Distribution Of Archaeological Sites Research Articles

Viticulture in the Laetanian Region (Spain) during the Roman Period: Predictive Modelling and Geomatic Analysis

Geographic information system (GIS)-based predictive modelling is widely used in archaeology to identify suitable zones for ancient settlement locations and determine underlying factors of their distribution. In this study, we developed predictive models on Roman viticulture in the Laetanian Region (Hispania Citerior-Tarraconensis), using the location of 82 ancient wine-pressing facilities or torcularia as response variables and 15 topographical and 6 socio-economic cost distance datasets as predictor variables. Several predictor variable subsets were selected either by expert knowledge of similar studies or by using a semi-automatization algorithm based on statistical distribution metrics of the input data. The latter aims at simplifying modelling and minimizing the necessity of a priori knowledge. Both approaches predicted the distribution of archeological sites sufficiently well. However, the best prediction performance was obtained by an expert knowledge model utilizing a predictor variable combination based on recommendations on viticulture by Lucius Junius Moderatus Columella, the prominent ancient Roman agronomist. The results indicate that the accessibility of a location and its connectivity to trade routes and distribution centres, determined by terrain steepness, was decisive for the settlement of viticultural facilities. With the knowledge gained, the ancient cultivated area and number of wine-pressing facilities needed for processing the vineyard yields were extrapolated for the entire study region.

Distribution of archaeological sites of Ancient Peru is linked to climatology and natural vegetation

In this article, we try to discover a parallelism among climate and bioclimate belts, use of the territory, and previously studied plant communities, taking into account historical and archaeological data to find an answer as to how different cultures perceived the landscapes. After a statistical analysis generating a Sørensen dendrogram, we were able to observe how archaeological sites were ordered according to bioclimatic belts, crops, and human activity; the results of a canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) showed connections among archaeological sites, crops, products, and plant associations of the landscapes. Groups with the most humid climate represent areas with crops with a seasonal rain regime and shepherding of llamas and alpacas, while groups with the driest climate represent areas whose crops need irrigation. Notably, occidental slope areas with cactus associations present a terrace agricultural system irrigated by water springs, while sites near riparian plant associations are joined to vegetable gardens. Amazonian and Oriental Andean crops are present in the same bioclimatic belt in comparison to the coast. Using a minimal spanning tree (MST), hypothetical roads to exchange products between different crop areas could be traced with a high coincidence with the Inca Road (Qhapaq Ñan).

Holocene hydro-environmental evolution and its impacts on human occupation in Jianghan-Dongting Basin, middle reaches of the Yangtze River, China

Based on the comprehensive analyses of 18 core profiles’ sedimentary sequences and lithological characteristics in Jianghan-Dongting Basin of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and the spatial-temporal distribution of archeological sites in this area, we reconstructed the Holocene hydro-environmental evolution, and its relationship with human occupation. The comparison reveals: 11.5-5.5 ka BP, the water level of rivers and lakes in the middle Yangtze River appeared a rising trend, concurrently, under the development of Neolithic culture and rice agricultural activities, human occupation extended from piedmont plain to inner basin plain in the study area. The water level fell in 5.5-4.0 ka BP, meanwhile, the number of human settlements of Qujialing-Shijiahe culture rapidly increased, especially in the inner basin plain. The water level rose again around 4.0 ka B P, floods spread massively in this period, which led to the decline of Shijiahe culture. The main causes for hydro-environmental evolution in the study area are the fluctuation of sea level and the aggradation of fluvio-lacustrine sediments.

Геоинформационная идентификация районов археологического туризма в Южном федеральном округе

The interest in archaeological heritage sites and the possibilities for the development of archaeological tourism have been growing in the world in recent decades. Monuments of archeology are a separate phenomenon in the cultural system and are considered as a separate phenomenon in the field of inheritance and preservation of cultural identity. Revenues from archaeological tourism can be used to preserve archaeological objects and for educational purposes, which actually contributes to the sustainability of archaeological sites, including environmental, social, cultural, political, economic and educational aspects. The need to study the spatial patterns of the distribution of archaeological sites has determined the active use of mapping methods. Geoinformation technologies allow integrating existing registers of archaeological sites and cartographic materials into a single structured geoinformation product. Numerous monuments of material culture, identified on the territory of the Southern Federal District, reflect the successive stages of the cultural and historical development of the macroregion from ancient times to the Middle Ages. Archaeological sites on the territory of the Southern Federal District are conventionally divided into funerary, settlement, and ritual-religious monuments and are of significant interest not only for archaeologists, but also for tourists. The aim of this work is the geoinformation identification of areas of archaeological tourism in the territory of the Southern Federal District. ArcGIS (ESRI) acts as the basic GIS- platform, the initial data are information from the Unified State Register of Cultural Heritage Sites (historical and cultural monuments) of the peoples of the Russian Federation. The territorial distribution of archaeological sites in the administrative-territorial units of the Southern Federal District reflects the degree of archaeological study of the territory and promising areas for the development of archaeological tourism.

Geoarchaeology and geomorphology of the Metaponto area, Ionian coastal belt, Italy

ABSTRACT A 1:28,000-scale geoarchaeological map has been prepared for a large sector of the Ionian coastal belt of the Basilicata region, southern Italy, in order to investigate the relationships between the spatial distribution of archaeological sites of Greek settlement of Metapontum and the main landforms of this sector of the Bradano Foredeep. Archaeological investigation consists of an examination and a re-organisation of published data and new field surveys, which has allowed us to infer the relationships between landform elements and spatial distribution of about 1400 archaeological remnants of the Greek colony of Metapontum. Our results highlight a non-random distribution of the archaeological evidence and the strong influence of geomorphological features and processes on the settlement pattern.

Methods of Paleoecological Investigations: A Case Study of the Holocene Environmental Reconstruction

This work reconstructs changes in the Holocene paleolandscape, plants, and climate conditions of the Upper Kama Region based on integrated analysis of data collected through paleochannel, palynological, paleocarpological, and radiocarbon methods. The selection of these methods is determined from the objective to reconstruct paleoenvironmental conditions of human settling in this region. Parallel use of archeological and natural science methods has proved to deliver good results, while comparison of the findings revealed spatial patterns in the distribution of archeological sites of different ages and allowed detailed reconstructions of the Holocene paleoenvironment.

Working from the Known to the Unknown: Linking the Subaerial Archaeology and the Submerged Landscapes of Santarosae Island, Alta California, USA

Since the collapse of the Clovis-first model of the peopling of the Americas some 30 years ago, there has been growing interest in the Pacific Coast as a potential early human dispersal corridor. With postglacial eustatic sea level rise inundating most New World paleoshorelines older than ~7000 years, however, locating terminal Pleistocene sites along modern coastlines is challenging. Using the distribution and archaeology of subaerial Paleocoastal archaeological sites on California’s Northern Channel Islands as a guide, we developed a Geographic Information Systems (GIS) predictive model to locate and map submerged high probability landforms, which might contain Paleocoastal sites. Our results illustrate how archaeologists can narrow targets in their search for evidence of the first Americans along submerged Pacific Coast paleoshorelines.

Characterization of Native American vegetation disturbance in the forests of central New York State, USA during the late 18th century ce

Historic land survey records (LSRs) offer important details on local- and landscape-scale vegetation patterns related to Native American land-use practices prior to widespread Euro-American settlement. This study’s use of an expanded range of vegetation-related variables derived from LSR sources, combined with archaeological site distribution data, and analysed using complementary multivariate statistical methods, has provided new insights on the spatial and compositional dynamics of the vegetation of central New York State, USA, an area historically occupied by the Cayuga and Onondaga nations. The upland vegetation of the study area was modulated primarily by fire, followed by soil fertility, and canopy disturbance. Clear signals of Native American agriculture and silviculture were associated with a number of fire-tolerant vegetation communities that were geographically concentrated within an area most conducive to maize cultivation. Numerical classification partitioned the LSR vegetation data into distinct community types: mesophytic upland forest and xerophytic upland forest. This latter type was secondarily differentiated into an unequivocally anthropogenic landscape (Iroquoian agricultural mosaic) and a series of fire-tolerant forest and savanna communities with possible connections to silvicultural land-use practices. Distance analysis of ordination scores indicated statistically-significant spatial trends associated with the distribution of archaeological sites, with disturbance most heavily concentrated within 6 km of most sites. Given the success of this methodology, we recommend that this integrated approach become the standard for LSR-based research of Native American vegetation disturbance.

Cowries in the archaeology of West Africa: the present picture

ABSTRACTDespite the perceived importance of cowrie shells as indicators of long-distance connections in the West African past, their distribution and consumption patterns in archaeological contexts remain surprisingly underexplored, a gap that is only partly explicable by the sparse distribution of archaeological sites within the sub-continent. General writings on the timeline of importation of cowries into West Africa often fail to take into account the latest archaeological evidence and rely instead on accounts drawn from historical or ethnographic documents. This paper is based on a first-hand assessment of over 4500 shells from 78 sites across West Africa, examining chronology, shell species and processes of modification to assess what distribution patterns can tell us about the history of importation and usage of cowries. These first-hand analyses are paralleled by a consideration of published materials. We re-examine the default assumption that two distinct routes of entry existed — one overland from North Africa before the fifteenth century, another coming into use from the time sea links were established with the East African coast and becoming predominant by the middle of the nineteenth century. We focus on the eastern part of West Africa, where the importance of imported cowries to local communities in relatively recent periods is well known and from where we have a good archaeological sample. The conclusion is that on suitably large assemblages shell size can be an indication of provenance and that, while the present archaeological picture seems largely to confirm historical sources, much of this may be due to the discrepancy in archaeological data available from the Sahara/Sahel zone compared to the more forested regions of the sub-continent. Future archaeological work will clarify this matter.

Neolithic settlement dynamics derived from archaeological data and colluvial deposits between the Baar region and the adjacent low mountain ranges, southwest Germany

Abstract. The present study combines archaeological data with archaeopedological data from colluvial deposits to infer Neolithic settlement dynamics between the Baar region, the Black Forest and the Swabian Jura. A review of the state of archaeological research and an analysis of the processes leading to the discovery of the Neolithic sites and thereby the formation of the current archaeological site distribution in these landscapes is presented. The intensity of land use in the study area is compared with other landscapes in southern Germany using site frequencies. Phases of colluvial deposition are dated using AMS 14C ages of charcoals and luminescence ages of sediments and interpreted as local proxies for a human presence. Archaeological source criticism indicates that the distribution of the Neolithic sites is probably distorted by factors such as superimposition due to erosion and weathering effects limiting the preservation conditions for Neolithic pottery. A reconstruction of Neolithic settlement dynamics is achieved by complementing the archaeological data with phases of colluviation. Evidence for a continuous land use in the Baar region throughout the Neolithic is provided and sporadic phases of land use on the Swabian Jura and in the Black Forest are identified. In the late and final Neolithic, an intensification of colluvial formation can be noticed in the low mountain ranges.

Geomorphic changes along the Yiluo River influenced the emergence of the first urban center at the Erlitou Site, Central Plains of China

Geomorphological research at archaeological sites has shown that ancient environmental conditions have significant implications for understanding changes in archaeological site distribution and layout. The Luoyang Basin in Central China was a center for early urbanism including several large cities in antiquity, but the geomorphic environments that supported these ancient cities have remained uninvestigated. From 2006 to 2011, a field project was conducted in the Luoyang Basin in attempt to understand the relationship between environmental changes and the development of urbanism. Forty-nine profiles were sampled on the alluvial terraces of the Luoyang Basin to examine the geomorphological evolutionary history of the Yi River and Luo River. Our study indicates that the T1 Terrace formed around 7000 cal yr BP and provided a stable landform for Yangshao (7000-5000 yr BP) and Longshan (5000-3900 yr BP) settlements. However, massive floods around 4000-3800 yr BP destroyed some of these late Longshan settlements and caused the Luo River to change its course to southern part of the Luoyang Basin. Those floods significantly altered the landforms and laid a solid foundation for the succeeding development of the urban center at Erlitou.

The Cause of Formation of city from Warring States period to Qin and Han dynasties: Archaeological city site Distribution and site assessment using GIS

The Cause of Formation of city from Warring States period to Qin and Han dynasties: Archaeological city site Distribution and site assessment using GIS

Cultural evolution and spatial-temporal distribution of archaeological sites from 9.5–2.3 ka BP in the Yan-Liao region, China

With basic information from 8353 archaeological sites, this study describes a holistic spatial-temporal distribution pattern of archaeological sites of the prehistoric culture sequence from 9.5 ka BP (ka BP = thousands of years before 0 BP, where “0 BP” is defined as the year AD 1950) to 2.3 ka BP in the region that extends from the Yanshan Mountains to the Liaohe River Plain (i.e., the Yan-Liao region) in northern China. Based on spatial statistics analysis–including the spatial density of the sites and Geographic Information System nearest- neighbour analysis, combined with a review of environmental and climatic data–this paper analyses cultural evolution, the spatial-temporal features of the archaeological sites and human activities against the backdrop of climatic and environmental changes in this region. The results reveal that prehistoric cultural evolution in the Yan-Liao region is extensively influenced by climatic and environmental changes. The Xinglongwa, Zhaobaogou and Fuhe cultures, which primarily developed during a habitable period from 8.5 ka BP to 6.0 ka BP with strong summer monsoons, have similar maximum density values, spatial patterns and subsistence strategies dominated by hunting-gathering. Significant changes occurred in the Hongshan and Lower Xiajiadian cultures, with a significant increase in numbers and densities of sites and a slump in average nearest-neighbour ratio when the environment began to deteriorate starting in 6.0 ka BP. Additionally, with the onset of a weak summer monsoon and the predominance of primitive agriculture, sites of these two cultures present a different type of concentric circle-shaped pattern in space. As the environment continuously deteriorated with increasing aridity and the spread of steppe, more sites were distributed towards the south, and primitive agriculture was replaced by livestock husbandry in the Upper Xiajiadian culture. The most densely populated areas of the studied cultures are centralized within a limited area. The Laohahe River and Jiaolaihe River basins formed the core area in which most archaeological sites were distributed during the strong summer monsoon period and the first few thousand years of the weak summer monsoon period.

Environmental and social factors influencing the spatiotemporal variation of archaeological sites during the historical period in the Heihe River basin, northwest China

In northwestern China, many historical nomadic kingdoms and Chinese dynasties sought to control the Heihe River basin, an important location on the eastern part of the ancient Silk Road. Archaeologists have argued that changes in material culture are tied to the frequent turnover in polities in the area, but no published evidence supports these claims. In this paper, we evaluate the relative importance of environmental and political factors in determining the spatiotemporal pattern of archaeological sites in the middle and lower reaches of the Heihe River basin by using previously published high-resolution paleoclimate records and a variety of historical documents. Our results indicate that humans intensively exploited the Heihe River basin during Han dynasty (202BC–AD 220). Following the Han dynasty, during the Wei-Jin (AD 222–589) and Sui-Tang (AD 581–907) periods the number of archaeological sites. In the Western Xia-Yuan period (AD 1038–1368), people mainly settled in the lower reaches of the Heihe River basin and only returned to the middle reaches of the Heihe River basin during the Ming and Qing dynasties (AD 1368–1912). Although climate change and the local environment affected human activities in Heihe River basin, geopolitical events, such as forced mass migrations, are more responsible for influencing the distribution of archaeological sites over the past 2000 years.

Deposit modeling for archaeological projects: Methods, practice, and future developments

AbstractThis paper considers the application of deposit modeling within archaeological projects, summarizing the results of a Historic England funded project aimed at developing “good practice” for the application of these techniques within terrestrial environments. It provides an overview of what deposit modeling is, the environments where it can be used and the methods most commonly used. The paper identifies a series of issues and challenges in using deposit models within archaeological investigations, such as the archiving of geotechnical data, the testing of deposit models against the distribution of archaeological sites and features, and integrating sediment stratigraphies derived from deposit modeling with post‐excavation records. We argue that deposit modeling is a valuable tool for archeologists to employ and can be used to design appropriate excavation strategies to target sites and features, thereby increasing the information yield of a project. In this sense deposit modeling can be used as a framework for archaeological projects that are investigating sediment sequences in complex geomorphological environments, starting with pre‐evaluation data gathering, through to focusing excavation strategies, and within the post‐excavation analysis. Whilst this paper is focused upon the terrestrial archaeological record, the themes discussed have resonance for archaeological records across the globe, including the offshore zone.

The Last Glacial Maximum and Heinrich event I on the Iberian Peninsula: A regional climate modelling study for understanding human settlement patterns

Abstract The spatial distribution and dating of archaeological sites suggest a poor occupation of southern Iberia by hunter-gatherers after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and during Heinrich event 1 (H1) compared to Northern Iberia. The H1 was a period of cold and arid climate conditions and is suspected to have played an important role in the population dynamics in Europe at the end of the Pleistocene. In this study, the potential influence of climate change on the human settlement patterns in Iberia is analysed based on regional palaeoclimate modelling. Here, the WRF model is used to simulate continuous time slices of 30 years of climate conditions representative for both the LGM and H1 at high spatial resolution. The model results indicate that, apart from a general decrease in temperature, a considerable decrease in precipitation over southern Iberia occurred during the H1, that agrees with the available climate proxy data. The analysis of ombrotypes unveils extremely arid conditions, particularly over southern Iberia and during the growing season (summer), which could have constrained the availability of food and water to the inhabitants. The total area in Iberia that can be characterized as ultrahyperarid in summer enlarged from 2% (13 K km2) during the LGM to 22% (148 K km2) during the H1. Likewise, the reconstruction of vegetation types shows an increase of non-arboreal (open shrubland, grassland) types at the expense of arboreal types in southern Iberia for H1. Thus, the different climate conditions and changes in palaeovegetation between the LGM and H1 probably played a major role in the decrease of the hunter-gatherer populations in southern Iberia.

Remote-sensing data-based Archaeological Predictive Model (APM) for archaeological site mapping in desert area, South Morocco

Morocco hosts numerous archaeological sites, some of which are part of the UNESCO world heritage. Many of these sites, especially funerary mounds also called tumuli, or rock engravings and ceramics, are located in remote areas with limited access, particularly in the Saharan Morocco desert. We developed a remote sensing and GIS model to identify areas with high potential for hosting archaeological sites in the Awserd region of southern Morocco. A field campaign in a “reference site” zone of 21km2 has revealed 233 archaeological sites. Here we use satellite images and Digital Elevation Models to examine with various techniques (spatial analysis, statistical techniques, and fuzzy logic functions) the relations between the distribution of the archaeological sites and geo-environmental variables such as ground geology, topographic elevation and slope, orientation (aspect), and distance to water sources. We derive empirical relations that reveal that the distribution of archaeological sites depends on the above geo-environmental variables. We then use the empirical relations to anticipate the potential locations of archaeological sites in a region of 980km2 enclosing the reference site area. The model proves capable of predicting 582 sites in the larger region. Subsequent field observations there confirmed that about 80% of the model anticipations were correct. Our Archaeological Predictive Model (APM) can be scaled to larger areas and varied geographic settings, and hence can be a useful guide for archeological studies in desert regions.

Investigating the distribution of archaeological sites: Multiparametric vs probability models and potentials for remote sensing data

Archaeological remains generated by human activities in prehistorical and historical times result in anthropogenic spatial components of modern landscapes. The study of these features in geographical areas of interest can be advantageous to assist in both cultural heritage protection policies and the efficient management of the archaeological risk impacts inherent in infrastructural planning. As such, predictive distribution models are becoming an investigation method for archaeological landscapes. Moreover, the use of remote sensing data in this type of model, both in archaeological and ecological contexts, is gaining momentum. Based on presence-only data, two inductive predictive modelling approaches, i.e., a geographical information system (GIS)-based multiparametric spatial analysis (MPSA) and maximum entropy model (MaxEnt), were tested, integrated and evaluated for archaeological applications at different scales over the case study area of the Tavoliere Plain (Southern Italy). Presence data included sites identified via both remote sensing and archaeological survey techniques. Environmental variables included topographic, geomorphological and remote sensing derived attributes. Two contrasting repeatable criteria (i.e., correlation coefficients plus MaxEnt statistics and spatial principal component analysis (PCA) were used to select non-redundant environmental variables and Akaike's information criterion (AIC) to select the most parsimonious model configurations. A threshold analysis of the presence data was performed on the best model to define the minimum size of the presence data set with respect to the extent of the study area as well as the relative amounts of remote sensing derived response data to reach a stable performance of the model. The results show a higher performance of the MaxEnt models with respect to the GIS_MSPA models regardless of scale, indicating that the two approaches cannot be considered alternatives. The most parsimonious configurations of these models indicate that, depending on their scale, both spatial PCA and MaxEnt statistics can be used to select non-redundant input variables. The threshold analysis suggests that for the illustrated case study, a density of 0.2 presence sites/km2 and 45% of remotely sensed sites are necessary to improve and stabilise the performance of the model. Critical issues and opportunities for advances in the performance of the MaxEnt approach in an operational archaeological context are highlighted. These results suggest stakeholders should deal with predictive modelling prior to the undertaking of both land development and scientific field surveys and offer advice for informed decisions at this regard.

Post-glacial drainage basin evolution in the midcontinent, North America: Implications for prehistoric human settlement patterns

Abstract: The long-term variation in archaeological site distribution in alluvial settings results from how changing environmental conditions and drainage basin evolution interplay with cultural needs and choices to configure site distribution. These relationships are often believed synchronous with large-scale climate and environmental changes. Research results within the White River valley drainage basin, central Indiana, USA, aimed to understand the fluvial and alluvial processes and chronology responsible for landform development and associated human settlement. Two long-term processes characterized the White River since local deglaciation. The first occurred between ∼18 ka (local deglaciation) and 6 ka when channel incision and erosion/lateral migration processes dominated along the trunk. The second occurred after 6 ka when cyclical intervals of overbanking, levee formation, and vertical accretion, separated by intervals of flood plain stability, characterized the White River floodplain. Because channel migration and lateral accretion processes predominated before 6 ka, Paleoindian and Early-Middle Archaic sites are unlikely to be preserved in the valley bottom. Conversely, episodic terrace accretion process after 6 ka means that Late Archaic and Woodland sites, which occur in surface contexts on all terraces, may also be common in buried or stratified floodplain contexts. Our data indicate that the modern distribution of archaeological sites in the valley is incomplete due to geomorphic processes. Our conclusions are relevant to other drainage networks because similar processes and chronologies occur elsewhere in the world.

Human settlement, landscapes and environmental change in the Russian Altai Mountains during the Holocene

Human settlement within the landscapes of the Altai Mountains, especially in ancient times depended on natural factors. Change in natural conditions led to the mobility of people. This paper analyzes the identification of the relationship between landscapes and placement of cultures in the territory of the Altai Mountains in the Holocene. Additionally, the rhythms of Holocene climate change in the mountains are taken into account. To reach the aim of the study the landscape-archaeological GIS was created. The database of archaeological sites was created with the help of literature sources, archive materials and own field studies. The landscape maps were used to characterize the environmental conditions. The distribution of archaeological sites by types of landscapes proves that the reclaiming of landscapes was irregular in both space and time. There were periods of relative regression because of climatic, political and military factors. Comparison of climatic periods and stages of human exploration of the natural landscape shows that the most active development was during the periods of moist climate.