Archaeological Community Research Articles

Multidisciplinary digital methodologies for documentation and preservation of immovable Archaeological heritage in the Khovd River Valley, Western Mongolia.

Background: The archaeological and ethnographic heritages of Mongolia reflect a multi-millennial continuity of typically mobile-pastoral occupations across sparsely populated, environmentally diverse landscapes, but the threats of modernisation and industrialisation to those heritages are nevertheless present and substantial. The construction of the Erdeneburen Hydroelectric Dam on the Khovd River in western Mongolia is planned to submerge hundreds of archaeological features and jeopardise at least another thousand. Methods: The Mongolian Archaeology Project: Surveying the Steppes, in collaboration with the Mongolian Institute of Archaeology, integrates a variety of digital techniques including GIS (geographic information systems), Machine Learning automated site detection, drone mapping, and Structure-from-Motion LiDAR scanning to document the endangered archaeology. This paper presents the resulting dataset of archaeological features across three different impact zones associated with the dam construction and evaluates the degree of efficacy of the initial data integration strategy through informal partner feedback and self-assessment. Results: While only approximately 20% of the documented sites fall within the planned flood zone, the remaining sites will be subjected to collateral threats such as industrial and infrastructural development that will necessitate extended monitoring, both temporally and spatially. In consideration of these results, this paper argues that a 'responsive' mode of heritage disaster intervention can bridge the gap between 'reactive' and 'proactive' modes, but requires development of an integrated (digital) methodology. Conclusions: The paper concludes by offering a new, more interconnected 'transmethodology' that addresses spatiality, sub-sampling, data reuse, and community input across multiple disciplines such as cultural heritage preservation, salvage archaeology, computer vision, and community archaeology. The authors developed this 'transmethodology' and the resulting workflows out of a theoretical framework that considers principles of Symmetrical Archaeology, Resilience Humanitarianism, and the CARE standard for inclusive data management (Collective benefit, Authority to control, Responsibility, and Ethics).

Building a Sustainable Community Archaeology in Black Appalachia

Junaluska is a historically Black community in the southern Appalachian town of Boone, North Carolina. In 2020, we began a collaborative archaeology project with the community-based Junaluska Heritage Association to address two community concerns: (1) identifying unmarked graves at the Clarissa Hill Cemetery and (2) learning more about the nineteenth and early twentieth-century origins of Junaluska. Here we present our ongoing work on these heritage issues, including a survey of local residents, archaeological geophysics and excavation, and public outreach. We argue that community archaeology in Junaluska can be a model for collaborative heritage management and antiracist scholarship elsewhere in the US.

«University departments and Professor berets grow up on the base of this self-taught’s work»: informative possibilities of obituaries for the study of Lviv archaeology of the late XIX – first half of the XX century

Obituaries as a source for prosopographic research are considered. They are usually a kind of summary of a person's life, clearly tied to the place of someone's activity, focus on achievements, show the best features, and describe mostly not private life, but public benefit and contribution to a particular field of work. It is noted that obituaries provide an opportunity to explore professional activities, but working with them requires a rather critical approach, as the dead are usually said/written as «good or nothing». In addition, they were mostly written by mates, close friends, and colleagues but not enemies or scientific opponents, so this type of source lacked critical evaluation. There are cases when the author of obituaries written on the day of death and dedicated to the anniversary, gave a completely different estimation of scientific activity (example – V. Antoniewicz about K. Hadaczek). Obituaries provide an opportunity to recreate the circle of communication, personal relationships, joint projects, and scientific outlook – it can be clearly seen in the numerous ones published in Ukrainian and Polish newspapers and scientific journals. It is noted that texts dedicated to the first, fifth, or tenth anniversary are more critical than «fresh» ones written on the day of death. Texts dedicated to the anniversaries of death can be used to obtain the estimation of scientific activity from contemporaries, but those written directly on the day of death or funeral are often the only source where the burial place, traits of character, slight moments of communication with colleagues, and so on are displayed. It has been stated that in any case, the obituary's task is to preserve the memory of a person in a certain environment. In general, obituaries are a little-studied and promising source, contain useful information on various aspects of the professional and everyday life of archaeologists, and at the stage when the history of archeology is formed as a separate area of research, many names are known only to a very narrow circle, archives scattered in different cities, countries, continents and exactly they serve as the source that pushes to further research. It is concluded that further analysis of the available obituaries of archaeologists of the XIX – first half of the XX century will allow the reconstruction of the history of the archaeological community of Lviv and Halychyna. Key words: obituary, Karol Hadaczek, Bohdan Janusz, Lviv archaeology, memorial paper.

Unmarginalising participation in the past and enabling engagement in community archaeology – Dig Greater Manchester, a case study

ABSTRACT Dig Greater Manchester (DGM) was a large archaeological community engagement project operating within Britain during the years 2011 to 2016. Its scope and scale were designed to assess the impact of enabling local communities and individuals to acquire and enhance heritage skills and awareness of heritage-based practices, whilst also contributing to the exploration of the city region's experience of industrialisation. This paper looks at the ways in which the Dig Greater Manchester community archaeology project set about recording the impact of the project, especially individuals with learning disabilities. The community impact data was captured through specifically designed feedback questionnaires, one-to-one interviews with adult volunteers, one-to-one interviews with disability volunteers, and the input of psychology researchers from the University of Salford. The results provide data on how archaeology engagement activities can help to build communities and break down barriers, but also highlight areas where the project could have been improved.

Archaeological History, Memory, and Heritage at the White Marl Site, Central Village, St Catherine Parish, Jamaica

White Marl is the largest, most complexly organized pre-colonial site documented for Jamaica and it is increasingly at risk due to plans for highway improvements. The site is of fundamental importance to overlapping sets of stakeholders: local residents, descendant communities, professional and avocational archaeologists, and heritage managers. We consider concepts of memory and heritage, linking decades of archaeological research at White Marl to current conceptions of the place by descendants of the first Taíno settlers and by residents of Central Village, the modern community surrounding the site. We review White Marl’s archaeological history and situate the site in its current social, cultural, political, and economic context of Central Village. White Marl has been the focus of varied archaeological interpretations since the nineteenth century. In addition to the archaeological community, this heritage resource is important to local community members and descendants of the original Indigenous occupants. The Taíno Museum adjacent to the site, established by the Institute of Jamaica in 1965, now serves as a church and school for local residents. Continuities are explored between the Indigenous pre-colonial occupants of White Marl, current occupants of Central Village, and the Indigenous descendant community.

The Archaeology of Northern Slavery and Freedom

The Archaeology of Northern Slavery and Freedom

THE TERRACOTTA ANIMAL FIGURINES FROM DESPOTIKO: THE LIFE OF HUMANS AND OBJECTS IN THE EARLY IRON AGE CYCLADES BEYOND POLARITIES

Mandra, on the uninhabited islet of Despotiko in the middle of the Aegean Sea, is well known to the archaeological community, owing to the discovery there in 2001 of an extensive sanctuary of Apollo. Twenty-two edifices have come to light so far, and the systematic excavation continues to elucidate the long history of the site. The Early Iron Age marked the earliest activity there, traces of which offer fertile grounds for reconsidering life in the Cyclades at the time. The richest evidence for this period is offered by a secondary deposition, detected near two Early Iron Age buildings, which revealed thousands of clay sherds, extending from the late ninth/early eighth to the late sixth century BC, quantities of animal bones, and more than 60 metal objects. This article focuses on a small group of Early Iron Age terracotta animal figurines from this deposition. Critically analysing both their association with ritual and the polarity of ritual and profane, an attempt is made to unravel the lifecycle of these figurines, treating them as agents of activity. Their function and meaning are interwoven with the activities operating at the site during the Early Iron Age, at least two centuries before the foundation of the Archaic temenos.

The Bioarchaeology of Disability: A population-scale approach to investigating disability, physical impairment, and care in archaeological communities

ObjectiveThis research introduces ‘The Bioarchaeology of Disability’ (BoD), a population-scale approach which allows for a comprehensive understanding of physical impairment and disability in past communities through a combination of palaeopathological, funerary, and documentary analyses. MethodsThe BoD consists of three phases: 1) Contextualisation includes period-specific literature review; 2) Data collection consists of palaeopathological re-analysis of all individuals with physical impairment and collation of mortuary treatment data; and 3) Analysis integrates the gathered data, literature review, and theoretical frameworks to explore contemporary perceptions of disability. MaterialsThe BoD is demonstrated through an investigation of physical impairment and disability in later Anglo-Saxon England (c.8th-11th centuries AD) which includes four burial populations (Ntotal=1543; Nimpaired=28). ResultsIndividuals with physical impairment could be buried with normative or non-normative treatment (e.g., stone/clay inclusions, non-normative body positioning), and in marginal, non-marginal, and central locations. ConclusionsThe overall funerary variation for individuals with physical impairment was relatively slight, which may suggest that religious factors were influencing normative funerary treatment of impaired and potentially disabled individuals. The funerary variability that was observed for individuals with physical impairment was probably influenced by individual and community-specific beliefs. SignificanceThis research describes a population-scale approach to archaeological disability studies that can be replicated in other archaeological contexts. LimitationsIndividuals with non-skeletal physical impairment (e.g., soft tissue, mental) are not considered by the BoD. Suggestions for further researchThe BoD should be applied to different archaeological communities around the world to better understand disability and physical impairment in the past.

8 Hidden In(site): Meritocratic Stewardship and the Materiality of Volunteering

ABSTRACTThe Dr. James Still Historic Office and Homestead—home to a nineteenth century, self‐educated, African American doctor, born to formerly captive parents, who would go on to become the third largest landowner in a predominantly White rural community in Southern New Jersey—has been the focus of the Dr. James Still Community Archaeology Project (DJSCAP) since 2013. This paper, however, shifts the target of archaeological exploration and asks what we can glean from the actors in and around the site. Using data collected by DJSCAP, this chapter critically examines how a community comes to understand and commemorate their efforts to protect and preserve Dr. Still's meritocratic narrative via a material engagement with the site. Reflecting on the simultaneous navigation of the past, present, and future via objects, the chapter explores how “things” such as donations and donor plaques do the social work of volunteering, informing perceptions of effort, talent, memory, and entitlement around the site. Using materiality theory and an archaeological lens attuned to nowness, this chapter identifies key instances in which the articulation of bodies, ideas, objects, and labor generate fascinating insights into the theorization of meritocracy as a moral economy that underpins volunteering. This contemporary archaeological approach uncovers the materiality of austerity, informing how communities navigate systemic failures in heritage site management through individual and collective efforts that I call meritocratic stewardship.

“Tatar Encyclopedia” in the Context of Systematization, Generalization and Scientifi c Popularization of Knowledge about the Archaeology of Tatarstan

The scientific article is devoted to the study of the characteristic features of the development of archaeological content on the pages of the 6-volume "Tatar Encyclopedia" in Russian and Tatar languages. In it, along with a brief illustration of the history of the formation and development of archaeological research in the territory of modern Tatarstan, the conceptual and terminological content of the section «Archeology» of the «Tatar Encyclopedia» is considered in a statistical and rubricational context, and special attention is paid to the problem of personification of the names of archaeologists and numismatists on the pages of the encyclopedia. In addition, the article fragmentally analyzes the «Archaeological map of the Republic of Tatarstan» and «Archaeological monuments of the Tatar ASSR» in the context of using the materials of these reference publications when writing historical references for the section «Archeology» about ancient and medieval monuments of the historical and cultural heritage of the peoples of Tatarstan. At the same time, some critical judgments are expressed regarding the content level of a number of articles on the section «Archeology». The final part of the article talks about the socio-cultural significance of the development and publication of the illustrated encyclopedia «Archeology of Tatarstan». This encyclopedic publication will become a new form of systematization and generalization of archaeological materials about the material and spiritual culture of the peoples of Tatarstan, collected and published by the Russian historical and archaeological community for many decades.

Using UV-Vis-NIR absorption spectroscopy as a tool for the detection of iron and cobalt in glass: A case-study on HLLA material from the Low Countries

The early modern period is mainly characterised by High Lime-Low Alkali (HLLA) glass, a lime-rich glass made from plant or tree ashes, originating from 14th-century Germany and later used all over Europe. Attempts to link HLLA chemical subgroups to a particular point in time have failed so far. Driven by a request from the archaeological community, our research group has been exploring the feasibility of UV–Vis-NIR absorption spectroscopy as a non-destructive and in-situ applicable analysis technique for more than a decade. The main goal of this research is to provide a better understanding of the subgroups of HLLA glass and their respective dating via non-destructive means. A second topic relates to the role of cobalt as a potential indicator for either the type of applied ashes or for glass recycling.In this paper, we present the UV–Vis-NIR and LA-ICP-MS results of a total of 45 HLLA colourless glass objects or fragments, supplemented with three blue glasses from the 15th to the 17th centuries. First, we observed a correlation between iron and cobalt contents and that these two elements show more elevated concentrations starting from the middle of the 16th century. Different types of sources can be responsible, such as the type of raw materials, the tools employed, and recycling. We hypothesised that both elements were introduced through the wood or plant ashes used as fluxing agent. Then, we noted that the presence of low amounts of cobalt in colourless glass, can be observed through the analysis of the Co2+ absorption bands in the optical spectra down to 18 ppm. Next, we describe an approach to quantify iron and cobalt from the optical spectra and to date HLLA material by means of absorption spectroscopy, a valid, rapid, and non-destructive alternative for laboratory measurements. Finally, we show that the optical parameters (the Ultra-violet Absorption Edge (UVAE), the calculated Fe2+ and total iron contents, and the Co2+ absorption bands characteristics) allow discerning two glass groups: one dating to the end of the 15th-middle of the 16th centuries, and the other to the second half 16th-17th centuries. These results gain valuable information to further resolve the study on recycling, on the influence of the glassmaking tool on the glass batch composition and/or on the selection or treatment of the raw materials in HLLA glass.

Using archaeological data for the understanding of Late-Holocene Sea of Galilee’s level fluctuations

In the Jordan Valley, reconstructed changes of the Sea of Galilee level have shown sharp fluctuations of the water elevation during the Holocene. In this paper, we provide new data originating from the excavations of Kursi Beach archaeological site located on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee and compare them with other data gathered from the archaeological site of Magdala, located on its western shore. Our data yield to constrain Sea of Galilee level changes between the Iron Age II (10th–9th centuries BCE) and the Crusader period (11th–12th centuries CE), a period of high interest for the archaeological community. We demonstrate that water level was around -212 to -210 m mean sea level (msl) for the Iron Age II period. Lake level rose to -208/-209 m msl during the Late Hellenistic/Early Roman period. Water level remained low (<-213/-214 m msl) from the Byzantine to the Crusader period (from 5th to 12th centuries CE). Our data provide new knowledge for the understanding of variations in the Sea of Galilee level in antiquity. We highlight that water level fluctuations must have been key factors taken into account in the habitation pattern.

Minding the gap: Attempts at community archaeology and local counter-narratives at an archaeological site in Turkey

Community archaeologies should emerge from an awareness of the ways in which archaeological praxis is embedded with multiple pasts, subjectivities, materialities, and national and transnational histories. This longitudinal archaeological ethnography explores the lived experiences, perceptions of the past, and relationship to archaeology and archaeologists amongst villagers residing near the Kerkenes site in Turkey after attempts by the project to develop heritage awareness, a sustainable local economy, and collaborative management of the site within the community. However well-intentioned, considerable challenges to closing the gap in understanding between archaeologists and locals can arise when the efforts of archaeologists become entangled in larger socio-political frameworks beyond their control. Villagers have experienced being dehumanized as Muslim migrant workers in Europe and were Islamic-based nationalist supporters of the conservative Erdoğan regime. The archaeologists’ heritage-making practices inadvertently triggered symbolic associations of the project with the colonial endeavor. Locals produced counter-narratives about the site as a decolonizing response.

Laser-stimulated fluorescence in archaeology: non-destructive fluorescence imaging for museum and field settings

Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence (LSF) is a non-destructive imaging technique in which high- power lasers cause fluorescence on or just below the surface of an object, which is then imaged as a qualitative chemical map. The LSF technique has successfully revealed hidden soft tissues preserved in fossils, been applied to find fossils in the field and used to study cave formations. In this study, we detail a range of LSF applications in archaeology for the first time, using case studies from prehistory to English medieval times. Five applications are detailed: 1) Investigating active and completed excavations; 2) Analysing large-scale and hard-to-reach objects; 3) Aiding identification; 4) Understanding production processes; 5) Documenting and evaluating conservation interventions. These LSF applications promise to deliver tangible benefits to the wider archaeological community, underscoring the value of developing new technologies in the field of archaeology.

Experimental participatory methodology brings local pasts to contemporary climate action

This paper presents a Danish case study area experiencing cultural and natural environmental changes exacerbated by anthropogenic climate change. It describes and evaluates an experimental methodology that was developed to create and support engagement between the local community and climate action in the case study area. The methodology draws upon approaches and concepts from the research fields of environmental history, community archaeology and socio-hydrology. It is argued that this bespoke community-based, historical socio-hydrology methodology both bridges disciplinary divides and aids transdisciplinary collaboration with non-academic sectors. The methodology’s strengths lie in its use of narratives that are new to the audience, highly localised and concretely anchored in the landscape. This effectively engaged the community in climate communication and climate action within the local area. It is proposed that this methodology can be adapted for other case studies to support technocratic approaches to climate action.

Citizen science and deep mapping for climate communication: A report on CHICC

ABSTRACT This paper reports on CHICC: a community archaeology project funded by Horizon 2020 (2021–2023). CHICC (Culture, Heritage, Identity: impacts of Climate Change) explores the impact of heritage upon climate communication and action in the project areas of Denmark, Ireland and Scotland. The citizen science methodology involves working with communities to co-create digital presentations or ‘deep maps’ of heritage sites at risk from anthropogenic climate change. The early results of this unrestricted co-creation include the community’s deeper understanding of their local heritage and its relationships to climate change, which can be a provocation for climate action.

Hard roads to travel: Lessons learnt from practising community archaeology

ABSTRACT Manchester Centre for Public History and Heritage has developed community archaeology projects with marginalized communities, and within areas where archaeology is often disregarded, socially, economically, and politically. These projects use approaches based on the co-production of historical and archaeological knowledge, and have ethical implications for academics and participants; projects actively engaging the public in archaeology often do so by linking modern day communities to historical communities, and in this process uncover uncomfortable truths and painful pasts. To explore the issues raised by this work, this paper self and collaboratively reflects on experiences from two contrasting community archaeology projects in the UK and Nigeria. This discusses lessons learnt from these ‘socially engaged’ community archaeology projects, including contentious and unanticipated aspects that arose in the field, and such issues as dealing with conflicting values, ensuring long-term sustainability, supporting duty of care, and understanding psychological and emotional risk.

Assessing Open Science Practices in Phytolith Research

Open science is an integral part of all scientific research, but the extent of open science practices in phytolith research is unknown. Phytolith analysis examines silica bodies that are initially formed within and between plant cells during the life of the plant but become deposited in sediments once the plant dies. The use of phytoliths in archaeobotanical and palaeoecological studies has been increasing in recent years resulting in an upsurge in publications. The aims of this article are to assess open science practices in phytolith research by reviewing data and metadata sharing, and open access, in a sample of journal articles containing primary phytolith data from 16 prominent archaeological and palaeoecological journals (341 articles). This study builds on similar studies conducted for zooarchaeology (Kansa <em>et al</em>. 2020) and macro-botanical remains (Lodwick 2019). This study shows that 53% of papers shared data in any format but only 4% of papers contained reusable data, 74% included some pictures of phytolith morphotypes for identification purposes, 69% had a fully described method, 47% used the International code for phytolith nomenclature (ICPN 1.0) and only 13% of articles were open access. Steps forward are then proposed, including planning for open projects, making more articles openly accessible and implementing the FAIR data principles, to use as a starting point for discussions in the wider phytolith and archaeological communities to develop guidelines for greater integration of open science practices.

Future use or no future at all? An examination of post-excavation historical archaeological repositories in NSW

In NSW the availability of excavation records, physical remains (primarily artefacts), technical datasets, and reports associated with a historical archaeological project can only be described as varied. These forms of data can be collectively termed an archaeological archive. The storage of archives commonly includes any combination of small-scale centralised repositories, on-site facilities, private (client or investigator) off-site storage, or digital platforms. Archaeologists recognise the value of sustainably archiving these resources, as well as making them available for research, public access, or other intentions, however, what is the status of our combined approaches? Data collected from 40 historical archaeological sites in NSW has been used here to benchmark the current situation in the state. It was found that only three of the investigated sites had a complete and accessible archaeological archive with suitable metadata available before reaching the storage facility. This research outlines the precarious status of our efforts in archiving for perpetuity and the reliance on informal and personal networks within the archaeological community to discover and access archives. It is argued here that a framework of visibility, accessibility, and longevity should be applied to any project to consider the strength of archaeological archive retention methods. While the focus remains on understanding the key issues, several recommendations are also made for improving the consistency and long-term success of accessing historical archaeological repositories and data management systems. Key suggested approaches are to promote significance in the decision to create archaeological archives in the first place, prioritise resolving visibility constraints and focus on small and achievable system improvements.

Evidence for a mid-Holocene drowning from the Atacama Desert coast of Chile

Coastal archaeological communities were exposed to numerous risks associated with living in their liminal environment. Many of the problems faced by these populations have been recorded and interpreted through their skeletal remains, but death by drowning in saltwater is not easy to recognise and as such is invariably either ignored, inferred, or discounted as a possible cause of death. Here we develop and test an enhanced microscopic marine fingerprinting methodology to determine the death by drowning of a ∼5000 year old coastal hunter-gatherer from the hyperarid coast of northern Chile. Through the application of this forensic method, we were able to detect the presence of a range of exogenous microscopic material that allows us to postulate his death because of drowning in the nearshore environment. This methodology has the potential to greatly enrich our understanding of past human-environment interactions not only in northern Chile but also around the world's coastlines. How pervasive was drowning in prehistory particularly along an active, tectonic margin exposed to palaeotsunamis and extreme ENSO-related palaeostorms?