A Group SYNONYMS OR RELATED TERMS: A Horizon, A-Group CATEGORY: culture DEFINITION: A term created by American archaeologist George Reisner to refer to a semi-nomadic Nubian Neolithic culture of the mid-fourth to early third. Results for Re: (View exact match) Aachen SYNONYMS OR RELATED TERMS: French Aix la Chapelle, Dutch Aken CATEGORY: site DEFINITION: A city in northwestern Germany which is the site of a palace complex of Carolingian buildings.
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These remains can be any objects that people created, modified, or used. Portable remains are usually called artifacts. Artifacts include tools, clothing, and decorations.
Non- portable remains, such as pyramids or post- holes, are called features. Archaeologists use artifacts and features to learn how people lived in specific times and places. They want to know what these people’s daily lives were like, how they were governed, how they interacted with each other, and what they believed and valued. Sometimes, artifacts and features provide the only clues about an ancientcommunity or civilization. Prehistoric civilizations did not leave behind written records, so we cannot read about them. Understanding why ancient cultures built the giant stone circles at Stonehenge, England, for instance, remains a challenge 5,0.
Archaeologists studying Stonehenge do not have ancient manuscripts to tell them how cultures used the feature. They rely on the enormous stones themselves—how they are arranged and the way the site developed over time. Most cultures with writing systems leave written records that archaeologists consult and study. Some of the most valuable written records are everyday items, such as shopping lists and tax forms. Latin, the language of ancient Rome, helps archaeologists understand artifacts and features discovered in parts of the Roman Empire. The use of Latin shows how far the empire’s influence extended, and the records themselves can tell archaeologists what foods were available in an area, how much they cost, and what buildings belonged to families or businesses. Many ancient civilizations had complex writing systems that archaeologists and linguists are still working to decipher.
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The written system of the Mayan language, for instance, remained a mystery to scholars until the 2. The Maya were one of the most powerful pre- Columbian civilizations in North America, and their Central American temples and manuscripts are inscribed with a collection of squared glyphs, or symbols.
A series of circles and lines represents numbers. By deciphering the Mayan script, archaeologists were able to trace the ancestry of Mayan kings and chart the development of their calendar and agricultural seasons. Understanding the basics of the Mayan writing system helps archaeologists discover how Mayan culture functioned—how they were governed, how they traded with some neighbors and went to war with others, what they ate, and what gods they worshipped. As archaeologists become more fluent in Mayan writing, they are making new discoveries about the culture every day. Today, some archaeologists work with linguists and poets to preserve the once- lost Mayan language. History of Archaeology. The word “archaeology” comes from the Greek word “arkhaios,” which means “ancient.” Although some archaeologists study living cultures, most archaeologists concern themselves with the distant past.
People have dug up monuments and collected artifacts for thousands of years. Often, these people were not scholars, but looters and grave robbers looking to make money or build up their personal collections. For instance, grave robbers have been plundering the magnificent tombs of Egypt since the time the Pyramids were built. Grave robbing was such a common crime in ancient Egypt that many tombs have hidden chambers where the family of the deceased would place treasures. In Egypt in the mid- 1.
Egyptian man searching for a lost goat stumbled across the tomb of Pharaoh Ramses I. Besides the body of the pharaoh, the tomb held artifacts such as pottery, paintings, and sculpture. The man sold the mummies and artifacts from the tomb to anyone who would pay. The mummy of Ramses I wound up in a museum in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, where it remained until the museum closed in 1.
The Canadian museum sold the Egyptian collection to the Michael C. Carlos Museum in Atlanta, Georgia, which confirmed the mummy’s royal status through the use of CT scanners, X- rays, radiocarbon dating, computer imaging, and other techniques. Ramses I was returned to Egypt in 2. One of the most well- known archaeological finds is the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun, also known as King Tut. Unlike many other Egyptian tombs, grave robbers had never discovered King Tut.
His resting place lay undisturbed for thousands of years, until it was discovered in 1. In addition to mummies of Tutankhamun and his family, the tomb contained some 5,0. Many early archaeologists worked in the service of invading armies.
Napoleon Bonaparte of France successfully invaded Egypt in 1. Napoleon’s troops took home hundreds of tons of Egyptian artifacts: columns, coffins, stone tablets, monumental statues. Today, these Egyptian antiquities take up entire floors of the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. Some archaeologists of this time were wealthy adventurers, explorers, and merchants.
These amateur archaeologists often had a sincere interest in the culture and artifacts they studied. However, their work is often regarded as an example of colonialism and exploitation. The so- called Elgin Marbles are an example of this controversy. In 1. 80. 1, Greece had been taken over by the Ottoman Empire. The British ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, Lord Elgin, received permission to remove half of the sculptures from the famous Acropolis of Athens, Greece. These marble sculptures were a part of buildings such as the Parthenon. Lord Elgin claimed he wanted to protect the valuable sculptures from damage caused by conflict between the Greeks and the Ottomans.
The government of Greece has been lobbying for the return of the Elgin Marbles ever since. Most Greeks view the sculptures as part of their cultural heritage. Greece has cut off diplomatic relations to the United Kingdom several times, demanding the return of the sculptures, which remain in the British Museum in London. Eventually, archaeology evolved into a more systematic discipline.
Scientists started using standard weights and measures and other formalized methods for recording and removing artifacts. They required detailed drawings and drafts of the entire dig site, as well as individual pieces. Archaeologists began to work with classicists, historians, and linguists to develop a unified picture of the past. In the 2. 0th century, archaeologists began to re- assess their impact on the cultures and environments where they dig. Today, in most countries, archaeological remains become the property of the country where they were found, regardless of who finds them. Egypt, for example, is scattered with archaeological sites sponsored by American universities.
These teams must obtain permission from the Egyptian government to dig at the sites, and all artifacts become the property of Egypt. Disciplines of Archaeology. Archaeology is based on the scientific method. Archaeologists ask questions and develop hypotheses.
They use evidence to choose a dig site, then use scientific sampling techniques to select where on the site to dig. They observe, record, categorize, and interpret what they find. Then they share their results with other scientists and the public. Underwater archaeologists study materials at the bottom of lakes, rivers, and oceans. Underwater archaeology encompasses any prehistoric and historic periods, and almost all sub- disciplines as archaeology.
Artifacts and features are simply submerged. In 1. 98. 5, National Geographic Explorer- in- Residence Dr. Robert Ballard helped locate the wreck of RMS Titanic, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean in 1. Ballard and other scientists used sonar to locate the wreck, which had been lost since the ocean liner sank.
By exploring Titanic using remote- controlled cameras, Ballard and his crew discovered facts about the shipwreck (such as the fact the ship broke in two large pieces as it sank) as well as hundreds of artifacts, such as furniture, lighting fixtures, and children’s toys. Underwater archaeology includes more than just shipwrecks, however. Sites include hunt camps on the continental shelf of the Gulf of Mexico, and portions of the ancient city of Alexandria, Egypt, submerged due to earthquakes and sea level rise. This basic framework carries across many different disciplines, or areas of study, within archaeology.
Prehistoric and Historic Archaeology. There are two major disciplines of archaeology: prehistoric archaeology and historic archaeology. Within these groups are subdisciplines, based on the time period studied, the civilization studied, or the types of artifacts and features studied. Prehistoric archaeology deals with civilizations that did not develop writing. Artifacts from these societies may provide the only clues we have about their lives.
Archaeologists studying the Clovis people, for instance, have only arrowheads—called projectile points— and stone tools as artifacts. The unique projectile points were first discovered in Clovis, New Mexico, in the United States, and the culture was named after the town. So- called Clovis points establish the Clovis people as one of the first inhabitants of North America. Archaeologists have dated Clovis points to about 1.
A subdiscipline of prehistoric archaeology is paleopathology. Paleopathology is the study of disease in ancient cultures. By studying the history of a disease, paleopathologists may contribute to an understanding of the way modern diseases progress. Paleopathologists can also find clues about people’s overall health. By studying the teeth of ancient people, for example, paleopathologists can deduce what kinds of food they ate, how often they ate, and what nutrients the foods contained. Historic archaeology incorporates written records into archaeological research. One of the most famous examples of historic archaeology is the discovery and decipherment of the Rosetta Stone.
The Rosetta Stone is a large slab of marble discovered near Rashid, Egypt, by French archaeologists in 1. It became an important tool of historic archaeology.
The stone is inscribed with a decree made on behalf of Pharaoh Ptolemy V.