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Archaeology

Archaeology. Photo from my work at Mammoth Cave National Park. Archaeologists DO NOT:. Study dinosaurs. Just look for pretty or valuable objects. Just pick up artifacts. Spend all their time just digging. Buy, sell, or put a price on artifacts. What Is Archaeology?.

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Archaeology

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  1. Archaeology Photo from my work at Mammoth Cave National Park.

  2. Archaeologists DO NOT: • Study dinosaurs. • Just look for pretty or valuable objects. • Just pick up artifacts. • Spend all their time just digging. • Buy, sell, or put a price on artifacts.

  3. What Is Archaeology? • Archaeology is one of four sub-disciplines of Anthropology. • Anthropology is the study of people and their biology and culture across space and time. • Anthropology Subdisciplines: • Archaeology • Cultural Anthropology • Linguistic Anthropology • Biological or Physical Anthropology Archaeology Culture Speech & Language Biology of Man

  4. What Is Archaeology? • Archaeology is the systematic, scientific recovery and analysis of artifacts in order to answer questions about past human culture and behavior.

  5. Archaeology Terms • Systematic: A consistent way of studying anything. • Science: Methods and knowledge of studying anything. • Recovery/ Analysis: To collect and study artifacts. • Artifact: Any item resulting from human activity.

  6. Archaeology Terms • Question-based: Archaeologists study artifacts in order to answer questions about how humans lived. • Past: Archaeologists study human cultures that are no longer living. • Culture: Any learned behavior that is shared with others.

  7. History of Archaeology • The first archaeologists • Antiquarians or wealthy collectors of artifacts • Early Archaeology • It was a combination of several other sciences concerned with the evolution of man. • 1817 • Danish archaeologist Christian Jurgensen Thomsen opened the National Museum of Antiquities in Copenhagen to the public. • 1859 Origin of Species. • Darwin publishes his book. • 1920’s • Archaeology became a fully fledged scientific discipline. Christian Jurgensen Thomsen Charles Darwin

  8. Early American Archaeology • Earliest American settlers • They debate the origin of American Indians. • 1880’s • Archaeologists and anthropologists study Pueblo Indians as direct descendants of the first people in America. • 1890’s • Cyrus Thomas of the Bureau of American Ethnology proves the “Moundbuilders” were indeed Native Americans. Indian burial mound in Georgia.

  9. Modern Scientific Archaeology 1960’s • The invention of modern scientific excavation techniques • Using a multidisciplinary approach to study people. • Increasing impact of science on archaeology • Refinement of archaeological theory. DNA Botany Dendrochronology

  10. Academic Goals of Archeology • Culture History • Sequence of events • How artifacts change over time • Explain why events happened. • Lifeways Reconstruction • Technology, subsistence, exchange, settlement, social organization, ideology, etc. • Culture Process • Theoretical models on lifeways. Photo from my work at Mammoth Cave National Park.

  11. Applied Goals of Archaeology • Conveying the past as it’s known through archaeology. • The proper way to do archaeology. • Archaeology is a profession. • Public Education • Museum exhibits • Television shows • Documentary films • Public lectures, digs, or workshops.

  12. Prehistoric Archaeology Before writing. Historical Archaeology Document/writing assisted Classical Archaeology Greek and Roman Biblical Archaeology Underwater Archaeology Shipwrecks or anything else under water. Industrial Archaeology Industrial Revolution and other modern structures Egyptologists, Mayanists, Assyriologists Study of specific civilizations or time periods. Cultural Resource Management Management and assesment of significant cultural resources. Archaeology Specialties PowerPoint created by Amy J McCray, 2005, updated 2007.

  13. References • Applegate, Darlene. “Anth 130” In-class notes. Western Kentucky University, Spring 2004. • Fagan, Brian M. Archaeology: A Brief Introduction. New Jersey: Lindbriar Corp., 2003. • Society for American Archaeology. 19 September 2005. <http://www.saa.org/>.

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