Preservation of Archaeological Remains

PreservationEnvironment generally unconducive to preserving artifacts.

Effects: Color and Texture Weight and Shape 

Agents of Deterioration: Chemical (acid soils, water, oxygen) Physical (water, wind, sunlight, earth movement) Biological (bacteria, fungi, carnivores, rodents)

Effects not only artifacts, but sites they are contained in.

Types of ArtifactsOrganic

BoneLeatherTextilesWood

InorganicStoneBaked potsMud bricksGold, Copper, Bronze

Favorable ConditionsDry Conditions

Tutunkahmens tomb

Caves in SW U.S.

King Tutunkahmen’s Tomb(Discovered in 1922 by Howard and Carter)

Spirit Cave Man

Among the archaeological remains found in 1940 in Spirit Cave,13 miles east of Fallon, Nevada, was a partially mummified human burial wrapped in two tule mats. Only the head and part of the right shoulder are mummified, with intact skin. Dates to 9,415+25 years ago.

Spirit Cave Textiles

Ancient FootwearAncient, 8,000-year-old shoes found in a Missouri cave show that fashion in footwear is nothing new and, in fact, is much older than anyone thought.

Favorable ConditionsWet/Water-logged

Bogs in Denmark

Mud Slides in Washington Underwater

Lindow Man

•First, he had been hit twice on the crown of his head with a blunt object, probably an ax; he had also been struck once at the base of his skull. Second, he had been strangled. •Around Lindow Man's neck was a small rope that had been twisted tightly, closing off his windpipe and breaking two of his neck vertebrae. •Finally, scientists found a gash at the throat, which may indicate that his throat was cut, though some scientists think that the wound occurred naturally after his death. •If indeed his throat was cut, it was probably done to drain his body of blood.

Tollund ManThe amazingly well-preserved and beatific-looking Tollund man is a veritable poster boy for human sacrifice. Tollund Man was discovered in 1950 by two men cutting peat, who were sure he must be a recent murder victim, but the body dated from the Iron-Age. Tollund Man had been buried naked except for a pointed skin cap and a hide belt. Around his neck was a nose woven from two leather thongs. Tollund Man was immediately excavated and transported to a museum, where it was determined that he was 2000 years old. After an examination of the body, it was concluded that Tollund Man was probably hanged after a ritual meal of cereal gruel.

Tollund Man

Windover Man

Windover, FLLaboratory tests proved however, that cautious speculation had become reality. The material was, indeed, human brain tissue. This first find was from a woman who died at approximately 45 years of age. Over the three six-month field seasons 91 skulls were found to contain brain tissue. Some contained complete brains. Although they were shrunken to a third their normal size, the brain hemispheres and convolutions were clearly intact. The finding of such a large amount of ancient brain tissue made the find especially unique. Never before had scientists had the opportunity to try to clone DNA--the basic building block of heredity from tissue so old.

Ozette Site

Cedar dug-out canoe from the Ozette site

Rock Art at Ozette

http://content.lib.washington.edu/cgi-bin/viewer.exe?CISOROOT=/loc&CISOPTR=1605&CISORESTMP=&CISOVIEWTMP=

Artifacts

Bowl

Cedar box

Wooden Club

Wood whale dorsal w/ 700 otter's teeth

http://daphne.palomar.edu/ais130/site_2.htm

Survey Of Ship Wrecks 2000: Sabine River, Texas

Favorable ConditionsCold

The Lost Franklin ExpeditionThe Ice MaidenInca Mummies

The Franklin Expedition•The two lavishly equipped ships H.M.S. Erebus and Terror sailed proudly from the Thames on the morning of 19 May 1845.•The combined crews of 134 men under the command of Sir John Franklin cheered loudly at the sight of a dove settling on themain mast of Erebus. It was a good omen, an omen of peace and harmony that enveloped the already confident expeditionmembers. •Only a small proportion of the 129 men's remains were ever found, and many excursions into the Arctic today still come across an occasional human bone or Franklin relic. •Subsequent forensic investigations have revealed that the tins taken on the Franklin expedition were soldered with lead, which would have seeped into the food the men were eating. They were suffering from the effects of lead poisoning.

Ships on Ice

Scattered Human Remains

Cannibalism

Ice Maiden•In 1993, Russian archeologist Natalya Polosmak found the famous Ice Maiden of Gorno Altai, in a Pazyryk burial chamber just inside the strip of no-man's-land that is the border frozen as it was in a thick block of ice.

•As the thawing progressed, she realized the corpse was female. Along with the horses sacrificed outside the burial chamber, the Ice Maiden was found with gilded ornaments, dishes, a brush, and a hand mirror.

•A small stone dish found at the end of the coffin contained seeds, thought to be marijuana until closer examination revealed they were coriander.

•Polosmak speculated that these seeds wereburnt for their scent, perhaps to cover the odor of the body.

Ice Maiden

Ice Maiden Tattoos

Ice Maiden

Ice Maiden clothing

Inca Mummies, Andes, Peru

Inca SacrificesLater x-rays will reveal thatSarita died from a blow to her head. The discovery is proof that the ancients used Sara Sara for sacrifice. On the bitterly cold Andean mountains, as close to the heavens as the Incans could get, there are potentially many other child sacrifices. They were victims of the mysterious practice of capacocha.

Sarita

Juanita Discovery