Course Description
The archaeological record is made up of the materials that can be seen by the naked eye, and the materials that can only be “seen” with the help of instrumentation (the microarchaeological record). In this course we will discuss diverse aspects of the microarchaeological record, including the methods used to carry out on-site microarchaeological research (including a short field trip). We will focus on the more common material components (bones, teeth, plant remains, the products of pyrotechnology), as well as the sediments in which the archaeological materials are buried. We will also discuss the changes that take place during burial (diagenesis).
The course is designed primarily for archaeological science students at the Weizmann Institute and elsewhere, but can also be an enriching experience especially for students at the Weizmann Institute from any of the major disciplines.
Outline
- Introduction: what is archaeology, the archaeological record, microarchaeology, chronology and diagenesis. How to extract the signals from the noise of time.
- Microarchaeology – the Toolkit. Methods widely used and some underlying processes that influence the state of preservation of the archaeological record.
- Chronology – the time dimension. Different methods for dating, the timeline of major events in the archaeological record and the integrated approach to the research field of chronology.
- Important Materials in the Archaeological Record
- Bones and teeth
- Plant remains (wood charcoal, charred seeds, pollen, phytoliths, starch, the dendrochronological record).
- Products of pyrotechnology (fuel types, ash and charred remains, plaster, ceramics and heated flint).
- Sediment minerals, rocks and authigenic minerals. Flint and basalt.
- Case Studies In:
- Chronology
- Ancient technologies
- Site formation processes
- Ethnoarchaeology
- One day field trip: operate a field lab at an archaeological excavation.