Supplementary notes for Arch reading in Course Packet (Chapters 5, 7,8)


 

I. TIME

·Two types of chronology

oRelative chronology

oAbsolute chronology

·Relative chronology

oStratigraphy

§Sequence of accumulated layers of human occupation

§Based on law of superposition

·Diagram illustrating law (from Arch, p.80)

§Stratigraphy of Karanis

·Village in Roman Egypt (2nd/3rd century AD)

oLocated in Fayum

·Excavated by archaeologists from University of Michigan

·Sectional plan drawn by archaeologists

oShows successive occupation levels (stratigraphy)

§Exceptions

·Disturbances among layers by humans or by nature

·Acquisition & re-use of older artifacts at a particular level

·Landfills (filling)

oSeriation

§Ordering of artifacts by stylistic changes

§Assumes cultural & stylistic change is gradual process

§Used for artifacts that do not derive from series of excavated levels

§Examples

·Seriation of pottery bottles according to stylistic features

·Seriation of wavy-handled pottery from Predynastic Egypt

§Limitations

·There can be sudden changes in cultural & stylistic traditions

·Cannot determine direction in which change is taking place

·Absolute chronology (chronometric dating)

oHistorical records & objects of known age

§Coins

§Dated texts

oRadiocarbon dating

§Measures decay of Carbon 14

·Half-life of Carbon 14 is 5730 years

·Graph illustrating the relationship between how much Carbon 14 is left in a sample & how old it is

§Can only be used on organic materials (e.g. bone, hair, wood, seeds)

oThermoluminescence

§Measures amount of light energy released by a baked clay object when heated rapidly

§Gives indication of time elapsed since object was last heated

§Used especially on pottery

§Significant margin of error


 

II. SPACE

III. ARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELDWORK