16 research outputs found

    Animal Scavenging and Scattering and the Implications for Documenting the Deaths of Undocumented Border Crossers in the Sonoran Desert,

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    Since 1998, over 5500 people have died while attempting to cross the U.S.–Mexico border without authorization. These deaths have primarily occured in the Arizona desert. Despite the high volume of deaths, little experimental work has been conducted on Sonoran Desert taphonomy. In this study, pig carcasses were used as proxies for human remains and placed in different depositional contexts (i.e., direct sunlight and shade) that replicate typical sites of migrant death. Decomposition was documented through daily site visits, motion‐sensitive cameras and GIS mapping, while skeletal preservation was investigated through the collection of the remains and subsequent faunal analysis. Our results suggest that vultures and domestic dogs are underappreciated members of the Sonoran scavenging guild and may disperse skeletal remains and migrant possessions over 25 m from the site of death. The impact of scavengers and the desert environment on the decomposition process has significant implications for estimating death rates and identifying human remains along the Arizona/Mexico border.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/110576/1/jfo12597.pd

    Geoarchaeological evaluation of the soil profiles and collapsed Neolithic structures in Trenches XIX, XXII and XXIII at Drenovac, Serbia

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    Evaluative geoarchaeological investigations using thin section micromorphology, physical, geochemical and infrared spectroscopy analyses of the Neolithic structures in Trenches XIX, XXII and XXIII at Drenovac have revealed that the site was built on disturbed clay-enriched brown forest soils. The collapsed structures were highly burnt and appear to have been kept very clean and free from the buildup of settlement-derived rubbish material, both inside and outside the buildings. These promising results suggest that further systematic geoarchaeological investigations of the floor and ground surfaces inside and outside the structures will provide very valuable new information on the use of space and activity areas in this Neolithic settlement

    Gourob

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    Dans le cadre de cette troisième campagne, le travail sur le terrain (pl. 1) a été réparti entre : Des travaux archéologiques dans les zones à l’est, dites du « fort » et de la « jetée », dans le palais, dans la zone des fours, dans les tombes au nord et à l’est du « fort » ainsi qu’à l’est de la zone des fours. Ils ont été complétés par une étude anthropologique sur les ossements provenant des sépultures. Travaux géoarchéologiques pour localiser l’ancien chenal du Nil à l’est du site. Travau..

    Bottom and subbottom investigation of Penobscot Bay, Maine, 1959

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    Nouvelles recherches sur le site de Gourob

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    Entre 1888 et 1920, le site de Gourob, à l’entrée sud du Fayoum, a fait l’objet de quatre campagnes de fouilles, ainsi que d’actions plus ponctuelles, qui ont permis de mettre au jour les principales composantes du Nouvel Empire, à savoir une ville, un « harem », des lieux d’artisanat, des nécropoles, ainsi qu’un « fort ». Le Gurob Harem Palace Project (mission anglo-danoise) a ensuite repris le travail sur le site jusqu’en 2015. Depuis 2016, Gourob est un chantier de l’Ifao et les résultats de la campagne 2017 sont ici présentés. L’une des principales nouvelles problématiques développées dans ce cadre est celle de la présence d’un port dans l’Antiquité, bien attesté dans la documentation textuelle. C’est en ce sens que des prospections géophysiques et géoarchéologiques ont été menées à l’est du site, avec des résultats particulièrement engageants. L’étude archéologique s’est quant à elle concentrée sur la zone au nord-est du palais-harem, qui n’avait pas fait l’objet de fouilles depuis 1920, et principalement sur un bâtiment appelé « fort » par les anciens fouilleurs, datant selon eux de la Première Période intermédiaire. Les sondages effectués dans les parties nord et est de cette structure ont permis de formuler des hypothèses préliminaires quant à sa fonction, sa datation et son lien avec la rampe qui coupe son flanc est. Ces observations demanderont à être vérifiées lors des prochaines saisons.Between 1888 and 1920, the site of Gurob, located at the south entrance of the Fayum area, was the subject of four campaigns of archaeological excavations, as well as some more specific actions. This led to the discovery of the main New Kingdom component, i.e. the town, a “harim,” an industrial area, several necropolises and a “fort.” The Gurob Harem Palace Project (British-Danish team) then carried out work between 2005 and 2015. Since 2016, Gurob is an IFAO fieldwork and the results of the campaign 2017 are presented herein. One of the main new issues developed within this framework is the presence of a harbor during Antiquity, well attested in the textual documentation. Geophysical and geoarchaeological surveys have been led in this sense along the eastern edge of the site, with particularly promising results. The archaeological study focused on the area north-east of the harim-palace, which has not been excavated since 1920, and mainly on a building called “fort” by the former excavators, who dated it back to the First Intermediate Period. The trench dug in the northern and eastern sectors of this structure allowed a preliminary hypothesis to be presented concerning its function, its dating and its link with the ramp cutting through its eastern side. These observations prompt verification during the next seasons

    PAPER ANTHROPOLOGY Animal Scavenging and Scattering and the Implications for Documenting the Deaths of Undocumented Border Crossers in the Sonoran Desert

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    ABSTRACT: Since 1998, over 5500 people have died while attempting to cross the U.S.-Mexico border without authorization. These deaths have primarily occured in the Arizona desert. Despite the high volume of deaths, little experimental work has been conducted on Sonoran Desert taphonomy. In this study, pig carcasses were used as proxies for human remains and placed in different depositional contexts (i.e., direct sunlight and shade) that replicate typical sites of migrant death. Decomposition was documented through daily site visits, motion-sensitive cameras and GIS mapping, while skeletal preservation was investigated through the collection of the remains and subsequent faunal analysis. Our results suggest that vultures and domestic dogs are underappreciated members of the Sonoran scavenging guild and may disperse skeletal remains and migrant possessions over 25 m from the site of death. The impact of scavengers and the desert environment on the decomposition process has significant implications for estimating death rates and identifying human remains along the Arizona/Mexico border
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