Ochre,Ground Stone,and Wrapping the Dead in the Late Epipalaeolithic (Natufian) Levant: Revealing the Funerary Practices at Shubayqa 1, Jordan

The appearance of rich and diverse funerary practices is one of the hallmarks of the Late Epipalaeolithic Natufian in the Levant. Numerous burials at a number of sites excavated mostly in the Mediterranean zone of the southern Levant have fed into the interpretation of the Natufian as a sedentary society of complex hunter-gatherers. Here, we report on the human remains recovered from Shubayqa 1, a well-dated early to late Natufian site in northeast Jordan. The majority of the minimum of 23 individuals that are represented are perinates and infants, which represents an atypical population profile. Ground stone artifacts and traces of colorants are associated with some of these individuals, providing a rare insight into funerary treatment of subadults in Natufian contexts. We interpret the Shubayqa 1 evidence in the light of current and ongoing debates concerning Natufian burial practices and the issue of social complexity.     

Wrap a Wreck! In Situ Conservation of a Ship on Land Suffering from Fungal Decay

Many sixteenth- to eighteenth-century shipwrecks have been found after land reclamation in parts of the former Zuiderzee, one of the busiest waterways in Dutch history. After the land fell dry, some shipwrecks were excavated, destroyed, reburied, or covered with sand or clay. In the late 1970s a method was developed to mitigate degradation processes of some of the wrecks remaining in good condition by wrapping them in plastic foil. The idea was that the plastic would prevent evaporation and lateral subsurface flow. Wet conditions prevent decomposing of wood by especially soft rot fungi. Oxygen will be rapidly depleted by decomposition of organic matter.

Recent monitoring of wrapped shipwrecks has shown that this method of preventing rot worked exceptionally well. We adapted wrapping using new technology nowadays applied for sealing tunnels and landfills. We will present the implementation requirements, materials and new adapted method for wrapping shipwrecks.     

非完整性墓葬异地搬迁保护规程化研究

价值高、完整度好的墓葬越来越多选择整体搬迁保护。但在考古工作中,有结构缺损的非完整性但价值较高的墓葬不在少数。西安出土一座关中地区少见的、形制完整的宋金时期砖雕墓,尽管其结构局部缺损但研究价值高,是研究该时期墓葬形制、丧葬风俗的重要补充。为完整保留墓葬形制,兼顾再研究与展示,欲进行搬迁保护。保护前通过建立物理力学模型模拟墓室质心的偏移校正,并分析计算搬迁过程中砖壁的倾覆风险,确定了采取保留外部土圹固型、内部加固支撑的整体吊装搬迁方案;再根据理论计算出留土高度、通过模拟实验改进彩绘层隔离保护工艺,成功实现该墓葬的整体搬迁保护。本工作在文物搬迁保护中引入理论模型对缺损结构的量化评估,探究搬迁保护规程化方法,可为同类非完整性但价值较高的墓葬搬迁保护提供方法借鉴。