Archaeology: Climate Change and the Collapse of Angkor

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Climate Change and the Collapse of Angkor Jan 2nd 2012, 15:05 The Khmer Empire--sometimes called the Angkor Civilization--was a highly sophisticated state which gathered up hundreds of thousands of people in Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and Viet Nam between the 9th and 15th centuries AD. It abruptly collapsed in 1431: exactly why has always been a puzzle. One of the over two hundred faces carved in the towers of Bayon, a 12th century Angkorian temple. The faces may be representations of Buddha, the bodhisattva Lokesvara, Angkorian King Jayavarman VII, who built the temple, or a combination. Image courtesy Mary Beth Day. Pieces of the puzzle have been assembled over the past decade, when members of the Greater Angkor Project collected geological, political, historical and economic evidence to come up with the solution: that the massively successful state level society, with a sophisticated hydrological system, road system, religious structure and trade network nevertheless collapsed within 50 years, primarily due to the effects of a prolonged drought and the state's inability to deal with climate change. The latest article appears in the Proceeding of the National Academy of Sciences today. The story makes for fascinating reading, and as this was a long weekend, I had plenty of time to get some substantial context assembled for you. Enjoy! Further Information The Collapse of Angkor Guide to the Angkor Civilization Angkor Civilization Timeline Khmer Empire Water Management System Khmer Empire Road System Day MB, Hodell DA, Brenner M, Chapman HJ, Curtis JH, Kenney WF, Kolata AL, and Peterson LC. 2012. Paleoenvironmental history of the West Baray, Angkor (Cambodia). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Early Edition.

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Archaeology: What's Hot Now: Shoes and Footwear History

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Shoes and Footwear History Jan 2nd 2012, 11:01 The history of shoes--that is to say, archaeological and paleoanthropological evidence for the earliest use of protective coverings for the human foot--appears to start during the Middle Paleolithic period of approximately 40,000 years ago. The Oldest Shoes The oldest shoes recovered to date are sandals found at several Archaic (~6500-9000 years bp) and a few Paleoindian (~9000-12,000 years bp) sites in the American southwest. Dozens of Archaic period sandals were recovered by Luther Cressman at the Fort Rock site in Oregon, direct-dated ~7500 BP. Fort Rock-style sandals have also been found at sites dated 10,500-9200 cal BP at Cougar Mountain and Catlow Caves. Others include the Chevelon Canyon sandal, direct-dated to 8,300 years ago, and some cordage fragments at the Daisy Cave site in California (8,600 years bp). In Europe, preservation has not been as fortuitous. Within the Upper Paleolithic layers of the cave site of Grotte de Fontanet in France, a footprint apparently shows that the foot had a moccasin-like covering on it. Skeletal remains from the Sunghir Upper Paleolithic sites in Russia (ca 27,500 years bp) appear to have had foot protection. That's based on the recovery of ivory beads found near the ankle and foot of a burial. A complete shoe was discovered at the Areni-1 Cave in Armenia, and reported in 2010. It was a moccasin-type shoe, lacking a vamp or sole, and it has been dated to ~5500 years BP. Read more about the 5500 Year Old Shoe Evidence for Shoe Use in Prehistory Earlier evidence for shoe use is based on anatomical changes that may have been created by wearing shoes. Erik Trinkaus has argued that wearing footwear produces physical changes in the toes, and this change is reflected in human feet beginning in the Middle Paleolithic period. Basically, Trinkaus argues that narrow, gracile middle proximal phalanges (toes) compared with fairly robust lower limbs implies "localized mechanical insulation from ground reaction forces during heel-off and toe-off." He proposes that footwear was used occasionally by archaic Neanderthal and early modern humans in the Middle Paleolithic, and consistently by early modern humans by the middle Upper Paleolithic. The earliest evidence of this toe morphology noted to date is at the Tianyuan 1 cave site in Fangshan County, China, about 40,000 years ago. Sources For information on later shoe history, you can't do better than the History of Shoes, from About.com's Guide to Inventors, Mary Bellis. See the page on Fort Rock sandals from the University of Oregon for a detailed description of the shoes and a bibliography of site reports. Geib, Phil R. 2000 Sandal types and Archaic prehistory on the Colorado plateau. American Antiquity 65(3):509-524. Pinhasi R, Gasparian B, Areshian G, Zardaryan D, Smith A, Bar-Oz G, and Higham T. 2010. First Direct Evidence of Chalcolithic Footwear from the Near Eastern Highlands. PLoS ONE 5(6):e10984. Free to download Trinkaus, Erik 2005 Anatomical evidence for the antiquity of human footwear use. Journal of Archaeological Science 32(10):1515-1526. Trinkaus, Erik and Hong Shang 2008 Anatomical evidence for the antiquity of human footwear: Tianyuan and Sunghir. Journal of Archaeological Science 35(7):1928-1933. This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Any mistakes are the responsibility of Kris Hirst.

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Archaeology: What's Hot Now: Vikings

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Vikings Jan 2nd 2012, 11:01 Who were the Vikings, Anyway? The Vikings were Scandinavian farmers, fishers, herders and pirates whose raids and invasions from Russia to North America between roughly 800-1000 AD helped shape the medieval period of the region. The word "viking" means something like "raid" in Old Norse; "vikingr" means something like "one who raids"; but there is no doubt that the word Viking came to mean the loosely-organized cultural groups in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and eventually Iceland who shared a common economy: hunting, fishing, and piracy. The Viking Age is traditionally marked with the first raid on England, in AD 793, and ends with the death of Harald Hardrada in 1066. Possible reasons for the Viking expansion outside of Scandinavia include population pressure, political pressure, and personal enrichment, or a combination of all three. It is recognized that the Vikings could never have begun raiding or indeed settling beyond Scandinavia if they had not first developed (about 4 centuries earlier) highly effective boat building and navigation skills. Sources See Viking Timeline and the Guide to the Viking Age for further information. This glossary entry is a part of the Guide to the Viking Age and part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. A Viking Bibliography has been created for this project

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Archaeology: What's Hot Now: Indus Seals

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Indus Seals Jan 2nd 2012, 11:01 The Indus Civilizationâ€"also called the Indus Valley Civilization, Harappan, Indus-Sarasvati or Hakra Civilizationâ€"was based in an area of some 1.6 million square kilometers in what is today eastern Pakistan and northeastern India between about 2500-1900 BC. There are 2,600 known Indus sites, from enormous urban cities like Mohenjo Daro and Mehrgarh to small villages like Nausharo. Although much archaeological data have been collected, we know almost nothing about the history of this massive civilization, because we haven't deciphered the language yet. About 6,000 representations of glyph strings have been discovered at Indus sites, mostly on square or rectangular seals like the ones in this photo essay. Some scholarsâ€"notably Steve Farmer and associates in 2004â€"argue that the glyphs don't really represent a full language, but rather simply a non-structured symbol system. An article written by Rajesh P.N. Rao (a computer scientist at the University of Washington) and colleagues in Mumbai and Chennai and published in Science on April 23, 2009, provides evidence that the glyphs really do represent a language. This photo essay will provide some context of that argument, as well as an excuse to look at pretty pictures of Indus seals, provided to Science and us by researcher J.N. Kenoyer of the University of Wisconsin and Harappa.com. Sources and Further Information Rao, Rajesh P. N., et al. 2009 Entropic Evidence for Linguistic Structure in the Indus Script. Science Express 23 April 2009 Guide to the Indus Civilization Bibliography of the Indus Civilization Study of the Indus Script at Harappa.com includes an article by Asko Parpola, essential reading to understanding this issue.

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Archaeology: What's Hot Now: Curriculum Vitae

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Curriculum Vitae Jan 1st 2012, 11:00 Table of Contents Writing Samples < | Curriculum Vitae | > Transcripts What is a Curriculum Vitae? A résumé of your college career is called a curriculum vitae or c.v. Even if it is not requested it is a good idea to submit a c.v. (or combined c.v. and résumé) as this will give you a chance to provide additional information regarding course work and employment experience that you may not have room for on the application form. Do not list the courses you have taken on the c.v. (we already have this on the transcripts). List all other work and college experience that is relevant to archaeology, (e.g., you washed sherds in a lab for free; you catalogued bones for minimum wage; you worked for a consulting company for four summers). List any additional skills that are relevant: drafting, specialized computer skills, surveying, photography. Provide information on any extracurricular activities that might be relevant, such as you were an executive of the anthropology club, or worked registration table at a conference. List your memberships in archaeological associations (Canadian Archaeological Association, Society for American Archaeology or other local or provincial organization) and of course list any publications you may have. It goes without saying that the c.v. will be typed and in a logical format. Still not sure how to set it up? The following is pretty standard. Name Address University Education Previous work experience (last or current job is usually listed first) Publications Extracurricular Activities Memberships Additional skills Table of Contents Writing Samples < | Curriculum Vitae | > Transcripts

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Archaeology: What's Hot Now: Nazca

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Nazca Jan 1st 2012, 11:00 The Nazca (often spelled Nasca in archaeological texts) civilization was located in the Nasca region as defined by the Ica and Grande river drainages, on the southern coast of Peru between about AD 1-750. Nazca Timeline Early Nasca AD 1-450 Middle Nasca AD 450-650 Late Nasca AD 550-750 The early Nasca culture arose as a loosely-affiliated group of rural villages with self-sufficient subsistence based on corn agriculture. The villages had a distinctive art style, specific rituals and burial customs. Cahuachi, an important Nasca ceremonial center, was built and became a focus of feasting and ceremonial activities. The Middle Nasca period saw many changes, perhaps brought about by a long drought. Settlement patterns and subsistence and irrigation practices changed, and Cahuachi became less important. By this time, the Nasca were a loose confederacy of chiefdoms--not with a centralized government, but rather autonomous settlements that regularly convened for rituals. By the Late Nasca period, increasing social complexity and warfare led to the movement of people away from the rural farmsteads and into a few larger sites. Nazca Culture The Nazca are known for their elaborate textile and ceramic art, including an elaborate mortuary ritual associated with warfare and the taking of trophy heads. More than 150 trophy heads have been identified at Nazca sites, and there are examples of burials of headless bodies, and burials of grave goods without human remains. The Nasca region is an arid one, and the Nazca developed a sophisticated irrigation system that aided in their survival for so may centuries. Nazca Lines The Nazca are probably best known to the public for the Nazca Lines, geometric lines and animal shapes etched into the desert plain by the members of this civilization. The Nazca lines were first intensively studied by the German mathemetician Maria Reiche and have been the focus of many silly theories concerning alien landing places. Recent investigations at Nasca include the Project Nasca/Palpa, a photogrammatic study from the Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts and Instituto Andino de Estudios Arqueológicos, using modern GIS methods to record the geoglyphs digitally. More on the Nazca: Nazca Lines, Ica Region pottery vessel Archaeological Sites: Cahuachi, Cauchilla, Marcaya Sources Conlee, Christina A. 2007 Decapitation and Rebirth: A Headless Burial from Nasca, Peru. Current Anthropology 48(3):438-453. Eerkens, Jelmer W., et al. 2008 Obsidian hydration dating on the South Coast of Peru. Journal of Archaeological Science 35(8):2231-2239. Kellner, Corina M. and Margaret J. Schoeninger 2008 Wari's imperial influence on local Nasca diet: The stable isotope evidence. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 27(2):226-243. Knudson, Kelly J., et al. In press The geographic origins of Nasca trophy heads using strontium, oxygen, and carbon isotope data. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology in press. Lambers, Karsten, et al. 2007 Combining photogrammetry and laser scanning for the recording and modelling of the Late Intermediate Period site of Pinchango Alto, Palpa, Peru. Journal of Archaeological Science 34:1702-1712. Rink, W. J. and J. Bartoll 2005 Dating the geometric Nasca lines in the Peruvian desert. Antiquity 79(304):390-401. Silverman, Helaine and David Browne 1991 New evidence for the date of the Nazca lines. Antiquity 65:208-220. Van Gijseghem, Hendrik and Kevin J. Vaughn 2008 Regional integration and the built environment in middle-range societies: Paracas and early Nasca houses and communities. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology 27(1):111-130. Vaughn, Kevin J. 2004 Households, Crafts, and Feasting in the Ancient Andes: The Village Context of Early Nasca Craft Consumption. Latin American Antiquity 15(1):61-88. Vaughn, Kevin J., Christina A. Conlee, Hector Neff, and Katharina Schreiber 2006 Ceramic production in ancient Nasca: provenance analysis of pottery from the Early Nasca and Tiza cultures through INAA. Journal of Archaeological Science 33:681-689. Vaughn, Kevin J. and Hendrik Van Gijseghem 2007 A compositional perspective on the origins of the “Nasca cult” at Cahuachi. Journal of Archaeological Science 34(5):814-822. This glossary entry is part of the Dictionary of Archaeology. Any mistakes are the responsibility of Kris Hirst.

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Archaeology: What's Hot Now: Career Choices in Archaeology

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Career Choices in Archaeology Dec 31st 2011, 11:01 What are my career choices in archaeology? There are several levels of being an archaeologist, and where you are at in your career is related to the level of education you have and the experience you’ve received. There are two common types of archaeologists: those based at universities, and those based at cultural resource management (CRM) firms, firms that conduct archaeological investigations associated with federal construction projects. Other archaeology-related jobs are found at National Parks, Museums, and State Historical Societies. Field Technician / Crew Chief / Field Supervisor A field technician is the first level of field experience any one gets in archaeology. As a field tech you travel the world as a freelancer, excavating or conducting survey any where the jobs are. Like most other kinds of freelancers, you are generally on your own when it comes to health benefits, but there are definitely benefits to the ‘travel the world on your own’ lifestyle. You can read about the way field technicians work in the Have Trowel Will Travel: Field Technicians in Archaeology series. You can work on CRM projects or academic projects, but in general the CRM jobs are paid positions, while the academic field jobs are volunteer or even require tuition. A Crew Chief and Field Supervisor are Field Technicians who have earned additional responsibility. You’ll need a college degree in archaeology or anthropology (or be working on one) to get this job. Project Archaeologist / Principal Investigator / Manager A project archaeologist is the middle level of cultural resource managers, who writes proposals and budgets, supervises excavations, and writes reports on excavations conducted. These are permanent jobs, and health benefits and 401K plans are common. You can work on CRM projects or academic projects, and under normal circumstances, both are paid positions. An CRM Office Manager supervises several PA/PI positions. You’ll need an MA in archaeology or anthropology to get one of these jobs. See Getting into Graduate School for more information. Academic Archaeologist The academic archaeologist or college professor is probably more familiar to most people. This person teaches classes on various archaeology topics at a university or college through the school year, and conducts archaeological expeditions during the summer terms. You’ll need a PhD to get this job; these are also relatively rare. There are other, related jobs in archaeology you can look into, such as cultural resource lawyer or GIS specialist. These are described in Alternate Careers in Archaeology.

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