Practical and theoretical geoarchaeology /

Practical and Theoretical Geoarchaeology provides an invaluable overview of geoarchaeology and how it can be used effectively in the study of archaeological sites and contexts. Taking a pragmatic and functional approach, this book presents a fundamental, broad-based perspective of the essentials of...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors:	Goldberg, Paul (Author), Macphail, Richard (Author)
Format:	eBook
Language:	English
Published:	Malden, MA ; Oxford : Blackwell Pub., 2006.
Subjects:	Archaeological geology. Electronic books.
Online Access:	Connect to the full text of this electronic book

Table of Contents:

Part I: Traditional Geoarchaeology
1 Sediments
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Types of sediment
2 Stratigraphy
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Stratigraphy and stratigraphic principles
2.3 Facies and microfacies
2.4 Correlation
2.5 Keeping track: the Harris Matrix
2.6 Conclusions
Box 2.1 The Paleoindian-Archaic site of Wilson-Leonard, Texas
3 Soils
3.1 Introduction
3.2 The five soil forming factors
3.3 Soil profiles and soil properties
3.4 Important soil forming processes
3.5 Conclusions
Box 3.1 The five factors of soil formation and Bronze Age Brean Down, UK
Box 3.2 Cold climate soils
4 Hydrological Systems I: slopes and slope deposits
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Water movement on slopes
4.3 Erosion, movement, and deposition on slopes
4.4 Conclusions
5 Hydrological Systems II: rivers, lakes, and wetland
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Stream erosion, transport, and deposition
5.3 Stream deposits and channel patterns
5.4 Floodplains
5.5 Stream terraces
5.6 Lakes and wetlands
5.7 Conclusions
Box 5.1 Upper and Middle Palaeolithic sites of Nahal Zin, Central Negev, Israel
6 Aeolian settings and geoarchaeological environments
6.1 Introduction
6.2 Sandy aeolian terrains
6.3 Examples of sites in dune contexts
6.4 Bioturbation in sandy terrains
6.5 Fine grained aeolian deposits
6.6 Conclusions
Box 6.1 Aeolian features in desert environments
7 Coasts
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Palaeo sea shores and palaeo coastal deposits
The high energy cliff/beach zone
Coastal dunes
Low energy estuarine mudflat and lagoonal environments
Salt marsh, mangrove and other swamplands
Middens
7.3 Conclusions
Box 7.1 Boxgrove, UK: the marine and salt marsh sequence
Box 7.2 Drowned coasts of Essex and the River Severn, UK.
8 Caves and rockshelters
8.1 Introduction
8.2 Formation of caves and rock shelters
8.3 Cave deposits and processes
8.4 Environmental reconstruction
8.5 Conclusions
Box 8.1 Kebara Cave, Israel
Part II Nontraditional Geoarchaeological Approaches
9 Human impact on landscape: forest clearance, soil modifications, and cultivation
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Forest clearance and soil changes
9.3 Forest and woodland clearance features
9.4 Cultivation and manuring
9.5 Landscape effects
9.6 Conclusions
Box 9.1 Cultivation at Late Roman/Saxon Oakley, Suffolk, UK
10 Occupation deposits I: concepts and aspects of cultural deposits
10.1 Introduction
10.2 Concepts and aspects of occupation deposits
10.3 Stratigraphic sequences as material culture, and concepts and uses of space
10.4 Time and scale
10.5 Settlement-landscape interrelationships
10.6 Origin and predepositional history of occupation deposits
10.7 Depositional history
10.8 Postdepositional modifications
10.9 Conclusions
11 Occupation deposits II: examples from the Near East, North America, and Europe
11.1 Introduction
11.2 Tells and mounds
11.3 Mounds
11.4 Urban archaeology of Western Europe
11.5 Early medieval settlement
11.6 Medieval floors of Northwest Europe
11.7 Conclusions
Box 11.1 Tells
Box 11.2 Grubenhäuser
12 Experimental archaeology
12.1 Introduction
12.2 Effects of burial and aging
12.3 Experimental ancient farms at Butser and Umeå
12.4 Conclusions
13 Human materials
13.1 Introduction
13.2 Constructional materials
Mortar
Plaster
Turf
Building clay
Mud brick
13.3 Metal working
13.4 Conclusions
Box 13.1 Brickearth walls
Box 13.2 Terra preta and European dark earth.
14 Applications of geoarchaeology to forensic science
14.1 Introduction
14.2 Soils and clandestine graves
14.3 Provenancing and obtaining geoarchaeological information from crime scenes
14.4 Other potential methods
14.5 Practical approaches to forensic soil sampling and potential for soil micromorphology
14.6 Conclusions
Part III Field and Laboratory Methods, Data, and Reporting
15 Field-based methods
15.1 Introduction
15.2 Regional-scale methods
15.3 Shallow geophysical methods
15.4 Coring and trenching techniques
15.5 Describing sections: soils and sediments in the field
15.6 Collecting samples
15.7 Sample and data correlation
15.8 Conclusions
16 Laboratory techniques
16.1 Introduction
16.2 Physical techniques
16.3 Soil characterisation
Phosphate analysis
16.4 Magnetic susceptibility
16.5 Sourcing
16.6 Microscopic methods and mineralogy
Soil micromorphology
Fluorescence microscopy
Image analysis
Heavy minerals
Scanning Electron Microscope
16.7 Conclusions
17 Reporting and publishing
17.1 Introduction
17.2 Management of sites and reporting
17.3 Fieldwork and assessment/evaluation reporting
17.4 Postexcavation reporting and publication
17.5 Site interpretation
17.6 Conclusions
Box 17.1 How to write a report
Box 17.2 Reporting: London Guildhall
18 Concluding remarks and the geoarchaeological future.