Isotopes, isoscapes, and the search for geographic origins: unrealized potential or unrealisitc expectations

Bioarchaeolog

Sourcing Non-Native Mammal Remains from Dos Mosquises Island, Venezuela: New Multiple Isotope Evidence.

Archeological excavations of Amerindian sites on Dos Mosquises Island, Los Roques Archipelago, Venezuela, uncovered a wide range of evidence reflecting seasonal exploitation of local resources and multiple ritual depositions of large quantities of ceramic figurines, lithics, and faunal remains. Zooarchaeological analysis revealed the presence of modified and unmodified bones and teeth from numerous imported mammal species. Local geographic and environmental conditions preclude permanent establishment of terrestrial mammal populations and as such, there are no native mammalian taxa on the island itself or the surrounding oceanic archipelago. The presence of these faunal remains on Dos Mosquises can be attributed to the intentional movement of animal resources from the mainland to Los Roques by indigenous groups in the Late Ceramic Age (~AD 1200–1500). Despite attributions to a mainland source region, little else is known about the origins of these unique specimens. Here, we apply strontium (87Sr/86Sr), oxygen (δ18O), and carbon (δ13C) isotope analyses of tooth enamel from various archeologically recovered taxa including deer, peccary, tapir, ocelot, margay, opossum, fox, and weasel to investigate their geographic origins via comparisons with macro-regional models of precipitation δ18O and bioavailable 87Sr/86Sr. The 87Sr/86Sr results are highly variable both for the overall assemblage and between specimens within the same taxa, indicating origins from different geochemical environments of mainland South America. The combined archeological and isotopic evidence are consistent with origins within the late pre-colonial Valencioid Sphere of Interaction which encompassed the Lake Valencia Basin, surrounding regions, and several offshore island groups including Los Roques archipelago.Seventh Framework Programme (FP7

Complex landscape biographies: palimpsests of Fort-Liberté, Haiti

Historically, the cultural landscape of northern Haiti has been severely impacted by Amerindian, Spanish, and African cultures. Historical accounts often consider only the transformations that left visible imprints in the environment, neglecting or overlooking other social changes. This research provides a new set of data, built upon results from mainly archaeological surveys. A landscape biographical approach is applied to capture the historic development of the Fort-Liberté region, Haiti. The discussion shows that the history of the region can be understood as a landscape palimpsest resulting from complex relations between different cultural groups over time.Seventh Framework Programme (FP7)319309Archaeology of the America

Excavations at Chlorakas-Palloures, New Light on Chalcolithic Cyprus

Archaeology of the Near Eas

Spatial Configurations of Water Management at an Early Angkorian Capital – Combining GPR and TerraSAR-X Data to Complement an Archaeological Map

Hariharalaya was a medieval political centre of the eighth–ninth century ce, located on the northern shore of Lake Tonle Sap in Cambodia. Mapped in detail in the 1990s by means of aerial photographs and ground surveys, more recently ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and high-resolution satellite synthetic aperture radar (SAR) were applied to further interpret this complex archaeological landscape. In combination with remote sensing imagery, the two radiofrequency-based imaging techniques were used to complement the existing archaeological maps. The area housed an extensive low-density urban complex of earthen mounds and ponds, approximately 5 × 5 km square and centring on the Bakong, an early Angkorian state temple, crossed and encircled by a mostly disconnected water-management network of embankments and canals. Extensive GPR surveys, conducted predominantly on the existing small roads and paths criss-crossing the landscape, appraise the visible archaeological features with subsurface information. The analysis verifies the existence of channels and embankments, complementing the information with depth and width. The identification of additional, now desiccated, canals and river channels assisted in connecting a number of already mapped archaeological features, and helped to distinguish possible later additions, thereby untangling the water-management network. Spotlight TerrSAR-X satellite data together with satellite images of the visual spectrum complemented the analysis, by providing information about water saturation in areas inaccessible to ground surveys, marking out palaeochannels and providing clues about the landscape before development took place. This three-dimensional interpretation informs on the functioning of this particular early Angkorian hydraulic system, adding to the understanding of water management in medieval Southeast Asia.FdA – Publicaties niet-programma gebonde

Excavations at Chlorakas-Palloures, New Light on Chalcolithic Cyprus

Archaeology of the Near Eas

Feldmethoden

Das zentrale Kapitel Feldmethoden liefert einen Überblick über das breite Methodenspektrum, das während geoarchäologischer Forschungskampagnen im Gelände zum Einsatz kommt. Beschrieben werden zunächst klassische Methoden wie Bohrungen, archäologische Grabungen und Baggerschürfe,gefolgt von der damit mittlerweile häufig kombinierten, jungen Methode der Direct-Push-Sondierung, womit gleichzeitige Messungen unterschiedlicher Parameter wie Spitzendruck, Farbe oder elektrischer Leitfähigkeit möglich sind. Dazugehörige Infoboxen befassen sich mit einem Beispiel aus der  Feuchtbodenarchäologie und mit dem wichtigen Thema der langfristigen Probenarchivierung. Der Abschnitt Fernerkundung führt in die Geschichte und in die aktuelle Praxis der Methodik ein und befasstsich mit dem Potenzial von Luftbildern und räumlichen Satellitendaten. Das in einem weiteren Abschnitt vorgestellte Konzept der „Digitalen Geoarchäologie“ bewegt sich an der Schnittstelle zwischen Archäologie, Geo- und Computerwissenschaften. Weiterhin werden häufig eingesetzte geophysikalischeMethoden, wie Geoelektrik, Geomagnetik und Georadar vorgestellt. Am Kapitelende geht es um das Potenzial archäologischer Zeigerpflanzen und ihrer Bedeutung für die archäologische Prospektion.Digital Archaeolog