ANTHRO 2AC Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Zooarchaeology, Bioturbation, Ochroma
8 Dec 2016
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Document Summary
Material: recovery of archaeological data, recognition of archaeological data. Light and heavy fractions, recover charred plant remains; rise of paleoethnobotany: recovery of ecofacts: faunal analysis= zooarchaeology; floral remains, flotation, Plant remains preserved really well when they are charred, esp true in shell middens (really rich in eco facts) Phytoliths (plant and stone): microscopic sized silica bodies that are found naturally inside plants/organic materials these remain behind even when the plants themselves have decomposed. Excavation is very destructive, bc the materials are in a matrix-like spacial relationship which is very important in the story of what happened at that place. Destroy the context that is so important in the arch study. Most natives/protective agencies don"t like lots of excavation bc they want to protect those sites for the future: prohibitive costs of study cannot excavate entire sites, finite budgets to undertake archaeological field and lab work.
