ARCHEOLOGY: A METHOD OF STUDYING HISTORY

INTRODUCTION

• Archeology: the study of human history and prehistory through excavation and the analysis of artifacts and other remains.• Artifacts found are a primary resource for

anthropologists, ethnologists, paleontologists, biologists, and historians.• Archeology is essentially destruction: once a site

has been excavated, it can never be reworked.• Accurate and meticulous notes are essential.• A grid is made of the site with all notes painfully

recorded in detail.

DIG TEAM

• Members of an archeological dig can include:• Field Director: trained and licensed archeologist• Supervisors and crew• Photographers and surveyors• Analyzers: historians, zoologists, botanists,

geographers, pathologists (medical)

TYPES OF ARTIFACTS

• Inorganic remains – remains like stone tools or pottery that have been created• Marks on tools can give information on what it is used for• Stones used for specified tasks and their quarries• Pottery is the most common of all archeological finds• Style, clay, name of the potter all provide clues

• Organic remains – remains of living things (plants and animals)• Best preserved in dry/hot regions, freezing conditions, or

in waterlogged areas (peat bogs preserve flesh but not bones because they are acidic)

CONCLUSIONS FROM FINDINGS

• Wood – was it from the environment or used by humans? Used in buildings or as a tool?• Human Remains• Age - analyse the teeth for you, bone fusions for adults• Sex – bone structure (pelvis, density)• Disease – deformation of bones (arthritis, tuberculosis,

syphilis)• Cause of death – wounds from weapons (swords, holes)

• Archeologists are really just detectives or crime scene investigators but of ancient sites

HOMEWORK

• Bring in one random item from home. • Imagine it is the year 4000 CE and you are an

archaeologist examining these objects. • Hypothesize characteristics of the civilization that

left these artifacts behind. • Be prepared to defend your hypotheses with

proof to a partner or maybe the class.