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Archaeology Final Flashcards

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1
Q

consequences of farming in early villages

A
  1. full sedentary societies
  2. higher population densities
  3. more permanent structures/storage facitilies
  4. land as property
  5. increased warfare
  6. more cemeteries
  7. decreased nutrition
  8. health in general decreases (more infection, farming effects on body)
  9. more defined complex social roles
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2
Q

egalitarianism

A

first farming societies were still largely egalitarian: every boy/girl has equal chance to become highly respective men/women
-not given special advantages by being born into rank

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3
Q

Catalhoyuk, Turkey

A
  • huge tell site (mound built from debris from previous generations); indicative of life at this time
  • neolithic way of life: farming grain
  • domesticating animals
  • special houses with connecting rooms
  • more investment in living structures
  • special burials with grave good (Obsidian mirror, jewlery, polished mace heads, weapons)
  • female figurines: fertility
  • lots of art/images
  • trade in obsidian fueled economy
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4
Q

Banpo, China

A
  • cone like houses
  • later rectangular houses
  • lots of pottery
  • deep pits for storing grain
  • Hundreds of adults buried in mass grave (little difference in how they are buried)
  • special structure seen as shrine or meeting hall
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5
Q

Life in the Neolithics

A
  • No difference in gender equality
  • Respect on ancestors
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6
Q

Otzi the Iceman

A
  • italian alps
  • Clothing, tools, and body are remarkable conserved
  • 45 years old, 110 lbs, intesntial parasites, bad worn teeth, fleas, discolored lungs from smoke, ribs and nose were broken and heeled (got in fight), gash on hand, arrow in shoulder
  • leg = lots of walking
  • Sedentary life
  • armed with tools/weapons
  • warm clothes
  • fire kit
  • medicinal plants
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7
Q

complexities in society (4 main groups)

A
  1. bands
  2. tribes
  3. chiefdoms
  4. states
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8
Q

bands

A
  • small-scale mobile hunter-gather groups
  • not farming or domesticating animals
  • totally egalitarian except for sex and age
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9
Q

tribes

A
  • larger groups of farmers/herders
  • domesticated sources of food
  • still egal
  • lived in villages
  • politically autonomous settlements
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10
Q

chiefdoms

A
  • hereditary chief leader with larger, denser populations
  • No longer have a system in which people are equal at birth
  • Regional political dominance; chief controls possibly multiple regions
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11
Q

states

A
  • large, densely populated societies with regional political dominance
  • capital city often
  • societal inequality (status/wealth)
  • powerful leaders (coercive)
  • specialized social roles
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12
Q

inequality evidence in arch remains

A
  • graves
  • homes
  • settlement patterns
  • monuments/public works
  • street planning
  • art/icons
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13
Q

chief

A
  • ascribed status not achieved
  • coercive power
  • material wealth (disproportionate)
  • war leadership
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14
Q

area that is good evidence for chiefs?

A

North America

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15
Q

southeastern North America

A

Hospital place for human society bc of farming conditions

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16
Q

Adena culture

A

Adena Mound, Ohio
- deposits of cremated people in one big mound
Hopewell tradition
- small collective graves
adoptions of maize

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17
Q

adena mound, Ohio

A

deposits of many cremated people in one big mound

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18
Q

hopewell tradition

A
  • small collective graves
  • rich grave good (teeth, shells, stone pipes; raw materials from all over america)
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19
Q

adena adoption of maize

A

marks the end of the woodland period bc of the big changes that come from relying on maize

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20
Q

Mississippian tradition

A
  • many chiefdoms but never fortified under the same political leader or chief
    -etoah
  • large scale warfare
  • Charles houses
  • mounds and plazas
  • southeaster ceremonial complex (SECC)
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21
Q

Etoah

A

fortified area protected by a man made moat and river on the sites
- indicates large scale warfare
- Mississippian Tradition

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22
Q

Charles House

A

emphasize the power and importance of chief (contrasting of burial mounds of adena culture)
- MS Tradition

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23
Q

“Southeastern Ceremoinal Complex” (SECC)

A
  • Religion
  • Common religious motifs *hands with an eye in the center of a palm”
  • Mythical feature (twins)
  • Highly crafted artifacts only found in elite complexes and burials in the biggest mounds
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24
Q

Cahokia, Illinois (AD 1050-1250)

A

MS Tradition
- lived in small villages
- very large pop. expansion with hierarchy
- 200 mounds of city
- massive defensive stockage
- huge plaza surrounded by the mounds
- monk’s mound
- mound 72
- large-scale feasts
- woodhenges with astronomical alignments
- regional site hierarchy

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25
monk's mound
- largest prehistoric earthen structure in the New World - mounds were foundations of public buildings and funerary structures - 1000 by 700 ft large (largest mound found at the Cahokia, Illinois) - constructed in 14 stages
26
Mound 72
- large burial mound site south of Monk’s mound - burial of two apparently high ranking men, one on top of the other - Birdman burial (layered with shell beads in shape of bird) - grave goods that indicated distinct social stratification and economic relationships
27
How did chiefs come to power and maintain power?
- Big desnsive stoackage - Massive mounds - Fancy burials with sacrifice retainers - Huge plaza with evidence of feasts and ceremonies - Regional site hierarchy - Long-distance exchange
28
chiefly cycling
- chiefdoms did not last long - inherently unstable and subject to collapse
29
Ancestral Pueblo (Anasazi) Culture
- found on mesa away from bottom lands for defense reasons - domesticated corn, beans, and squash - hunting and gathering - larger communities established (kivas)
30
Chaco Canyon, NM
- erosion feature from the drainage of the Colorado river - extreme envt. with little trees and rainfall - used flood water farming - kivas and pueblos - the great kiva - large sites served as local centers for trade/ceremonies
31
Flood water farming
channeled seasonal runoff to argucutlral fields to supplement the water supply
32
Kiva
semisubterranean cermonual rooms with distinctive black on white pottery (special to Ancestral Pueblo culture)
33
pueblo
- NAIsettlement of the southwestern US, especially one consisting of multistoried adobe houses built by the Pueblo people. - Larger, apartmentlike stone complexes of adjoining rooms; residences for separate families or lineages
34
Great Kiva
interior courtyards; central ceremonial role in community activities
35
Pueblo Bonito (AD 920-1150):
- largest apartment building made in the US before 1900s in a dry desolate canyon, remains a powerful testament ot the ingenuity of the NA’s Woodon beams - great kiva present - largest and most impressive house - D-shaped complex - protected by cliffs of canyon - very populous - dated with trees (built with wood)
36
Chaco at its height
- regional network huge, centered at PB - trade: macaw features, turquoise, copper - massive communal labor - hereditary leadership - pueblo bonito
37
Decline of Chaco
- decrease in pop - Villages shifted to well-protected, defensive locations like Mesa Verde - european arrival
38
why did chaco decline?
climate change, environmental degradation, shifting trade connections, changing political allainces, colonization
39
studying artifacts (4 main items)
1. production 2. style 3. use 4. procurement and trade
40
origins of states
1. had cities within it (1 being the political capital of the state) 2. very complex market economies 3. bureaucracies/writing & record keeping 4. monopoly on force (military, religious hierarchy)
41
first generation states
emerged independently of one another - active trade between state - secondary states formed later as a result of motion of the 1st gen states
42
prime mover theories
explained why states arose under 1 theory only 1. metallurgy and craft specialization 2. irrigation (hydraulic hypothesis) 3. population pressure 4. long-distance trade 5. warfare and cirumscription
43
metallurgy and craft specialization (PMT)
Gordon Childe - emerge with Bronze Age, so they must be linked together - emergence of bronze tech - rulers facilitate new bronze tech
44
irrigation (hydraulic hypothesis) pmt
Karl Wittfogel - states emerged to manage agriculture and irrigation systems - larger systems needed to manage people and systems
45
Population pressure PMT
Esther Boserup - political and agriculture changes to manage the growing population - warehouses store and manage surpluses of food (integrative)
46
long-distance trade (PMT)
Colin Renfrew - local leaders managing trade contracts and redistributions of items
47
warfare and circumscription (PMT)
Robert Canerio - population growth in a small area in which people cannot move away leads to more violences - leads to a collection of people into one region - coercive theory of state emergence
48
recent approaches to explaining why cities came to be
-mutltivariate explanations - elite strategies (agency of power) - power field (economic control, ideology, military force) - resistance of commoners and powerful factions
49
Origins of states in Mesopotamia
- lower (land between the rivers) - river deposited silt - little rainfall - irrigation farming - no precious materials - rivers are major trade routes
50
Ubaid Period
5300 BC lower Mesopotamia settlement - egalitarian small villagtes - rivers provided silt and irrigation - irrigation required digging which required peo0ple - poor resource region, so lots of import
51
Eridu, Iraq
Ubaid period - first to emerge in Meso - earliest temple town of ubaid period - rectangular home with alter - temples become more elaborate over time - ziggurat (associated with fish or water)
52
Ziggurat at Eridue, 4000 BC
- associated with religious ties (God of Anki) - god of water/fish - Anu Ziggurat, Uruk - rebuilt in the same place, but larger each time
53
Uruk Period
- animal drawn plow is invented - 1st cities (run independently) - intensified trade - invent of the wheel - temples important - cuneiform tablets - writing for trade - standardized pottery with wheel invention
54
Sumerian civilization
- 13 city states dominated by temples and royal elites - bronze is invented (copper and tin) - bronze weaponry - constant warfare - domestication of horses for chariots and warfare - very wealthy and powerful state - religious and political leaders - trade with Egypt, mediterranean
55
Sumerian trade with Egypt and mediterranean
- carnelian, lapis lazuli, alabaster - Uruk vase
56
Ur
- very successful city/trade center bc of its location off the Perusian Sea - very large royal cemetery (with evidence of wealth differences) - Queen Sub-ad's Tomb, Ur (headdress and earrings, gold fluted cup) - death pits with many servant sacrifices
57
why did state arise in Mesopotamia?
trade political power army with ration neighboring empires increase in scale to the largest and most powerful empire seen to date
58
where did the first written language occur?
mesopotamia
59
mesopotamia first language origins
- developed from older types of communication (clay tokens) - more complex clay tokens transformed into written symbols
60
bullae
clay fired enveloped; sometimes sealed; marked the outside with how many of something there is - fire so secure, but had to break open to see what is inside - contradictory bc duplicate record on the inside ** eventually transformed into clay tablets
61
china writing system
- writings on oracle bones - used originally for divination ceremonies rather than economic interactions - kings asked gods for royal advice - bones without writing used originally - inscriptions appear on bronze vessels - signs gradually became more abstract
62
mayan glyphs
stelae fine ceramic vessels codices (singular codex) cave walls
63
stelae
Commemorate important events in dynastic history (births, deaths, mitlairy victories, weddings) - propaganda - large upright stone with images and glyphs
64
fine ceramic vessels
- included owner, use, and/or contents of the vessel - mythological themes - given as gifts between nobles – the writing enhanced their value and individuality, making them more special
65
codices (singular-codex)
- writing for religious reasons, kept track of the seaons of the years - Most writing is on seals --- very typical of Indus Valley –large numbers of these are found concentrated in certain houses – probably used for either official business (e.g., collecting tribute) or commercial transactions, or both.
66
seals
- Indus Valley - large numbers of these are found concentrated in certain houses – probably used for either official business (e.g., collecting tribute) or commercial transactions, or both
67
cave walls
glyphs painted on walls of limestone caves related to rituals and the underworld
68
Inca khipu
info is recorded in knots on string that signified numbers with different colored wool - read by quipu masters - censuses, memory aids *proved that states could exist without written language
69
easter island rongorongo tablets
- tablets used for sacred knowledge - possible lunar calendar *did it proceed before European influence - example of a writing system without a state
70
how is writing used?
official accounting royal history commemoration of royal acts divination specialized ritual knowledge *writing was invented and used for elite purposes and did not originally have a wide audience
71
examples of rulers symbols of power
Art; statuary; architecture; site planning; large scale public rituals. Elites were the ones to plan, sponsor, design, or manage these.
72
Skull-racks (tzompantli)
- display the skulls of ritualistically-executed war captives - used in ball courts to possible display loser heads -- noble captures -- ballgame for public viewing -- losers executed and displayed publically *symbol of ruler power for people
73
ritualized spilling of blood
- through sacraficeds (royal duty, keeps the world running smoothly) - noble blood is of great value
74
apadana
figures represent an official bringing tribute to the great king from every part of the empire, on the event of the new years festival at Persepolis
75
1st architectural site planning event
Constantine
76
2nd site planning
built in 1930s, in fascist Italy. Mussolini made a lot of linkages to ancient Rome.
77
archaism
deliberate reuse of an older style that has fallen out of use. --- Often used to strengthen legitimacy by tying to already recognized histories of power. (ex/ Cathy, pantheon)
78
Indus Valley civilization (2600-1900 BC)
- Indus River valley (Pakistan, India, Himalayas) - formed rich river deposited sediment - Neolithic villages form to the left of hilly regions in the west - raised grains and domesticated animals - occupied flood plains - sites grow to be small walled towns during the Bronze Age - transition to city states with negative effects - organized drainage systems and street system - craft specialization - commerce with seals - art
79
negative effects of Indus valley growth
- Worse flooding bc of deforestation - Irrigation and flood control requires more labor - Warfare - Trade with meso - limited knowledge of language
80
Indus Valley craft specialization
- pottery - microbeads - jewelry and bangles (loved personal adornment and lots of effort was putting into making such) - values are not controlled only by elite*** - figurines - seals
81
Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan (2600-1900 BC)
- "the great bath" - "the granary" - baths in homes drain to sewer system - elegant halls - shops and stalls along streets - craft production appears to take place within the home - no continuous writing system - grid-link streets *collapse eventually INDUS VALLEY
82
Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan collapse
1900 bc - due to climate change - major river for agriculture dries up
83
the great bath
bench and stairs made of bricks and lined with tar-like watertight substance - large and central to city (ceremonial purposes most likely) Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan
84
the granary
store house or room in a barn for threshed grain or animal feed Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan
85
why was the Indus Valley unusual?
- little monumentally (no palaces/temples; images of rulers) - collective labor was put into public infrastructure that benefited everyone - limited wealth inequality - everyone had fine goods
86
meso america or the basin of Mexico
- 1st gen state - originally a lake (drained during the war) - massive expedition of field walking of the site occurs in 1960s before development
87
settlement patterns
distribution of human settle meant on the landscape through time (why do people live wear they do?) (site hierarchy)
88
ancient urbanism
why did people move to cities how did ancient cities work
89
Teotihuacan
- basin of Mexico - trust throughout people of city - massive labor projects by rulers - central planning - monumental temple construction - the great compound - apartment compounds
90
temples of teotihuacan
pyramid of the sun and the moon Ciudadela: Temple of the feathered serpent
91
The Ciudadela
- temple of the feathered serpent - ritual human sacrifice on a large scale dedicated to the construction of the temple
92
apartment compounds of teotihuacan
ethnic and craft neighborhoods painted murals
93
the great compound
- teaotihuacan - major central marketplace in city
94
the avenue of death
Main Street from west to east in teotuachan
95
Inca Empire
- last of the Andian civilization - many interactions and documentation in spanish - impressive infrastructure; well preserved - largest empire in the americas and world empire all together - diverse and rigid geography - pacific coast with desert - llamas/alpacas - steep eastern slope of the andes that descends into jungle and cloud forest - no writing system
96
empire
political empire that encompasses a large area of diverse regions and people
97
fields of power
economic control military force ideology and religion
98
economic control of Inca empire
- financing the empire - wealth came from agriculture - terracing made good farming from bad farming lands - camel pasturing - taxation of labor - product storehouses - mobile wealth goods - khipus - delegation from decimal system
99
collcas
storehouses from the Inca empire - storable crops - maize, freeze-dried potatoes, potatoes, dried meat (eharqui)
100
eharqui
dried meat stored in collcas from the Inca empire
101
mobile wealth of the Inca empire
value for weight; easily movable - fine tunics and clothes
102
Inca empire tax tracking
khipus - strings with knots that keep track of numbers
103
military control of the Inca empire
- most of empire is conquered in 2 generations - likely due to basic military force - no iron, only bronze - no tech evolution (weapons similar to those of enemies) - organization likely causes success - large groups of military personal with complex road network
104
military road network of Inca empire
- very large groups of military personal and complex road network - (40,000 km of roads and bridges) - Runners stationed along the roads
105
ideology of the Inca empire
- temple of the sun (Coricanda) - sacred ceque lines radiated out from the temple to all the empire - incorporation of earlier temples, sacred sites - child sacrifice
106
Coricanda
temple of the sun in the Inca empire - Sacred ceque lines radiated out from the Coricancha to all of the empire - Lines lead to shrines indicating power throughout the empire - Child sacrifices at these shrines in marches with large groups
107
Indus Valley location
Southeast Asia during the Bronze Age - by Himalayas
108
Inca empire location
South American along the coast of the pacific along the andes mountains
109
Huanuco Pampa, Peru (1450-1532)
- Inca empire - completely intact bc not used by Spanish after - on Inca main road - 700 collcas - elite sector for Inca nobility to stay - giant plaza with central platforms for large-scale ceremonies - women have massive beer brewing
110
Inca civil war (1529-1532 AD)
Two half brothers claimed the throne (atahualpa and hauscar) after father died without naming an heir
111
Spanish consquest (1532 AD)
- Several inca-ruled provinces sided with the spaniards - So were not truly happy with the state of their city
112
Factional conflict and resistance of Inca empire
little evidence of Inca control in major parts of the empire - major empire but not necessarily in terms of military control/dominance
113
the collapse of states
- Political regime falls - Structure of society falls - complex economies fail - Speixalized craft production ends - Abandonment of agricultural practices that upheld state activities - cities die But not everything is forgotten** - former state capital may remain - May become sites for worship or burial after being a population center - Eventual rebuild of new more complex society
114
mayan collapse
- multiple independent city states - height in the late classic period (600-800 AD) - intense competition between cities and their rulers - cities start to fail in 800 AD (stile dating) - Dos Pilas fortified - climate worse (drought) - termination and desecration at Cancuen
115
intense competition between cities and their rulers in the mayan empire
- escalating military campaigns through warfare, monuments, trade goods, propaganda
116
Termination and desecration at cancuen (AD 800)
- King and queen massacred and placed in well (not respectable place) - Monument mutilation
117
Copan, Honduras collapse
*oringally considered the most important place in eastern world - farming expansion; climate change made it difficult - King 18 rabbit of copan - King Kawak Sky of Quirigua declares independent from rabbit, beheads him, and takes over his power - rebuilt but not as powerful as before - monuments fall - mayan lowlands are depopulated - end of divine kingship - no more stile with dates seen
118
explanation for mayan collapse
- mayans overextend themselves - rapid population growth for overpopulation - strain on farming with drought - warfare and monument construction battle for economic power/drain money - intensified warfare (fortification) suggests dangerous politics
119
Joyce Marcus' dynamic model
- read vertically - complexity rises and falls if mapped across many areas
120
is collapse inevitable?
- subject to conquests by evaders - competition between other states - economic state must keep moving to remain balanced - social unrest - warfare BUT states always rebuild
121
contested objects of arch past
looting museum repatriation
122
looting
- 1970 UNESCO convention: made it illegal to purchase artifacts from looting, but still happens often today - Protect the past by purchasing recreations - Collected before 1970 = legal
123
museum repatriation
museum gives back items to countries of origins - benin bronze - elgin marbles - NAGPRA
124
Benin bronzes
- bronze plagues taken from the place of Benin Nigeria - taken as part of British punitive expedition to burn palace and loot it - museums returned them
125
Elgin marbles
parthenon marble columns and statues - Greece demanding return from British museum but they will not - better condition in the museum
126
NAGPRA
Native American grave protection and repatriation act
127
contested interpretations
- nazi archealogy - kennewick man - mound builders debate
128
nazi archaeology
- Used arch to justify german actions - dug up sites and said that they are germanic and therefore the land must belong to German (seized the lands)
129
kennewick man
oldest skulls found in NA - Based on facial reconstruction of skull (Caucasoid) that showed white features - dated to a time in which no Europeans were supposed to be in NA at the time - made it seem like Natives were not actually the first americnas - tribes in WA invoked NAGPRA to claim skeleton and prevent further study - DNA tests disproved white ancestry - reburied in tribal land 2017
130
mound builders debate
- great Zimbabwe - English sent to get as much gold from the site as possible - Rhodes did not believe that AA could have built site - destroyed site when digging - Government party in apartheid Rhodesia - Became a source of great pride after its freedom
131
pseudo archaeology
theories about the past based on speculation not research
132
coercive power
compelling others through force or the threat of harm
133
persuasive power
compelling others through persuasion; enticing others with the promise of benefits -- Others do not have to comply bc there are no negative consequences
134
beneficial vs exploitative chiefs
Beneficial: Chiefs emerge to solve societal problems and manage social demands; they benefit the society === Military service/direction; political power; supernatural knowledge (religion) Exploitative: Chiefs are out for their own self-interest; they are leaders, but parasitic
135
central planning vs bottom-up of cities
general to specific purposes VS specific to general purposes
136
Occam's razor
if you have two competing ideas to explain the same phenomenon, you should prefer the simpler one.
137
archaeology
the study of human past through material remains (part of anthropology) - 2 branches 1) historical (text-aided) 2) prehistoric arch (non-literate societies; material remains only) *aim to explain how societies have changed over throughout time
138
5 elements of archaeology
- Methodology - Material remains (apply methods to) - Interpretation - Human Past - Anthropological questions
139
stratigraphy
layered cultural or natural deposits (deposition of artifacts)
140
taphonomy
study of site formation processes (as a result of human activity) 4 parts of cultural processes 1) acquisition 2) manufacture 3) use 4) discard (over time and space)
141
curation
items kept for a very long time (evidence of repair holes and recycled materials)
142
cultural vs natural transformation of sites
flooding, volcanoes, glaciers, vegetation growth, earthquake, animal activity, erosion, soil deposition, decay (after deposition) reusing or redoing already present sites elements OR cultural disturbances
143
natural conditions favoring preservation
- Bacterial/microbial action is inhibited due to conditions within bog/swamps (lack of oxygen or moisture) - dry environments (cave) protect from light and weathering
144
uniformitarianism
the same behaviors and processes we observe in one setting may well have happened somewhere else Sir Charles Lyell
145
smudge pit
charred corn pits found in Southeast India and Midwest lewis binford --- saw arch as a more objective science; culture is an adapation; universal patterns explain the past
146
specific vs general analogy
- compare to better-known time period in the same cultural traditions (use records from descendant of the original item own to compare) - broad comparison across different cultural conditions
147
ethnography
the scientific description of the customs of the individual peoples and cultures
148
ethnohistory
biased texts; leaves out lots of info about material culture
149
ethnoarchaeology
archaeologists documenting the material culture of living people - can help explain taphonomy
150
The Speculative Phase
*age of antiquarians - men with influence collected items and brought back - very little methodology or knowledge was actually used - Objects beauty and curiosity were more emphasized than context - Colonialism begins (didn't believe that primitive people could create such amazing art and constructions)
151
3 Age System
stone age bronze age Iron Age * first chronological system of record Christian Jurgernsen Thomsen
152
Pitt-rivers and petrie
introduced better records, more emphasize on space (context), classifying material evidence (all evidence, not just pretty stuff)
153
catastrophism
earth history as seen a series of dramatic changes to its envt. and surface (flood, earthquakes)
154
Lewis Henry Morgan
- early anthropology figure - Evolutionary interpretation of human (divided past into 3 stages) 1. savagery 2. barbarism 3. civilization * stages are devised by the intro of pottery, agriculture and writing - unilinear evolution
155
unilinear evolution
all societies pass through the same strategies of cultural development (ladder of progress) franz boas rejected this approach
156
cultural historical approach
rejection of evolutionary metaphor, human past as a history, piecing together what happened
157
functionalism
- culture is designed to fulfill important functions and meet universal human needs - culture isn't passed down but its there for a reason (new 20th century idea)
158
cultural ecology
human culture is an adaptation to the envt.
159
changes to arch in the 20th century
functionalism cultural ecology radiocarbon dating invention
160
remote sensing
identifying sites using air photos or satellite images; aerial view of large sites; see changes in topography
161
LIDAR
lazer scanning device that works with GPS satellites to produce axises and create images of topography (type of remote sensing)
162
subsurface sampling
across large sites; mapping underground (sugar, digging)
163
geophysical methods
mapping deep underground (ground-penetrating radar, magnetometry, soil resistivity)
164
excavation
digging (large amount of data but large amounts of resources)
165
test pit excavation
small area excavation (snapshot) trench (chronological) wedge exposure step trench (wide exposure for areas at risk for caving in)
166
horizontal vs vertical record keeping
H: mapping and photographing features in situ (original place) V: profile drawing, mapping depth, digging in levels (nature guided)
167
screening
finding little items and keeping track of where dirt comes from
168
fossils show that the first major difference between hominy's and the apes was..
bipedal walking
169
the idea of uniformarianism is asosciated witht ehw work of geologist Charles lyell, and also forms a key principle that justifies the use of analogy in arch interpretation?
procsses that happened int he past were the same as ones we can observe in the present
170
why use wide-exposure excavation?
she wants to study the sptail distributation of activites and features across a shallow site
171
evidence from olduvai gorge tanzania demonstrates that...
early homo used stone tools to butcher animals
172
fossil found in volcanic ash? what dating source?
radiopotassium dating
173
lake mungo
one of the earliest arch sites in australia
174
how to investigate envts?
ice cores and lake sediment cores
175
archaelogical and genetic evidence support which statement?
modern homo sapians evolved in africa and replaced older homonim popul,ations in europe and asia with some linited interbreeding
176
william rathje and colleagues in the garbage project studied...
how garbage in tucson reflects human activity
177
hominin that walks around on two legs, are not using stone tools, and eating tough, chewy plants.
robust austalopithecines (paranthropus)
178
arifacts at dolni vestonice czech republic
mammoth bones (due to salt lick presence)
179
ancient agriculture affects today
resulted in almost all of mahor food sources we still rely in today
180
major site of mesolithic and archiac adaptation information (holocene)
carrier mills, illinois
181
questionable origins of who arrived first in the americas, but what is known is that
there were people in the americas before clovis
182
what describes southwest asia (middle east) at the end of the mesolithics?
a habitat were hunter gather intensively harvested and stored wild cereral grains
183
what caused the extinction of large mammals?
climate change and overhunting
184
early farming cultures in the old world were called...
neolithic
185
jared diamond argues that people in societies that adopted agriculture...
had to work harder than hunters and gathers
186
homo sapians colonized the world in what order...
africa, australia, america, polynesia
187
human vs primate lifecycle
live 2.5x longer long life after menopause for women unique care for young for a long time
188
nonlinear history of human ancestry
1. walking apes 2. tool makers 3. recent ancestors (homo Erectus, archaic humans, neanderthals) 4. anatomically modern h. sapiens
189
tool makers
- first members of the genus homo - first stone tools (oldowan) - olduvai gorge, tanzania
190
Olduvai gorge, Tanzania
site of first tools (oldowan) - large numbers of animal bones and large tools - cut marks on bones - scavenging the leftovers of big game (large and small tooth marks, and tool marks)
191
oldowan tool industry
- rocks as tools - animal butchering, cutting wood/plants - predominantly right handed (handiness with brain mirrorization)
192
homo erectus
- maybe language (vertebral canal) - large skull for brain size - large body - receding forehead - loss of body hair - smaller teeth - slower childhood/ juvenile dependency - less sexual dimorphism ****** - archeulian tool industry - fire - first to leave Africa
193
use of fire
cooking increased the digestibility of foods and decreased disease
194
Acheulian tool industry
- More specific rock chosen; carved on both sides; harder to do right tools - All purpose tool: cutting, scrapping, farming - seen in Olorgesaile, Kenya
195
archaic humans
- sophisticated behavior - more hunting - large brains - more complex tools (Levallois technique and halted composite tools)
196
Olrgesallie, kenya
- Over 400 hand axes - Many animal bones (baboons mostly) with cut marks - At least 2 large scale baboon butchering (hunting)
197
Levallois technique
flaking carefully and struck off one flake and the flake is the tool used
198
hafted (composite) tools
stone tool atttached to a wooden bone or hand (can therefore strike with more momentum)
199
neanderthals (type of archaic human)
- care for sick and elderly - major butchering and hunting - live in natural rock shelters - bury dead - little evidence of art - mousterian tools - large nose - similar ear anatomy - short and stocky for long term cold envt. living - more muscular very low lifespan (40-50 years) - high rate of death and injury - worn teeth - interpersonal violence, cannabalism
200
Mousterian tools
very excellent use of Levallois technique
201
AM Homo sapiens
- in Africa by at least 200 kya - small flat face, sharp chin, gracile skeleton, big brain, small teeth - less robust than any other hominin in history - diversification throughout the world
202
what happened to the other hominins? only h. sapiens left
overlap of about 1000 years with Neanderthal and AMH - likely that the Neanderthal population decreased to a small population in Spain and then died out --- climate change, violence, territory takeover, limited resources
203
behavioral complexity of homo sapiens is most obvious during...
the late Pleistocene
204
behavioral complexity during the late Pleistocene
- more diverse tools - wider range of prey - exploitation of aquatic resources - dog domestication - built shelters - made clothing - better environment coping - treated the dead in complex wats - music making - art - religion - used different materials (bone and antler) - blade tools - microliths - harpoon points - atlatls (spear throwing)
205
exploitation of aquatic animals during the late Pleistocene
- Ancient harpoons - Fish hools - Sea-going watercraft evidence (depicitons of boat on stone) - Harpoon points for atlatls spear throwing
206
holocene
after 9000 BC - Eurasia/Africa: Mesolithic - Americas: Archaic
207
Late Pleistocene (Ice age)
- up until 10,000 BC - before holocene - Eurasia/Africa: Upper Paleolithic - Americas: Paleoindian
208
life in the late pleistocene: Upper Paleolithic Europe
- large number of animals - complex ritual life - 5 large dwellings - art - jewelry - ceramics - textile - basketry
209
Dolni Vestonice, Czech Republic (25-23,000 BC)
Salt licks near the site attract animals - few plants - large number of mammoth bones *** great evidence of life in the Late Pleistocene
210
relative vs absolute dating
relative: gives date relative to another known age absolute: gives an absolute known date in years (not an estimated order)
211
types of relative dating
- stratigraphy (oldest at the bottom; law of superposition) - seriation (styles of objects change over time, so can be used to sort objects into top -- stylistic -- frequency
212
chemical interactions with soil dating methods (bone chemistry)
- as bones decay, they absorb F and Uranium and release nitrogen - can tell the age of bone based on chemicals found and can compare it to bones nearby
213
Radiopotassium (K-Ar)
- ratio of K-40 to Ar in volcanic rock/ash - K isotope decays into Ar at fixed rate - Ar gas is trapped in cooled volcanic ash - Ar escapes when rock is heated, so K decays when rock is cool * good for very old stuff bc of very slow decaying process potassium decays when rock is cool
214
radiocarbon dating (C14)
- all living organism absorb C14 through their food and environment - when decaying, C14 goes back to C12 **most important dating technique
215
dendrochronology
- counting tree rings - tree size depends on climate or environmental conditions (thick and thin years) - can match wood to region using master tree ring
216
historical chronologies dating
deposits have actual dates on them; can determine style and date association
217
the people of Australia
- right after Africa - Australia and SE Asia at last glacial maximum - Crossed from SE Asia on boats (able to build and use open ocean travel) - 65,000 BC or earlier
218
Lake Mungo, Australia
- early human remains - mungo man with red ochr - mungo lady ritually creamated - hunted new animals - exploration of aquatic resources at oasis
219
peopling of the Americas
- paleoindians in the late Pleistocenes - first believed it was Clovis culture but now NO - form of travel is unknown either by boat or over ice covered Canadian land bridge
220
Monte Verde, Chile
- Earliest sites that broke the clovis barrier when accepted (early group of people in the americans than expected) - child footprint - tools - rectangular houses - fire places and hearths
221
The Clovis Culture
11,000 BC - Very successful group; could have possible traveled through ice bridge - Typically mammoth or bison kill sites with evidance of clovis points (big game killing sites)
222
the peopling of the pacific/polynesia
- traveled very far - colonized easter island -- farthest point from anything else - star compass and mapping (resource adaptation) - incredible for their ability to travel very far with only blue water navigation
223
Paleolithic diet
comprised entirely meat, fish, nuts, fruit, vegetables, eggs, insects, honey, breast milk -- fewer carbs and more protein (result of widespread agriculture)
224
Carrier Mills, Illinois
4000-3000 BC - continuous occupation over long time frame --- evidence of deep middens (trash heaps) ---77 species (exploit. of resources) --- exploitation of swamp/lake --- storage of acorns and nuts --- living there minimum of 3/4 of the year
225
End of Pleisocene/End of Ice age
- warming into the holocene - extinction of megafauna - climate change + overhunting - radical changes in culture - end of Clovis culture
226
what caused the extinction of large game at the end of the ice age?
over hunting and climate change
227
evidence for overhunting
- *most obvious in America - Clovis big kill game sites - Large drives show evidence of possibly killing too much meat than actually needed - Climate change was not necessarily a linear change (periods of warming and cooling (interglacials)) ---- Animals did not die off during previous interglacials - humans and megafauna coevolved, so they did have some adaptations before extinction
228
evidence for climate change
- non animals and animal went extinct - large animals were more impacted than smaller ones
229
The Holocene
9000 BC to present - new names - hunting-fishing-gathering - more specialized tools - processing and storage of food - exploitation of smaller areas more intensively - cemeteries - more violence
230
Mesolithic/Archaic adaptations (hunting-fishing-gathering)
- farming - exploited smaller areas more (bc of more population) - Reduced mobility and greater seditism - diversified resource base - broad spectrum foragers - specialized exploitation of specific local resources ex/ rabbit drives, salmon runs - storage of food - special tool (fish hooks, microliths)
231
Holocene naming
Eurasia/africa: mesolithic Americas: archaic
232
methods for studying past environments
ice core/lake settlement core tree rings pollen series from lake cores
233
archaebotany and archaeozoology
study of plant and animal remains from archaeological contexts
234
plant domestication
- bigger and numerous seed kernels - being grown outside their normal habitat or homeland ex/ Wild wheat have brittle rachis and domesticated wheat have a tougher rachis (additional step is necessary for harvesting, but people are getting more wheat when harvest)
235
animal domestication
- shrink/lose their horns - smaller body size, but amount of meat is increasing or staying the same - more wool - Shorter legs, so they are slower - Faster growth rate overall (adulthood much quicker)
236
human-animal domestication relationship
- Killing males instead of females - Isotope values show that animals are eating food they normally would not have (grains/wheat that was domesticated by humans) - Hunting mortality profiles differ from herding mortality profiles
237
evidence of new subsistence
- Residue analysis on artifacts - Coprolites (poop) - Human bone chemistry - Malnutrition in human remains - Landscape alterations for agriculture
238
terminology for early farming societies
Old World: Neolithic Americas: Formative
239
fertile crescent farming
- first farmers in the world - very quick transitions with big cahnges - end of the pleistocene - mesolithic communities arise and focus on grain crops - increasingly depending on wild cereals - more sedentary - very successful living in large settlements
240
what comes after the natufian period? (12,000-9,500 BC)
pre-pottery neolithic period (9,500-6,000 BC)
241
meat consumption at Jericho, Israel
Increases for domesticated animals, and decreased for wild animals as time goes on (greater reliance on domestication over hunting)
242
Abu Hureyra, Syria (10,500-6000 BC)
After Natufian period, during Neolithic period -- more domesticated grains -- domesticated sheep and goats -- rectangular living strucutres -- more tools for farming vs hunting
243
Techuacan valley, Mexico (10,000-1,000 BC)
- Increase in population and decrease in mobility - Evidence of wild plant foods and archaic grinding stones - Evidence for the origin of maize - changes in diet (bone chem) - hunter-gathers to farmers - changing types of tools - changes in animal anatomy/behavior
244
evidence for the origin of maize
1. Region dryness allowed for excellent preservation of goods 2. Expert had already uncovered tiny 5000 ya corn cobs in caves similar -- grinding tools instead of hunting -- corn gets bigger (originally Teosinte was wild ancestor)

Archeology (2 decks)

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