Multi-methods prospections on the site of Chèvremont (Liege, Belgium)

This paper is the result of a joint work between geophysicists and archaeologists in which the authors have used geophysical techniques to investigate the Greek and Roman settlement of Paestum, southern Italy for preventive archaeological research (commonly termed ‘rescue archaeology’) on an area of the ancient settlement affected by new building work and infrastructure. Starting from a background analysis of the archaeological and geological features of the site, an integrated geophysical approach based on magnetic, GPR and geoelectrical surveys was carried out on the Santa Venera area, a site selected to build a car parking. High-density and high-resolution cross-correlated geophysical surveys were carried out in different parts of the area to better resolve the structures. Systematic excavations confirmed the clues suggested by geophysical prospecting about the presence of archaeological remains such as walls, canals and tombs. By the use of non-destructive geophysical techniques a two-fold aim was reached: to properly plan the building of the infrastructure and preserve the ancient artefacts according to the advanced European guidelines on the protection of archaeological heritage.

In 2014, a team of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Archaeological Prospection and Virtual Archaeology, in collaboration with Holstebro Museum, conducted a geophysical archaeological prospection pilot study at several Viking Age and medieval sites in West Jutland, Denmark; sites that had been discovered earlier by aerial archaeology. The high‐resolution surveys employed motorized ground‐penetrating radar (GPR) and magnetometer systems as well as novel post‐processing software. The aim of this study was to test the suitability of these methods and the chosen approach to efficiently explore, investigate and document prehistoric settlements on a large scale under the prevalent environmental conditions in this part of Denmark. Over the course of five days of fieldwork, numerous structures of archaeological interest, such as the remains of longhouses, property boundaries, pathways, pit houses and other buried remains of the settlements, were detected and mapped. The combination of the data gathered by magnetic and GPR prospection with the already existing aerial imagery permitted an integrated archaeological interpretation, resulting in considerable new knowledge about the investigated sites. In this paper, we present the results obtained for the Viking Age settlement at Stadil Mølleby and a medieval village near Rysensten, both situated on sandy soils.

Evidence was discovered at Llanelen for ecclesiastical and domestic occupation from the sixth century to the present day. An early medieval phase of mixed domestic and early ecclesiastic activity is represented by a small timber chapel, eight graves and other features. The timber structure was overlain by a substantial earthen platform on which a stone church was built in two stages. Twenty-four graves were found in association with this structure. By the late thirteenth or fourteenth century ecclesiastical activity had given way to domestic use. At this time major modifications were made to the stone church and a second building constructed nearby. A diverse range of metalwork, ceramics and glass, together with a limited amount of organic material, was found on the site. Geophysical and other survey work was carried out in order to identify features associated with iron production, which formed one element of the site's economy.

The ancient site of Olympia is located on the northern fringe of the Basin of Makrisia at the confluence of the Kladeos and Alpheios rivers (western Peloponnese, Greece) and was used as a venue for the Panhellenic Games from Archaic times until the 4th century AD. Geophysical prospection (frequency domain electromagnetic induction and electrical resistivity tomography) was carried out as a basis for detailed geoarchaeological investigations. In doing so, we identified a previously unknown building structure adjacent to the Altis, the inner part of the sanctuary at Olympia. Situated south of the Southwest Thermae, this structure measures at least 100 m (WSW-ENE) by 80 m (NNW-SSE). Its external orientation is in line with the orientation of the Southwest Thermae and the Leonidaion. We retrieved sediment cores from 17 different locations in combination with high-resolution direct push sensing from inside the newly found structure. All cores revealed distinct units of organic-rich limnic sediments dominated by clay and fine silt. Geochemical and micropaleontological analyses of selected sediment samples indicate highly eutrophic conditions, as evidenced by elevated phosphorous concentrations and the dominance of the ostracod species Cyprideis torosa, which is able to live under low-oxygen conditions. Moreover, molecular biomarker analyses show a significant input of lipid fecal markers, implying strong anthropogenic pollution. Further, the limnic sediments include numerous charcoal remains and abundant diagnostic artifacts such as ceramic fragments and building material. Radiocarbon dating documents that these limnic conditions persisted within the building structure from at least the 5th century BC to the 6th century AD. The identified building structure lies in the immediate proximity to the Lake of Olympia, which was recently found to have existed from the mid-Holocene to the Medieval period. Its characteristic filling with fine-grained sediments and multiple indications for a strongly polluted and heavily used standing water environment let us hypothesize that it was possibly used as a harbor installation. A harbor at ancient Olympia could have been used to reach the sanctuary by boat and to transport goods of all kinds.

Drilling shallow stratigraphic boreholes in deep water is an important component leading to reduction of exploratory costs. The Complete Coring System (CCS), using special retrievable tools and large diameter aluminium drill pipes has proved to be a possible way to perform this task. CCS combines experience of Russian continental scientific drilling techniques with ODP research efforts and is represented by several coring methods along with sequential drilling using a retractable bit and logging without tripping of the drillstring. Separate units of the system have been used both onshore and offshore in different geological conditions. In 1993 CCS has been utilized for drilling in 1500 m water depth offshore Norway.

Complete System for Continuous Coring With Retrievable Tools in Deep Water Michael Gelfgat Michael Gelfgat Aquatic Co. Ltd. Search for other works by this author on: This Site Google Scholar Paper presented at the IADC/SPE Drilling Conference, Dallas, Texas, February 1994. Paper Number: SPE-27521-MS https://doi.org/10.2118/27521-MS Published: February 15 1994 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Twitter LinkedIn Get Permissions Search Site Citation Gelfgat, Michael. "Complete System for Continuous Coring With Retrievable Tools in Deep Water." Paper presented at the IADC/SPE Drilling Conference, Dallas, Texas, February 1994. doi: https://doi.org/10.2118/27521-MS Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Reference Manager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentAll ProceedingsSociety of Petroleum Engineers (SPE)SPE/IADC Drilling Conference and Exhibition Search Advanced Search AbstractDrilling shallow stratigraphic boreholes in deep water is an important component leading to reduction of exploratory costs. The Complete Coring System (CCS), using special retrievable tools and large diameter aluminium drill pipes has proved to be a possible way to perform this task. CCS combines experience of Russian continental scientific drilling techniques with ODP research efforts and is represented by several coring methods along with sequential drilling using a retractable bit and logging without tripping of the drillstring. Separate units of the system have been used both onshore and offshore in different geological conditions. In 1993 OCS has been utilized for drilling in 1500 m water depth offshore Norway.IntroductionGenerally the accepted way of the new offshore area investigation for oil and gas or other deposits consists of several stages which include:Geophysical survey;Sampling and coring with soil investigation;Prospecting or exploratory drilling with coring, logging and (probably) testing the hole;Development drilling for productionEvery stage needs a certain type of vessel to conduct the work. The most expensive and complex is stage "C" because an unknown geological structure will have to be drilled from the "full scale" platform. That means: large diameter hole spudding; running the casing strings; riser and BOP system application. But the risk of unexpected problems and negative results are always present.P. 823^ Keywords: retractable bit, complete system, retrievable tool, drilling, core diameter, sediment, deep water, diameter, downhole motor, spe 27521 Subjects: Drilling Operations, Coring, fishing This content is only available via PDF. 1994. IADC/SPE Drilling Conference You can access this article if you purchase or spend a download.

Neogene ignimbrites of the Nevsehir plateau (Central Turkey): stratigraphy, distribution and source constraints

This paper reviews archaeobotanical remains (seeds and fruits) from some early medieval sites in the Mediterranean area of southern France (Lower Languedoc, Roussillon, Provence and Corsica). Four periods are distinguished, from the 5th-6th to the 11th-12th centuries A.D. The influence upon the results of the reliability of the samples, and the type of features from which they came, is discussed. The few sites with abundant material limit the evidence for the farming system. A comparison with northern France shows differences in the role of some crops in the local economy. The main crop plants were Triticum aestivum/durum, Hordeum vulgare and Vitis vinifera, followed by relatively smaller amounts of Avena sativa. Secale cereale and Panicum miliaceum occur sporadically. Specific identification of hulled wheat (T. dicoccum/spelta and T. cf. monococcum) is equivocal. The occurrence of Vicia faba var. minor, Pisum sativum, Lathyrus cicera and Linum usitatissimum varies between sites. The number of Lens culinaris finds indicates its probable cultivation. The occurrence of Cicer arietinum is limited in assemblages of this area. As in previous centuries, Vitis vinifera is the most common fruit of French medieval sites. Written sources from Catalonia and Languedoc and results from rescue excavations indicate that the nature of viticulture changed after the Gallo-Roman period. Other cultivated fruits, Olea europaea, Prunus dulcis, P. domestica, P. avium, P. persica, Pinus pinea, Morus nigra, Ficus carica, Juglans regia and gathered wild fruit occur rarely. The farming, which was based on mixed farming, includes use of wetland and meadow.

A series of shell middens and miscellaneous habitation sites, located in a dune system in west County Galway, have been exposed and are slowly disappearing through wind, wave and surface erosion. In 1992 a project was initiated to record, sample and date some of these sites and the radiocarbon results demonstrated that activity in the area spanned the Early Bronze Age through to the Iron Age and into the early and post medieval periods. This preliminary fieldwork was succeeded by the excavation of three of the better-preserved sites; a Bronze Age midden in 1994 and two early medieval sites (the subject of this paper), in 1997. The medieval sites dated to the late-seventh to ninth century ad and were represented by a sub-circular stone hut with a hearth and the charred remains of a more ephemeral wooden tent-like structure. The discovery of a bronze penannular brooch of ninth/tenth century date at the latter site would suggest that the settlements are not the remains of transient, impoverished peoples of the lower classes of society, eking out a living along the coast. The calcareous sands ensured good preservation of organic remains—fish and mammal bones, charred cereal grains, seeds and seaweed, and marine molluscs. Analyses of these indicated exploitation of marine resources but, otherwise, were comparable with the diet and economy represented by assemblages from established contemporary site types of the period. Unlike raths, crannógs and monastic settlements, however, the volume of material represented at the Galway sites was slight, despite the excellent preservation conditions. A range of seasonal indicators also suggested temporary habitation: probable late-spring/-summer occupation of the stone hut site and autumnal occupancy of the second, less substantial site. It is suggested that the machair plain, beside which the dunes are located, was most probably the attraction for settlers to the area and was exploited as an alternative pasture for the seasonal grazing of livestock.

Awls have been used for perforating various types of materials from the Paleolithic to the early medieval period, until they were replaced by their metal equivalents. Though the technology of the manufacture has changed, the form remained virtually the same, containing of a handle and a shaft. Stiluses are the component of the stationery set, which also consists of the wax tablets. The latter however, very rarely preserve to our times. Bone awls and stiluses are as well the common type of relics found on the early medieval sites. Recent studies were mainly oriented on their chronological and typological classification and on determining the place of their manufacture and the place of their use. Yet, there were no attempts of conducting a use wear analysis, which leads to the appropriate characteristic of these tools, previously obtained in a very generic way, mostly basing on their morphological features which is quite misleading, due to their overall similarity. That was an impulse to undertake research on that field. Conducted experiments and use-wear analysis resulted in obtaining an accessible way to distinguish bone awls from bone stiluses, which enabled authoress to apply this method on genuine artifacts from early medieval sites.

Evidence of non-adult vitamin C deficiency in three early medieval sites in the Jaun/Podjuna Valley, Carinthia, Austria

This article presents the first results of a new archaeological survey carried out by the LA3M laboratory (CNRS / Aix-Marseille University), in cooperation with archaeologists from Armenia, on Yereruyk Early Christian and Medieval site, in the North-West of the Republic of Armenia. The report is introduced by a brief history of the study of Yereruyk, and a short presentation of its place in Armenian architecture. Then follow synthetic observations on the main fields of intervention of LA3M’s multidisciplinary team: building archaeology of preserved elevations, lapidary material, excavations in the necropolis (cemetery), on the basilica’s South edge, anthropological aspects of these investigations, and lastly, preliminary geomorphologic observations around the remains of a “dam”. The article ends with prospects of orientations for following campaigns.

Памятники эпохи раннего железного века - средневековья Южного Предуралья: источниковедческий контекст (лес и лесостепь)

Slag Inclusions in Iron Artifacts from Cemeteries at Kichigino I and Krasnaya Gorka, and the Metallurgy of the Early Iron Age Itkul Culture

Egryn is a working farm on the west coast of Meirionnydd, Wales. Its cultural landscape represents a fascinating slice of history, and includes a collection of buildings and monuments ranging from Neolithic long cairns to twentieth-century manganese workings, encompassing a Bronze Age stone circle, an Iron Age round house, early medieval platform sites, a sixteenth-century hall house, a seventeenth-century house, and eighteenth- and nineteenth-century agricultural buildings. The medieval house is Grade II*-listed, while all the other buildings are Grade II-listed and the majority of the archaeological sites are Scheduled Ancient Monuments.The farm was given to the National Trust in 2000, and provided an exciting challenge; how should the property be cared for using the highest building conservation standards, whilst giving public access to both the buildings and the landscape, and supporting the continuation of farming on the site?The following paper is a case study of the project; it discusses the approaches taken to the conservation and details some of the specific issues which have arisen during the work so far.