FLOVODOH ONLY!!! 5 Pages Archeology Essay See attachment

ANTH 3: INTRO TO ARCHAEOLOGY – Spring 2017

MIDTERM ESSAY EXAM

For this essay, you will pick ONE of the two hypothetical excavation projects detailed below.

Based on the map and information that you have been given, design an excavation strategy for understanding this particular site or area. You will need to indicate what techniques you will use to establish the time period of the site and assemble an archaeological crew to answer your research questions.

Your excavation strategies should include what type of data you will need to seek, where on the site you plan to excavate and why, what methods you will use, and how you will analyze the archaeological data. Remember to clearly justify your choices. You should NOT make up discoveries; this is an exercise in planning like the proposals archaeologists must write in order to obtain funding from organizations like the National Science Foundation or the National Geographic Society. The best answers will draw upon the textbook, study guide, lecture and films.

The essay should be within the range of 4-6 pages and follow standard formatting: 1 inch margins on all sides, page numbers, double-spaced, Times New Roman Font, Size 12. Follow the Required Citation Style guide found on GauchoSpace when you cite your sources and construct your References Cited. Remember that this paper is 15% of your grade; a rubric for the Midterm Essay can be found in the link titled “Midterm Essay Assignment (available Friday)” in Week 3, by clicking the button “How you will be graded”.

Site 1: Feasting and Community at the Washausen Site The Washausen site was first identified by archaeologists in the early 1970s in a survey of the nearby river floodplain. Over the last 10 years it has received systematic study by archaeologists who have identified two mounds (Mound A and Mound B) and a large plaza. Previous research done by yourself and colleagues shows that at one point (date is yet unknown) the Washausen site underwent rapid population change as groups of people moved from different areas to form newer and larger communities, but this transition is not well understood. In 2011, your colleague conducted a magnetometer survey and identified a large settlement area of the site, a possible third mound (Mound C) and a cluster of unidentified structures and other features like hearths for cooking and midden (trash) deposits. The basin structures have been hypothesized to be house clusters. The images below show the results of the magnetometer survey and a site plan compiled from the magnetometer survey and your previous work at the site. You are the primary investigator for the upcoming field season and you want to investigate the question: How did different groups of people come together to form a new community at Washausen? One way that various groups might come together was through the construction of large public monuments, central plazas and through feasting events. When and how quickly did they do so? What evidence and specialists would you need to identify and understand feasting and foodways? Did the results of the magnetometer survey accurately identify house clusters? And what can these house clusters reveal about the different origins of people living there?

Washausen Magnetometer Survey

Washausen Site Plan based upon the Magnetometer survey (use this plan for your essay).

Site 2: Long-distance Trade Networks of the Ulu Burun Shipwreck

Sponge divers have reported piles of of amphorae on the bottom of the Mediterranean ocean off of the coast of Turkey. When you dive down to investigate you quickly realize that this is a rare Bronze Age ship that sank over 3000 years ago! You can see a huge cluster of amphorae (handled storage jars) of various sizes and other ceramics, piles of copper ingots, wood from the ship’s hull, and other items poking out of the silty ocean floor. When exactly did this ship sink? What cargo was it holding and what was its trade route? For your research you will conduct an underwater archaeological excavation of the shipwreck. There is limited time, so you will not be able to excavate the entire ship. This wreck will give you a window into trade between the Eastern Mediterranean, ancient Egypt, Caanan (Israel, Palestine, Lebanon), Mycenean Greece, and beyond. For your upcoming field season, you want to answer two key questions in order to understand the dynamics of these ancient long-distance trade networks. First, what were the contents and origins of the ship’s cargo? Second, where was the crew based (in Mycenae, Egypt, or Canaan)? In order to answer these questions, you know you will need to find the crew’s cabin somewhere near the stern of the ship and see if the artifacts found there tie the crew to a particular site or region.

Ulu Burun Shipwreck Site Plan with Key (Orange = pottery; Green and Purple = Copper and tin ingots; Blue = glass ingots; Grey = stone anchors; Black = metal and other objects).