Archaeological Survey of the Ex-USS <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bugara</Emphasis> (SS/AGSS331)

In August 2017, a multidisciplinary team conducted the first archaeological survey of the deep water (242 m) wreck of the ex-USS Bugara (SS/AGSS331) using the remotely operated vehicles Argus and Hercules. The survey provided 8 h of direct observation with video and still camera documentation of the wreck, which previously had been identified by sonar and a brief ROV survey of portions of the hull in 2001. The 2017 assessment added considerably to an understanding of changes to Bugara after it sank while under tow in 1971. Bugara, a World War II-era submarine, served at the end of that conflict and through the Cold War. The submarine reflects a series of modifications to “modernize” it within the context of the Cold War. The examination of the wreck, along with additional archival research, offers more details not only on the probable cause of the sinking but also on subsequent site formation processes. The characterization of the wreck resulted in a reassessment of the site as more than an obsolete vessel accidentally lost when relegated to target practice. The archival record, now declassified, shows that Bugara’s loss also reflects its ultimate use, within the context of the Cold War, as a target for the Mark 48 torpedo, a newly developed “sub and ship killing” weapon designed in the late 1960s and tested through 1971 to take out Soviet deep-diving nuclear submarines and high-performance surface ships.     

Food and complex societies

In complex societies individuals from distinct social, economic, gender, or age groups often consume different foods because of various economic, political, and ideological factors. The food system not only involves what is consumed but includes the labor and technology that goes into the production and preparation of food as well as how certain foods are distributed and eventually discarded. Food systems within and among complex societies are thus tightly intertwined with social differentiation and the political economy and participate in defining and maintaining differential social relations.     

Preliminary report on the archaeobotanical investigations at Tell Abraq with special attention to chaff impressions in mud brick

Examination of impressions from chaff-tempered mud brick proved rewarding, given the poor preservation of carbonised seed and grain material at Tell Abraq. Individual chaff elements were found to be recognisable from the impressions and it was shown that naked wheat and barley chaff were used as a tempering medium. Charcoal samples indicate that two species of mangrove were present, one of which is no longer found in the area. Tamarisk and Ziziphus were also present. Date charcoal was common. This study remains preliminary, and further sampling and analyses have been planned for the future.