Detecting Trends in the Prediction of the Buried Past: A Review of Geophysical Techniques in Archaeology*

Gaffney, Chris

doi:10.1111/j.1475-4754.2008.00388.x

Cited by 196 publications

(106 citation statements)

References 73 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

101

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Geophysical prospection methods employed in archaeology [47][48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56] frequently include soil electrical resistivity measurements, caesium-vapour and vertical gradient magnetometry, which are regarded, alongside GPR [57], as the most efficient methods of archaeological prospecting. All except the last were utilised in this study.…”

Section: Geophysical Prospectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inside a Cucuteni Settlement: Remote Sensing Techniques for Documenting an Unexplored Eneolithic Site from Northeastern Romania

Asăndulesei

2017

Remote Sensing

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper presents recent results of an integrated non-invasive investigation carried out in a previously unexplored settlement from northeastern Romania, belonging to the last great Eneolithic civilisation of Old Europe, the Cucuteni-Trypillia cultural complex. Although there is a long history of research concerning this culture, at only a handful of sites has archaeological research completed a comprehensive planimetric image. This makes it impossible to determine a typological evolution of the internal organisation of Cucutenian sites, both diachronically, across the three great phases of the culture (A, A−B and B for the Romanian area), and spatially, from SE Transylvania to the Republic of Moldova, and towards the steppes of the Ukraine. Accordingly, in certain environmental conditions, many essential behavioural aspects of Cucutenian communities are far from understood. Consequently, the generalisation and integration of non-invasive prospecting methods-Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), aerial photography, earth resistivity, magnetometry, and their integration through Geographic Information System (GIS)-clearly represents a feasible alternative for deciphering the Cucuteni culture. These complementary investigation methods were applied for this case study, emphasis being put on the conjoint use of datasets from each technique. On the basis of results recently obtained from the Rȃzboieni-Dealul Mare/Dealul Boghiu site, innovative characteristics are described concerning intra-site spatial organisation, a typology of the fortification systems, the existence of ritual or delimitation ditches, and the presence of habitations outside fortified areas.

show abstract

Section: Geophysical Prospectionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inside a Cucuteni Settlement: Remote Sensing Techniques for Documenting an Unexplored Eneolithic Site from Northeastern Romania

Asăndulesei

2017

Remote Sensing

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Magnetic surveys, one of the most common surface-based geophysical methods employed at archaeological sites, have proven successful in detecting and delineating both historic and prehistoric features [4,5]. Magnetic surveys, however, may not supply the detail desired on the dimensions or depth of an archaeological feature, its magnetic susceptibility and remanence, or internal variation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cutbank Geophysics: A New Method for Expanding Magnetic Investigations to the Subsurface Using Magnetic Susceptibility Testing at an Awatixa Hidatsa Village, North Dakota

Dalan

Sturdevant

Wallace³

et al. 2017

Remote Sensing

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Magnetic susceptibility investigations were conducted at an Awatixa Hidatsa village (32ME11, also known as Sakakawea Village) along a cutbank at the Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site (KNRI) in central North Dakota, USA. This extensive exposure provided a superb opportunity to correlate magnetic susceptibility measurements with a variety of subsurface features. These features were visible in the cutbank, and also recorded in cutbank profiles completed in the late 1970s in work supervised by Robert Nickel and Stanley Ahler. The susceptibility studies are part of a larger program of geophysics at KNRI that commenced with pioneering surveys of John Weymouth and Robert Nickel, also in the 1970s, and continued with extensive surface-based magnetic surveys over the interior portion of the site in 2012 by the National Park Service. Our magnetic susceptibility study differs from other geophysical efforts in that measurements were collected from the vertical cutbank, not from the surface, to investigate different feature types within their stratigraphic context and to map small-scale vertical changes in susceptibility. In situ measurements of volume magnetic susceptibility were accomplished on the cutbank at six areas within the village and a control location off-site. Samples were collected for use in soil magnetic studies aimed at providing an understanding of susceptibility contrasts in terms of magnetic mineralogy, grain size, and concentration. Distinctive susceptibility signatures for natural and cultural soils, different feature types, and buried soils, suggest that down-hole susceptibility surveys could be usefully paired with surface-based geophysics and soil magnetic studies to explore interior areas of this and other KNRI sites, mapping vertical and horizontal site limits, activity areas, features, and perhaps even earlier occupations. This study showcases the potential of cutbank studies for future geophysical survey design and interpretation, and also underscores the importance of information gained through pioneering studies of the past.

show abstract

“…The in-shore implementation of diverse geophysical prospection methods has nowadays become an integral part of archaeological research in planned and rescue excavations or regional archaeological surveys, providing a non-destructive and rapid mapping of a site without disturbing the ground or the monuments themselves [2][3][4]. The following overview of relevant geophysical applications in marine contexts, though far from exhaustive, helps to define the framework in which this research sits.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shallow Off-Shore Archaeological Prospection with 3-D Electrical Resistivity Tomography: The Case of Olous (Modern Elounda), Greece

2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract:It is well known that nowadays as well as in the past the vast majority of human habitation and activities are mainly concentrated in littoral areas. Thus the increased attention to coastal zone management contributed to the development and implementation of shallow-water mapping approaches for capturing current environmental conditions. During the last decade, geophysical imaging techniques like electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) have been used in mapping onshore buried antiquities in a non-destructive manner, contributing to cultural heritage management. Despite its increased implementation in mapping on-shore buried archaeological remains, ERT has minimal to non-existent employment for the understanding of the past dynamics in littoral and shallow off-shore marine environments. This work presents the results of an extensive ERT survey in investigating part of the Hellenistic to Byzantine submerged archaeological site of Olous, located on the north-eastern coast of Crete, Greece. A marine area of 7100 m 2 was covered with 178 densely spaced ERT lines having a cumulative length of 8.3 km. A combination of submerged static and moving survey modes were used to document potential buried and submerged structures. The acquired data from the marine environment were processed with two-dimensional and three-dimensional inversion algorithms. A real time kinematic global navigation satellite system was used to map the visible submerged walls and compile the bathymetry model of the bay. The adaptation of ERT in reconstructing the underwater archaeological remains in a shallow marine environment presented specific methodological and processing challenges. The in situ experience from the archaeological site of Olous showed that ERT provided a robust method for mapping the submerged archaeological structures related to the ancient built environment (walls, buildings, roads), signifying at the same time the vertical stratigraphy of the submerged sediments. The inherent limitation of employing ERT in a conductive environment is counterbalanced by the incorporation of precise knowledge for the conductivity and bathymetry of the saline water in the modelling and inversion procedure. Although the methodology definitely needs further refinement, the overall outcomes of this work underline the potential of ERT imaging being integrated into wider shallow marine projects for the mapping of archaeological sites in similar environmental regimes.

show abstract

Detecting Trends in the Prediction of the Buried Past: A Review of Geophysical Techniques in Archaeology*

Abstract: Bradford Scholars -how to deposit your paper Overview Copyright check• Check if your publisher allows submission to a repository.• Use the Sherpa RoMEO database if you are not sure about your publisher's position or email openaccess@bradford.ac.uk.

Cited by 196 publications

References 73 publications

Inside a Cucuteni Settlement: Remote Sensing Techniques for Documenting an Unexplored Eneolithic Site from Northeastern Romania

Inside a Cucuteni Settlement: Remote Sensing Techniques for Documenting an Unexplored Eneolithic Site from Northeastern Romania

Cutbank Geophysics: A New Method for Expanding Magnetic Investigations to the Subsurface Using Magnetic Susceptibility Testing at an Awatixa Hidatsa Village, North Dakota

Shallow Off-Shore Archaeological Prospection with 3-D Electrical Resistivity Tomography: The Case of Olous (Modern Elounda), Greece

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About