The Goals of Archaeology
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The goals of archaeology seem like they could be very ambiguous
and subjective, but they are indeed not. Actually, they are very specific,
as seen by how common they are across multiple literary sources regarding
archaeology. The City University of New York (CUNY) describes the goals of
archaeology that best sum up all of the available sources. CUNY lists three
goals that entail what archaeologists are actually trying to do. They are
the establishment of a chronological framework, a reconstruction of past
lifeways, and a study of the processes of change in the past (Goals
of Archaeology). By following these three guidelines, archaeologists
strive to answer questions about the Earth’s inhabitants and the process
by which they reached the state of society that exists today.
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The first and perhaps the most
apparent goal of an archaeologist is the establishment of a chronological
framework. “An obvious and basic goal of archaeology is to determine when
things date to, what comes earlier and what later, and what is contemporaneous
with what” (Goals of Archaeology). Years, decades, centuries, millennia –
these are what archaeologists use to group events and people into time periods.
They are forced to discover through diligent work and sometimes tedious study,
when things actually happened.
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According to Stephen Dyson in the American Journal of Archaeology,
placing people, places and things into accurate time periods requires that
an archaeologist know specific techniques, procedures, and strategies that
date back hundreds of years. “Classical archaeology traces its origins back
to one of the first archeological theoreticians, Johannes Winckelmann, and
was on the front line of general cultural debates in the late eighteenth
and early nineteenth centuries. This innovative environment changed, however,
during the course of the nineteenth century” (Dyson 1993: 195). As time grew
on more and more technologically advanced methods came about as to how to
excavate or even how to discover where to excavate. For example, during the
evolution of archaeology, archaeologists learned to construct spatio-temporal
grids. This allows the scientist to chronologically list a sequence of developments
that are based on changes in material culture or nature that are observable
(Goals of Archaeology). All of the developments throughout the decades and
centuries of archaeology have allowed scientists today to excavate and research
more effectively and efficiently. This allows them to accurately place people,
places, things, and events into specific time periods, allowing people today
to more clearly understand the history and chronology of the Earth.
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While they use this chronological
framework, archaeologists seek to identify numerous details about the lives
of previous generations. From archaeological findings, they make generalizations
about cultures and determine practices specific to each society. This information,
needed to make such categorizations, comes in various forms. An archaeological
site possesses a concentrated amount of artifacts and features in a certain
location. These features and objects reveal past human pursuits. Types of
archaeological sites include but are not limited to “Indian villages, seasonal
camps, trails, petroglyphs, hunting blinds, quarries, or remains of old homesteads,
logging camps, or historic mines” (What is Archaeology).
Archaeological features are another form, which help identify past ways of
life. These prehistoric or historic features are made by people and used
as immobile tools within their society. Features such as housing and cemeteries
provide information about the level of technological advancement and creativity
of a particular society. In contrast, archaeological artifacts are mobile
objects which identify the craftsmanship and pursuits of a culture. Artifacts
include cook ware and construction tools.
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As they put each object into a chronological order, archaeologists
use this information as a foundation for further inquiries. Each archaeological
site or culture presents novel information. Through rigorous investigation
and contemplation, archaeologists act as historians and attempt to “reconstruct
past lifeways” (Goals of Archaeology). Archaeologists not only focus on when
and how a society lived, but they also investigate the quality of each generation’s
life. By using numerous teams to investigate different aspects of a site,
a team of archaeologists, working together, provide meticulous and well-informed
results (Archaeological Interpretation and Reconstruction).
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Another main goal of archaeologists
is to show the course of change throughout the past. Archaeologists use the
information, gained through the reconstruction of cultures, to understand
how the customs of the society developed (Goals of Archaeology). Instead
of looking at a few decades as historians may do, archaeologists utilize
a broader perspective to see what specifically leads to developments within
societies.
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A chronological framework serves as the foundation for
further archaeological pursuits. By studying sites, features, and artifacts,
archaeologists gain a comprehensive view of a culture. From these material
means, archaeologists act as anthropologists and theoretically recreate the
life of historic people. While examining the political, religious, technological,
and economic practices, archaeologists learn about the social relations of
a culture. By studying changes throughout the centuries, archaeologists learn
what methods and practices promote a society to survive for an extended period
of time. As they learn about the downfalls or victories of history, archaeologists
transfer and apply this information to today’s world.
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Works Cited:
Archaeological Interpretation and Reconstruction. Indiana University. 19
March 2004. http://www.indiana.edu/~arch/saa/matrix/ia/ia03_mod_08.html
Dyson, Stephen.
1993 From New to New Age Archaeology: Archaeological Theory and Classical
Archaeology-A 1990s Perspective, American Journal of Archaeology,
97(2): 195-206.
Goals of Archaeology. City University of New York. 19 March 2004. http://depthome.brooklyn.cuny.edu/anthro/SCP50/archaeology/goals_of_archaeology.htm
What is Archaeology? Indiana University. 18 March 2004. http://www.indiana.edu/~e472/cdf/what/
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