Preservation of the Stone Age site of Isimila,Tanzania

Abstract

The Stone Age Acheulean site of Isimila is one of the most important sites in Tanzania. Excavated in the late 1950s, it has been open to the public since 1958. This note reviews the problems of preserving in situ the open-air activity floors excavated at Isimila, and describes measures taken by the Tanzanian authorities to manage and protect the site.     

Lark Quarry revisited: a critique of methods used to identify a large dinosaurian track-maker in the Winton Formation (Albian–Cenomanian), western Queensland,Australia

Thulborn, R.A., 2013. Lark Quarry revisited: a critique of methods used to identify a large dinosaurian track-maker in the Winton Formation (Albian–Cenomanian), western Queensland, Australia. Alcheringa, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03115518.2013.748482

A remarkable assemblage of dinosaur tracks in the Winton Formation (Albian–Cenomanian) at Lark Quarry, a site in western Queensland, Australia, has long been regarded as evidence of a dinosaurian stampede. However, one recently published study has claimed that existing interpretation of Lark Quarry is incorrect because the largest track-maker at the site was misidentified and could not have played a pivotal role in precipitating a stampede. That recent study has identified the largest track-maker as an ornithopod (bipedal plant-eating dinosaur) similar or identical to Muttaburrasaurus and not, as formerly supposed, a theropod (predaceous dinosaur) resembling Allosaurus. Those iconoclastic claims are examined here and are shown to be groundless: they are based partly on misconceptions and partly on fabricated data that have been assessed uncritically using quantitative measures of questionable significance. Such ill-founded claims do not reveal any substantial flaw in the existing interpretation of the Lark Quarry dinosaur tracks.     

Theory,Disciplinary Perspectives and the Archaeology of Later Medieval England

Abstract

In the year 2000, a lead canister and a penny of Henry III were recovered during a watching brief on a site in Colchester which is within 13 m of the find spots of two 13th-century coin hoards buried in similar canisters. While the container found in 2000 may have held a third such hoard (later recovered), it may also have been used as a floor safe. The site has connections with the Colchester Jewry, who were probably the principal agents in the handling of money and deposition of hoards on this site. The single penny may be simply a coin lost on a site where money changed hands in large quantities, or (speculatively) the only survival from a recovered hoard.     

Site conservation during excavation: treatment of masonry,wall plaster and floor mosaic remains of a Byzantine church in Petra,Jordan

Abstract

The conservation treatments carried out between June 1992 and August 1993 on the architectural remains of a Byzantine basilica in Petra, Jordan, during and immediately after the excavation are described. The treatments completed during excavation included: stabilization and consolidation of certain sections of the basilica's sandstone ashlar masonry; cleaning and consolidation of the unpainted lime wall plaster decorating the basilica interior; cleaning and consolidation in situ of the extensive remains of a figurative mosaic pavement in the two side aisles, and the fragmentary remains of the opus sectile pavement in the central aisle. The consolidation treatments included injection grouting using hydraulic mortar mixes produced in Italy, and mortar repairs using slaked lime and hydraulic lime. The existence of the mosaic required preventive conservation measures during the excavation, such as the construction of a temporary shelter over the site during the winter, the use of temporary protective facings over damaged areas of the mosaic, as well as the temporary backfilling of the mosaic with soil over a layer of geotextile in order to protect the mosaic between the initial phase of conservation work and the construction of a permanent shelter for the site in the near future. The importance of having a conservator present on site during the critical phase of excavation, when all materials are most susceptible to damage, is emphasized. The Petra Church Project will hopefully serve as a model for future excavations in that it employed two conservators from the beginning of the excavation: one for small finds, the other responsible for the site and the architectural remains removed from the site during the excavation.     

Population,Households, and Ceramic Consumption in a Prehistoric Cypriot Village

Abstract

Evidence from excavations at the Early and Middle Bronze Age site of Marki-Alonia (ca. 2400–1900 B.C.) in central Cyprus provides the base for estimates of evolving population size, community structure, and the scale of ceramic consumption in a prehistoric village. We explore factors such as the region's carrying capacity, tombs associated with the site, average household size, and domestic and funerary ceramic discard. Despite the unavoidable crudeness of any such measures, acceptable order-of magnitude figures can be developed with significant implications for understanding the size and structure of households, kinship relationships, and social reproduction, as well as the degree of craft specialization and the context of skills acquisition and learning.     

Assessment of Visitor Management at the Archaeological Site of Umm Qais: Condition and Problems

Abstract

Umm Qais is one of the most significant archaeological tourist attractions in Jordan besides Petra and Jerash. It is also popular with locals due to its rich diversity of natural history features and landscapes. However, there has been no detailed study of approaches to visitor management at the site. This paper investigates the visitor management pressures on the site of Umm Qais, seeking to develop an understanding of the approaches that direct the process of visitor management in an archaeological site. The specific objective of this study is to identify and analyse the current visitor management measures and tools at the site. It explores issues of hard and soft visitor management through monitoring, visitor guidance, and interpretation. The study has been conducted as a qualitative case study, and its results are based on direct personal observation and discussions with the personnel that have been conducted on-site by the Jordanian authors.

Despite the visitor management applied approaches, results reveal important and continuing challenges for Umm Qais due to limited visitor monitoring, weak information, and poor restriction measures. Based on the findings of the study, some recommendations are made in order to permit the local heritage managers to develop the site and its visitor management appropriately. This is an essential process in aiding this potential World Heritage Site to update approaches and adapt to the changing circumstances related to the visitor needs for the site. This will contribute to heritage and tourism literature and practice by enhancing the knowledge of visitor management at a national level.     

Socio-political change on a slave-raiding frontier: war,trade and 'Big Men' in nineteenth century Sisalaland,Northern Ghana

Abstract

Life in nineteenth century northern Ghana was characterised by insecurity as inhabitants experienced frequent slave-raiding. Local villages forged alliances with raiders as a means to alter the local political balance in their favour. Preliminary research indicates that many of the local powerbrokers who emerged as war leaders during this period also occupied easily defensible locations or well-fortified villages with access to trade routes. Archaeological investigations at the hilltop site of Yalingbong reveal that the community was well-situated to take advantage of increased trading opportunities but that status differences within the site are not marked.     

Seventeenth-century Pottery from Ash,Surrey

Abstract

About 2,000 sherds, mainly in white fabric, were found on a site at Ash which was one of several producing similar wares on the West Surrey and Hampshire borders. Some of the sherds were medieval, but the remainder were 17th century and are analysed in an attempt to assess the forms and characteristics of the post-medieval pottery made at Ash. Documentary evidence discloses the presence of potters in Ash in the 17th and 18th centuries, although there is no direct link with the site, and also indicates possible sources for the potters’ clay.     

Beached Shipwrecks from Channel Islands National Park,California

Abstract

Three shipwreck sites of the 19th century in Channel Islands National Park, California form case studies in evaluating the contribution of beached shipwrecks to maritime and historical archaeology. Two of the sites are consistent with the historically-documented Pacific coast lumber schooners J. M. Colman and Dora Bluhm, but the archaeological record is sparse. Material remains are compared to primary documents, such as original 19th-century construction contracts and insurance classifications, to make a case for the beached shipwreck scatters belonging to these ships. A third site, Comet, presents the other end of the spectrum; its remains have been conclusively identified by historical photographs and the site is a partially-intact hull embedded in the beach sand. This site was also recorded in detail and the formation processes of all three sites were examined to aid in archaeological interpretation.     

Account of an Informed Bat Exclusion at the Temple of Deir el-Shelwit,Luxor, Egypt

Abstract

The conservation of the painted Roman-era reliefs in the temple of Deir el Shelwit in Luxor, Egypt, was recently initiated by the American Research Center in Egypt (ARCE). As a critical step in a series of preliminary preventive conservation measures undertaken at the temple, a resident bat colony was excluded to control further deterioration of the painted reliefs and stone fabric (Figure 1). In consultation with a bat biologist, a comprehensive humane, low-tech emergency exclusion programme was designed and implemented, which included roost location, behavioural surveys, species identification, sealing of building openings, bat exclusion and the design of an alternate roost site. This programme may serve as a useful example for other conservation projects in Luxor, since it provides much-needed information on the behaviour of local bats, as well as relevant insights gained from the exclusion procedure.     

Wear Analysis on Early Mesolithic Microliths from the Verrebroek Site,East Flanders,Belgium

Abstract

This paper discusses the results of recent wear analysis on a series of 467 microliths excavated at the early Mesolithic (8410–7930 cal B.C.) site of Verrebroek in Belgium. Based on both macro-fractures (bending fractures and spin-offs) and traces of microscopic linear impact a distinction could be made between non-geometric microliths used as tips and geometric microliths mainly used as barbs. During the Pre-boreal the latter occur in large numbers and in various forms (triangles, crescents) that are used in mutually exclusive ways. At the transition from the Pre-boreal to the Boreal, almost simultaneously with the disappearance of bone and antler points from the Mesolithic tool kit there is a considerable increase in microlith tips. In this paper several possible explanations for this change are discussed.     

Site preservation at Gordian,an Iron Age city in Anatolia

Abstract

Since excavations began at the Citadel Mound of Gordion in the 1950s, the site has been exposed to the extreme weather conditions of Central Anatolia. The architectural remains, including a unique palace quarter and citadel, are deteriorating to the extent that the legibility of the site is threatened.

The excavated area within the mound, comprising more than two hectares, is too vast to be covered by protective sheltering given the current budget. Conventional backfilling is also precluded, as this would obscure key topographical elements of the site and distort the stratigraphical context of the city within its surrounding citadel.

To preserve the site under these conditions, a technique of sandbag buttressing and clay capping has been implemented at Gordion. Using locally available materials, this system of interpretive stabilization not only preserves the architecture of the ancient city within its stratigraphical context, but improves the legibility of the site as a whole.     

GIS,Archaeological Survey,and Landscape Archaeology on the Island of Kythera,Greece

Abstract

GIS and quantitative analysis are used to explore a series of simple but important issues in GIS-led survey. we draw on information collected during intensive archaeological field survey of the island of Kythera, Greece, and consider four questions: the relationship between terracing and enclosed field systems; the effect of vegetation on archaeological recovery; site definition and characterization in multi-period and artifact-rich landscapes; and site location modelling that considers some of the decisions behind the placing of particular Bronze Age settlements. we have chosen GIS and quantitative methods to extract patterns and structure in our multi-scalar dataset, demonstrating the value of GIS in helping to understand the archaeological record and past settlement dynamics. The case studies can be viewed as examples of how GIS may contribute to four stages in any empirically based landscape project insofar as they move from the spatial structure of the modern landscape, to the visibility and patterning of archaeological data, to the interpretation of settlement patterns.     

Managing,Valuing, and Protecting Heritage Resources in the Twenty-First Century: Peatland Archaeology,the Ecosystem Services Framework,and the Kyoto Protocol

Abstract

This paper argues that the development of the Ecosystem Services framework, which has recently emerged as an internationally recognized framework for valuing ‘the ‘natural capital’ of ecosystems, presents a number of opportunities for heritage management and the archaeological record, arguing that the inclusion of archaeological and palaeoenvironmental ‘value’ within this framework presents an opportunity to incorporate heritage alongside a range of other critical ‘services’. It presents a short case study focusing on the problems facing the preservation of peatland archaeological sites and deposits in situ alongside developments within peatland conservation and restoration initiatives partly driven by the ability of healthy, functioning peatlands to sequester carbon and hence mitigate climate change. It is argued that this drive towards peatland re-wetting may bring both positive benefits and opportunities for heritage management but also presents a number of practical issues, which now require active engagement from the archaeological community.     

PAUL COURTNEY BSc,MA, PhD,FSA1955–2013

Abstract

Based on the first extensive research into Bavarian clay tobacco pipes dating from 1600 to 1745, this paper synthesizes written sources and material culture with the aims not only of contributing to post-medieval ceramic studies but also of examining the implementation and impact of a tobacco monopoly within an early modern state. After discussing the methodology, pipes are examined as a medium for mercantilist-driven actions and as indicators of socio-cultural change. The archaeology of Bavarian clay tobacco pipes throws light on the operation of an economic system and on only partly recorded or unrecorded activities such as smuggling and illicit manufacture.     

Learning to think the past: Heritage,identity and state education in Wales

Abstract

Despite its problematic nature, the term Celtic is often linked with Wales and its history. Commonly regarded as a Celtic nation, the concept has been used to engender a sense of identity and also a sense of difference between Wales and other parts of the British Isles, particularly with England. As the national curriculum has been adapted to the needs of schools in Wales, some of these aims and objectives have been made explicit in many parts of the syllabus. Heritage sites in Wales also relate their history and present archaeology to a Celtic past and a case study of a specific site in Pembrokeshire is used to exemplify this approach. There is evidence that children find these portrayals of their past, as contained in the teaching in schools and site visits, interesting and informative. The dangers lie in the over‐simplification of the contested concept of Celticity and in the shortage of good evaluative assessments of these learning to think approaches.     

Natural Law,Poetic Justice and the Talionic Formulation

Abstract

Significant elements of natural law are reflected in the statements of corporal punishment presented in biblical law. In relation to the “eye for eye” clause from the talionic formulation, it is suggested that acts of blinding were perceived also as a form of punishment of an offending organ and can, therefore, be classified as examples of “instrumental talion.” This is distinct from measures which focus on the character of the sinner, or the nature of his crime, which are differentiated as “reflective talion.” Both processes convey an underlying desire for poetic justice, evidenced in biblical and ancient Near Eastern sources, where aetiological explanations clarify accounts of serious injuries to the eyes.     

Geoarchaeology and Archaeological Site Patterning on the Middle Gila River,Arizona

Abstract

Archaeological surveys and prehistoric settlement patterns are best interpreted when placed on a geomorphic map that defines the distribution and age of physical landforms. Survey data can thus be used to address questions of archaeological site visibility and synchronic and diachronic site patterning on the Gila River Indian Reservation, Arizona. A chronological series of alluvial and eolian landforms are defined on the reservation. The age of the landforms and underlying sediments has affected the preservation and visibility of the archaeological record. Further, late prehistoric Hohokam settlements (A.D. 700–1500) and their associated agricultural lands show a clear landform zonation and that the intensity of use of these landforms has changed over time.     

The correlation of surface and subsurface artifacts: A test case from Late and Terminal Classic Popola,Yucatan, Mexico

Abstract

Surface collections are commonly used by archaeologists to sample artifact assemblages, but the correlation of surface and subsurface artifacts is not fully understood. Cultural, taphonomic, and research-design factors that can affect the relationship of surface and subsurface deposits are reviewed and the correlation of surface and subsurface deposits is tested statistically with data from the site of Popola, Yucatan, Mexico, a Late and Terminal Classic period (a.d. 600–1100) village in the northern Maya lowlands. This study suggests that surface artifact density is not correlated with subsurface artifact density. Large-scale surface collections can characterize the overall assemblage of a site, but not any small area in particular. In shallow bioturbated soils there is no significant variation between surface and subsurface assemblages at any depth. Surface artifacts may be used to identify the presence of subsurface artifacts, but should not be used to suggest their absence.     

In Situ Preservation of Wetland Heritage: Hydrological and Chemical Change in the Burial Environment of the Somerset Levels,UK

Abstract

In situ preservation is a core strategy for the conservation and management of waterlogged remains at wetland sites. Inorganic and organic remains can, however, quickly become degraded, or lost entirely, as a result of chemical or hydrological changes. Monitoring is therefore crucial in identifying baseline data for a site, the extent of spatial and or temporal variability, and in evaluating the potential impacts of these variables on current and future in situ preservation potential.

Since August 2009, monthly monitoring has taken place at the internationally important Iron Age site of Glastonbury Lake Village in the Somerset Levels, UK. A spatial, stratigraphic, and analytical approach to the analysis of sediment horizons and monitoring of groundwater chemistry, redox potential, water table depth and soil moisture (using TDR) was used to characterize the site.

Significant spatial and temporal variability has been identified, with results from water-table monitoring and some initial chemical analysis from Glastonbury presented here. It appears that during dry periods parts of this site are at risk from desiccation. Analysis of the chemical data, in addition to integrating the results from the other parameters, is ongoing, with the aim of clarifying the risk to the entire site.