Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM


Top Flashcards (Certified)
All Flashcards

Archaeology > What Is Archaeology? > Flashcards

What Is Archaeology? Flashcards

(67 cards)

Start Studying
1
Q

Archaeology

A

Study of cultures of the past through material remains (artifacts, ecofacts, and features). The goal is the preserve the artifacts, conserve the site, and explain cultural changes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Culture

A

The social structure created and learned by humans. It consists of burial customs, languages, gender roles, social stratification, oral traditions, human behavior and outcomes, etc.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Diffusion

A

Transfer of ideas, ideologies, and practices by word of our of example

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Invention

A

Creation of something new or improvement upon an older technology

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Migration

A

Movement of people as a peaceful choice or as the result of a stimuli.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Artifacts

A

Man made material goods (ex. stone tools, cups, jewelry, pottery, cave paintings)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Ecofacts

A

Objects from nature that are not modified but are placed in a particular manner (ex. seeds, animal bones)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Features

A

Man made, nonportable artifacts (ex. burial sites, homes)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Prehistory

A

History before civilizations became literate. The focus of the study of the past is on human origins

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

World history

A

Prehistory with a global perspective (ex. how agriculture was developed independently in many regions of the world)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Grotte de Chauvet

A

One of the earliest painted caves from the ice age that was painted repeatedly over the years. Images of animals and lifestyle from during the ice age.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Tollund Man

A

Found preserved in a bog so a lot of information about him could be learned

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Otzi

A

Found preserved by ice in the mountains. He was a hunter (carried bags made of hide and hunting tools), had ritualistic tattoos, had the spearhead that caused his death lodged in his shoulder, and had the blood of 4 different people on him.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Context

A

Position of an object in time and space. Gives relationship to other artifacts, use of object, and site formation process. Factors to consider are the matrix, provenience, and association

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Excavations

A

Digging to expose what is underground, recording and analyzing artifacts

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Scientific Method

A

Excavations are destructive so a precise plan is necessary before digging. Need hypothesis, initial survey, data collection, and conclusions/publishing results

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Hypothesis

A

Preparing questions about goals based on initial research. How did the people live? Why did their lifestyles change? How did societies develop or collapse?

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

Data Collection

A

Looking through previous documents, history and excavation data

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

Conclusions

A

Support hypothesis with results and ask further questions. Public results to create a permanent record of data

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

Dating Methods

A

Relative and absolute ways to place recovered artifacts in a time frame

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Carbon 14

A

Getting half life from organic objects. Though on a large scale, good for determination of time period, there is a significant margin of error on the smaller time scale

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

Thermal Luminescence

A

Used for objects that were exposed to fire. Crystals accumulate electrons at known rate. Heating liberates electrons and creates light. Measuring the light can determine when the crystal was last exposed to heat

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

Writing

A

Analyzing written documents

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

Dendrochronology

A

Counting tree rings and comparing ring patterns because the ring states vary based on environmental conditions

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Potassium Argon Dating
Used to date volcanic ash. Doesn't use the actual artifacts so their dating is done using the law of association
26
Stratigraphy
Layers of soil and rocks
27
Survey
Looking at the site to see if it is possible to dig there. Researching the history to determine how far to dig. Initial look at land before digging
28
Walk over
Looking for things on the surface visually
29
Aerial Photography
Taking pictures from the sky of the landscape to observe topography and crop growth patterns
30
Oblique
Photograph at an angle
31
Vertical
Photograph from directly above
32
LIDAR
Satellite imagery that can cut through forestry and recreate structures that are above the surface
33
Positive Crop Marks
Trench below that may be hard to see but vegetation is raised as a result
34
Negative Crop Marks
Something prevents the growth of crops
35
Soil Marks
Underlying deposit shows on the surface
36
Remote Sensing
Nondestructive way of examining below the surface to determine whether or not to dig
37
Electric Resistivity
Measures resistivity of the soil. If there is no resistivity, the area is entirely natural. If there is resistivity, no definite conclusions can be made because there may or may not be something unnatural
38
Ground Penetrating
Finding underground features based on density of deposits
39
Random Sampling
Placing excavation sites randomly
40
Systematic Sampling
Evenly spreading out excavation sites to get equal coverage of the location
41
Targeted Sampling
Sites placed to maximize artifact recovery. Sites determined based on research and prior knowledge
42
Vertical Excavation
Digging down over a small region in order to exam the stratigraphy. Not about finding artifacts as much. Intended to penetrate to the lowest layer
43
Horizontal Excavation
Large scale excavation to expose house plans and settlement layouts
44
Lascaux Caves
Cave paintings found by accident by boys when their dog got trapped in an underground chamber.
45
Plan View
Aerial view of layout of features
46
Topographic Mapping
Image of the geography of the land and locations of features. Topography
47
Profiles
Side view of a site that can describe the stratigraphy and the location of artifacts in the layers
48
Photodocumenting
Photographs of how the archaeology was done (the weather at the time, the way the site looked)
49
Provenience Sheets
Records of each layer that preserve the context and track the artifacts that were found. Provides a permanent record for future interpretations of the site
50
Natural Formation
Unmodified landscape, naturally occurring
51
Cultural Formation
Environment has been modified with features (burial sites, house formations)
52
Matrix
Natural material surroundings of the object (soil, gravel, sand)
53
Provenience
Vertical and horizontal position of the artifact within the matrix
54
Association
Relationship of artifact to other artifacts
55
Neolithic
Transformation from nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle to agriculture
56
Subsistence
How people made a living and survived
57
Middens
Unfiltered, accumulated discard of cultural materials (garbage)
58
Single Deposits
Small, shallow deposit, one time discard
59
Long Term Deposits
Over an indeterminate period of time, law of superposition important. Profiles allow for the layers to be viewed
60
Disturbances
Something that intrudes upon cultural formation and causes reverse stratigraphy
61
Deflations
Natural moving of soil that results in reverse stratigraphy
62
Reverse Stratigraphy
Oldest artifacts end up on top and the newer ones end up on the bottom
63
Typology
The systematic classification of objects by stylistic and technological attributes. Reflect a culture through design. Can help relate different objects
64
Law of Superposition
Layers that are higher up are newer than layers that are lower down
65
Law of Association
Artifacts in the same layer are from the same time period
66
Seriation
Ordering artifact groups in a relative dating sequence by typologies
67
Three Age System
Weapons were always made from the most durable materials of the time. Therefore based on weapons, the time periods could be divided into stone, bronze, and iron ages

Archaeology (4 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions