Least Cost Pathway Analyses in Archaeological Research: Approaches and Utility. David G. Anderson. 2012. In Least Cost Analysis of Social Landscapes: Archaeological Case Studies, edited by Devin A. White, and Sarah L. Surface-Evans, pp. 239–257. University of Utah Press, Salt Lake City, Utah. (original) (raw)
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Proposals for An Archaeological Analysis of Pathways and Movement
Archeologia e Calcolatori, 18: 121-140. 2007., 2007
Movement has played a relevant role in the archaeological analyses of territoriality in the recent years. The incorporation of technologies such as GIS has reinforced that role, since they have made possible to deeply and widely explore the natural constraints for movement. In this paper we develop a procedure to explore the relationship between networks of pathways, settlements and territory, following a “rearward” perspective that tries to approach the processes of historical transformation of pathways. The proposal is applied to an area in Galicia (NW Iberian Peninsula), between the provinces of A Coruña and Pontevedra.
Diffusionism in Archaeological Theory: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
This chapter details the use and abuse of a Cultural Historical approach and the concepts of diffusion in the prehistory of the Americas and the Pacific. We argue that while in the past diffusion was often used to diminish the inventiveness, abilities and innovations of the First Nations of the Americas and thus was poorly applied to understanding the past. However, the complete dismissal of cultural contact and the transfer of ideas in the archaeological record disregards important aspects of prehistory. This chapter summaries diffusion in American archaeology, the Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
Society for American Archaeology
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Intensities, interactions and uncertainties: some new approaches to archaeological distributions
2013
Postprint of a chapter in Bevan, A. and Lake, M. (eds.), Computational Approaches to Archaeological Spaces, Walnut Creek: Left Coast Press. 1. Introduction While distribution maps are nearly as old as the discipline of archaeology itself, most archaeologists still rely on personal intuition with regard to their assessment both of the spatial patterns they recover and the environmental processes and human behaviours that might be behind these patterns. To some extent, this general preference for intuitive readings of space in the archaeological record probably reflects several decades of disillusionment with quantitative spatial methods, after a flurry of early interest during the 1970s (e.g. Hodder and Orton 1976; Clarke 1977), and a continuing wish to prioritise the study of cultural spaces as subjectively experienced and meaningfully constituted by their human inhabitants (e.g. Gregory and Urry eds. 1985). Interestingly, even the enthusiastic uptake of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) from the 1990s onwards did little to change this situation with regard to spatial pattern analysis, as most off-the-shelf GIS software was targeted at data management and querying, digital cartography and enhanced visualisation, as well as certain focused modelling agendas (e.g. terrain, visibility and movement). Effectively, the study of distribution maps in archaeology merely carried on as it was, with a healthy dose of expert intuition, and perhaps in slightly richer visual form. However, while human involvement in the act of interpretation is undeniably a crucial and enduring aspect of archaeological research, there remain good reasons to characterise spatial distributions in more formal, quantitative ways. This paper focuses on a set of point pattern and process models that, we argue, now puts archaeologists in a position to return to the analysis of spatial pattern and process with renewed ambition, especially with regard to distribution maps. The first section below considers current theoretical approaches to point distributions and subsequent sections then address three cases studies that highlight some important conceptual issues and new analytical opportunities. 2. Theoretical Perspectives 2.1 Point-based Simplifications A dot on a map is usually a considerable simplification. Whether our concern is about the proper 2-or 3-dimensional representation of a real world entity, its more complicated expression in space-time, or the possible webs of cultural meaning that might envelope it, we certainly risk much by this kind of spatial abstraction. There are also further trade-offs to do with how we record such points, between time and effort on the one hand, and any possible archaeological insights we might derive on the other. Do we require great spatial accuracy (such that measured coordinates are close to the actual absolute values), great spatial
American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 2006
In the south central Andes, archaeologists have long debated the extent of Tiwanaku colonization during the Middle Horizon (AD 500-1000). We tested the hypotheses regarding the nature of Tiwanaku influence using strontium isotope, trace element concentration, and oxygen isotope data from archaeological human tooth enamel and bone from Tiwanaku-and Chiribaya-affiliated sites in the south central Andes. Strontium isotope analysis of 25 individuals buried at the Tiwanaku-affiliated Moquegua Valley site of Chen Chen demonstrates that it was likely a Tiwanaku colony. In contrast, no immigrants from the Lake Titicaca Basin were present in 27 individuals analyzed from the San Pedro de Atacama cemeteries of Coyo Oriental, Coyo-3, and Solcor-3; it is likely that these sites represent economic and religious alliances, but not colonies. However, strontium isotope analysis alone cannot distinguish movement between the Tiwanaku-and Chiribaya-affiliated sites in the Moquegua and Ilo Valleys of southern Peru. Analyzing oxygen isotope and trace element concentration data and comparing it with strontium isotope data from the same individuals provides a more detailed picture of residential mobility in the Tiwanaku and Chiribaya polities. In addition to monitoring diagenetic contamination, trace element concentration data identified movement during adulthood for certain individuals. However, these data could not distinguish movement between the Moquegua and Ilo Valleys. While oxygen isotope data could clearly distinguish the high-altitude sites from others, more data is needed to characterize the local oxygen isotope ratios of these regions. These data demonstrate the potential for archaeological reconstruction of residential mobility through multiple lines of evidence.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, 2024
Large datasets are often needed to explore important, big picture questions, making effective information management as critical in modern archaeology as it is in many other disciplines. Freeman et al. (1) use archaeological data to explore one of the most significant questions facing the modern world, which is why and for how long human populations grow rapidly in some circumstances, oscillate to varying degrees in others, and, most worryingly to all who hope never to live in such times, experience severe declines in still others. The expansion and contraction of human populations, from among hunter-gatherers to those associated with the rise and fall of complex agricultural civilizations, is a subject studied since antiquity, with many explanations advanced (e.g., refs. 2-5). One of the triumphs of modern archaeology is that it provides replicable datasets useful for documenting such demographic trends and their possible causes. Proxy measures of human populations at large scales are seeing increasing development and use to examine major topics
Path Dependence, in Oxford Handbook of Southwest Archaeology
Path dependence concepts, thus far, have seen little application in archaeology, but they have great potential. At a general level, these concepts provide tools for theorizing historical sequences, such as patterns of settlement on a landscape and divergent historical traditions. Potential applications include issues of historical contingency in the late Rio Grande, settlement in the Mesa Verde region, and divergent trajectories in the post-Chaco period. Specific concepts from path dependence theory, including lock-in and critical junctures, are illustrated by an analysis of the growth of Hohokam irrigation, which exhibited a path-dependent trajectory. As archaeological study of path dependence builds awareness of the importance of decision-making on the future, it contributes to difficult decision-making in today’s world.