality, geometrically accurate scans of submerged features, coupled with its ease of use and deployment make it a potentially important, yet largely overlooked, tool for survey and management of underwater archaeological sites. As one of several technologies available, the paper examines its advantages and limitations, and considers, through case studies, under which conditions it is most effectively deployed.     

Airborne laser bathymetry – detecting and recording submerged archaeological sites from the air

A new generation of airborne bathymetric laser scanners utilises short green laser pulses for high resolution hydrographic surveying in very shallow waters. The paper investigates its use for the documentation of submerged archaeological structures, introducing the concept of airborne laser bathymetry and focussing on a number of challenges this novel technology still has to face. Using this method, an archaeological pilot study on the northern Adriatic coast of Croatia has revealed sunken structures of a Roman villa. The results demonstrate the potential of this novel technique to map submerged archaeological structures over large areas in high detail in 3D, for the first time providing the possibility for systematic, large-scale archaeological investigation of this environment. The resulting maps will provide unique means for underwater heritage management.     

Submerged Mesolithic Landscape Investigation,Eleven Ballyboes,Republic of Ireland

This paper reports on the first systematic attempt to conduct archaeological survey and excavation for submerged prehistory on the island of Ireland. Fieldwork was conducted in two small bays where Early Mesolithic flint artefacts washed ashore hinted at the presence of a submerged assemblage. Methods employed include non‐intrusive survey, hand coring and excavation. Together, these allowed identification of the artefact source, albeit reworked, in one bay and an early Holocene peat in the other. Though the subtidal assemblage is reworked and relatively small, it is significant in an Irish context and more widely illustrates the potential preservation of prehistoric sites and palaeo‐landscapes in high‐energy settings.     

Image‐Based Modelling from Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Photogrammetry: An Effective,Low‐Cost Tool for Archaeological Applications

The recording and 3D modelling of complex archaeological sites is usually associated with high capital and logistical costs, because the data acquisition must be performed by specialists using expensive surveying sensors (i.e., terrestrial laser scanners, robotic total stations and/or ground‐penetrating radar). This paper presents a novel, low‐cost, user‐friendly photogrammetric tool for generating high‐resolution and scaled 3D models of complex sites. The results obtained with unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) photogrammetry of an archaeological site indicate that this approach is semi‐automatic, inexpensive and effective, and that it guarantees quality.     

Variety of Black and White Limestone Tesserae Used in Ancient Mosaics in Slovenia

This study concerns the microfacies characterization of white and black limestone tesserae from selected Roman floor mosaics in Slovenia, with the aim of defining their provenance. We investigated 42 tesserae from 15 different mosaics from the archaeological sites of Ljubljana, Izola, Mo?nje, Ptuj, ?rnomelj and ?entpavel, dated from the first century bc to the fifth century ad . Among the studied tesserae, 13 different microfacies were identified: eight black and five white. The most common were mudstones with ostracods (65% of black tesserae) and wacke‐packstones with miliolids (85% of white tesserae). The majority of the identified facies can be found in the Cretaceous successions of the Dinaric Carbonate Platform in south‐western Slovenia, north‐eastern Italy and south‐eastern Croatia, suggesting a regional or imported origin of the tesserae.     

Commercial developments and their impact on maritime heritage: the Northern Ireland experience

This paper refers to the body of international, national and regional legislation that exists to protect submerged cultural heritage sites. It advocates the use of the consultation process available through current legislation to protect submerged sites through preservation or through record by archaeological mitigation. It reviews the main types of commercial seabed developments and opens discussion on the appropriate archaeological response.     

In Situ Preservation of Ancient Floor Mosaics in Turkey

Abstract

As stated in the Burra Charter (1979) ‘A building or work should remain in its historical location. The moving of all or part of a building or work is unacceptable unless it is the sole means of ensuring its survival’. This statement has been neglected many times during rescue excavations in Turkey (e.g. Zeugma), whereas the destruction of ancient floor mosaics caused by lifting, especially when carried out by incompetent or inexperienced personnel at systematic archaeological excavations, has steered the authorities desire to preserve them in situ. However, due to the lack of conservation professionals and insufficient resources for conservation, it becomes a difficult issue to provide an effective preservation scheme for archaeological excavations. This paper aims to discuss this important issue in terms of the national legislation, preventative and interventive conservation approaches at various sites, exhibition and maintenance of mosaics, as well as the training of conservation technicians in Turkey.     

Holocene paleoshorelines,water levels and submerged prehistoric site potential of Rice Lake (Ontario,Canada)

Rice Lake, located in the eastern Great Lakes of North America, has a high density of prehistoric (11–0.5 ka BP) terrestrial archaeological sites. It has been speculated that a large number of sites are submerged on the lakebed, as lake levels have risen >9 m since the arrival of Early Paleoindian peoples (∼11 ka BP). In order to better understand the submerged landscape and its archaeological potential, a detailed bathymetric survey and sediment-coring program was conducted across a 30-km² area of northeastern Rice Lake. Changes in Holocene water levels and shoreline positions were reconstructed by integrating core data with a digital elevation and bathymetric model (DEBM) that accounted for differential isostatic uplift and basin sedimentation. The DEBM was used to generate a series of maps showing changes in the lake paleobathmetry and paleogeography and areas of prehistoric archaeological potential.     

Mosaic art in modern Israel and the construction of a sense of place

The article deals with the construction of a narrative and sense of place among the Jewish immigrant‐settler society in 20th century Israel in the context of its efforts to establish a national collective identity on indigenous (i.e. authentic) foundations and with the symbolic struggle with the Palestinian national movement as its backdrop. The case study under discussion is the instalment in public spaces of mosaic decorations inspired by ancient Jewish mosaics unearthed in archaeological excavations. I argue that intentionally or unintentionally, these decorations functioned as agents in the construction of an authentic narrative and a sense of place by producing a link between the current and the ancient Jewish presence in the place. This practice went hand‐in‐hand with the hegemonic national dogma about the link between an ancient, allegedly glorious era of the Jewish people in Palestine, and the modern Zionist project.     

当代法国田野考古发掘方法与技术

本文以在法国具体从事田野考古发掘和室内整理的工作实践为基础,结合相关国外考古书籍,对目前法国所流行的考古发掘方法与技术作一概括性介绍,并与中国当代田野考古发掘方法与技术进行了对比研究。     

Maritime Archaeology and Climate Change: An Invitation

Maritime archaeology has a tremendous capacity to engage with climate change science. The field is uniquely positioned to support climate change research and the understanding of past human adaptations to climate change. Maritime archaeological data can inform on environmental shifts and submerged sites can serve as an important avenue for public outreach by mobilizing public interest and action towards understanding the impacts of climate change. Despite these opportunities, maritime archaeologists have not fully developed a role within climate change science and policy. Moreover, submerged site vulnerabilities stemming from climate change impacts are not yet well understood. This article discusses potential climate change threats to maritime archaeological resources, the challenges confronting cultural resource managers, and the contributions maritime archaeology can offer to climate change science. Maritime archaeology’s ability to both support and benefit from climate change science argues its relevant and valuable place in the global climate change dialogue, but also reveals the necessity for our heightened engagement.     

Maritime Cultural Resource Investigation, Management, and Mitigation in Coastal Ghana

Four field seasons of maritime archaeological research in coastal Ghana offer insights into submerged cultural heritage, but also highlight serious concerns for its preservation and protection. A discussion of cultural heritage legislation and its ineffective implementation, as well as imminent and potential threats to submerged cultural heritage frames the argument for the mitigation and protection of submerged sites in coastal Ghana. Work on the Benya Lagoon vessel and the Elmina Wreck site is presented here as both documentation and mitigation in terms of the context of threats to submerged heritage in coastal Ghana, and preventative mitigation is proposed for its protection.     

Depositional Context as the Foundation to Determining the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Archaeological Potential of Offshore Wind Farm Areas in the Southern North Sea

Abstract

There is currently limited evidence on which to assess the submerged prehistoric potential in areas of renewable energy development. This paper presents a geomorphological approach to examine the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic archaeological potential in relation to the Round 3 offshore wind farm (OWF) areas of the southern North Sea. The depositional context and major stratigraphic correlations between the terrestrial sequence on east coast of Britain and offshore marine sequence of the southern North Sea are used to provide a first-order assessment for identifying horizons of archaeological interest in OWF zones. Using the examples Triton Knoll and East Anglia One OWF, the nature of renewable energy development on identified archaeological horizons is discussed, noting that any impact needs to be considered on a site-by-site basis. Studies are not only needed on the practical assessment of any development impact but also on the impacts of natural processes in OWF zones.     

Assessment and Significance of a World War II battle site: recording the USS Emmons using a High‐Resolution DEM combining Multibeam Bathymetry and SfM Photogrammetry

The USS Emmons, a 106m US Navy Gleaves‐class destroyer minesweeper that sank in 40m of water off Okinawa Island, Japan after kamikaze attack in 1945, is used as a case study for examining the history, multivocal significance, and heritage management of a World War II naval battle site. A baseline record of the site was made using an innovative method incorporating precise control points obtained from high‐resolution multibeam echosounding bathymetry to generate 3D models using structure‐from‐motion photogrammetry. The 3D models produced can be used for sharing information about this underwater cultural heritage and for future in situ monitoring of the archaeological remains.     

Electrical Resistivity Tomography with Angular Separation for Characterization of Burial Mounds in Southern China

The study aims at providing the spatial distribution and potential structure of the burial mounds at the Sifangling site, Hepu Han Tombs, in southern China. We implemented an electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) technique to obtain high‐resolution imaging of archaeological targets, considering the challenging environment and the depth of the burials. Three ERT profiles were tested above a small ancient mound previously detected by exhaustive archaeological drillings, following which 18 ERT profiles with angular separation were performed on the largest mound at the test site, without any a priori archaeological evidence below the surface. Then, a series of two‐dimensional (2D) profiles were combined as a ‘pseudo‐3D’ volume, which allowed a detailed characterization of the burial mound, and iso‐resistivity surfaces were also calculated to emphasize the location and spatial extent of the target. The results gave an effective identification of the funeral chamber and its structural details, and allowed detailed pre‐excavation planning.     

The reburial of mosaics: an overview of materials and practice

Abstract

A significant proportion of the literature on the reburial of archaeological sites concerns mosaics. These publications reveal that a variety of materials have been used for mosaic reburial, including specialized fill and separation layers, from the early 1980s onwards. Although reburial practice often demonstrates an ad hoc and indiscriminate use of fill and separation materials, or the following of trends and anecdotal information favouring certain materials, knowledge of their characteristics is very important in developing an appropriate technical design for reburial of mosaics. The materials most commonly employed in mosaic reburial practice, including geotextiles, are reviewed and an assessment of their positive and negative characteristics within a reburial design is provided. Recent but limited laboratory and field testing, monitoring and evaluation of reburial interventions have begun to provide preliminary evidence about the behaviour of these materials, indicating which ones are most appropriate and how they should be utilized to best advantage. However, their selection and use remains uneven, and positive results continue to be as much a function of adequate maintenance as proper design and execution.     

Early Modern Merchant Ships,Nicolaes Witsen and a Dutch‐Flush Index

With its basis in the Aanloop Molengat‐wreck research, this paper reflects on two issues: the relationship between written and archaeological sources and the comparability of archaeological field data. The first theme results in a discussion of Nicolaes Witsen's work on shipbuilding and his rendering of primary source material. The second theme results in a discussion of more or less contemporary wrecks for which field data is available. Timber density is compared and a diagnostic index for what have loosely been termed Dutch‐flush merchant ships is proposed. Inconsistencies between field data and historical analysis are presented as a field of further research.