Table of Contents
Are human remains artifacts?
Archaeology is the study of the human past using material remains. These remains can be any objects that people created, modified, or used. Portable remains are usually called artifacts.
Is it wrong to unearth mummies?
Sometimes, yes definitely. And sometimes it’s the right thing to do, not to excavate,” says Duncan Sayer, an archaeologist who has written a book on the ethics of burial excavations.
Is it okay to dig up the dead?
“It’s not okay to excavate human remains simply because we’re archaeologists and that’s what we do,” Sayer recently told Discover Magazine. He suggests that rescue excavations — where burial sites are about to be destroyed by natural disasters — are definitely permissible.
How is an archaeologist able to determine the age of an ancient artifact?
Perhaps the most famous absolute dating technique, radiocarbon dating was developed during the 1940s and relies on chemistry to determine the ages of objects. Used on organic matter, the technique measures the amount of radioactive carbon decay to determine an object’s age.
How are skeletons preserved?
Conservators try to preserve the bones by treating them with vinyl or acrylic polymers to fill in cracks and hold pieces together. But such polymers aren’t all that compatible with bone, and after a few years the polymers start to yellow and pull away from the bone.
How are human bones preserved?
At the minimum, ethical guidelines suggest that remains from different individuals should be stored in separate boxes or compartments from each other. Generally speaking, human remains are best preserved in cool, dark, dry conditions while wrapped in acid-free (non-buffered) tissue and packing materials.
How long does someone have to be dead before it’s considered Archaeology instead of grave robbing?
Originally Answered: How long does a body need to be buried for it to be considered archeology and not grave robbing? The soft answer is around 100 years. In practice you need to get a permit from a government agency before disturbing human remains, no matter their age.
How do you date ancient pottery?
The dating procedure involves measuring the mass of a sample of ceramic and then heating it to around 500 degrees Celsius in a furnace, which removes the water. The re-fired ceramic is then weighed immediately, using a highly accurate microbalance, to determine precisely the rate of water recombination.
How accurate is archaeological dating?
The technique often cannot pinpoint the date of an archeological site better than historic records but is highly effective for precise dates when calibrated with other dating techniques such as tree-ring dating. For this reason, many archaeologists prefer to use samples from short-lived plants for radiocarbon dating.
Do skeletons decompose?
The truth is never buried. Decomposition starts almost immediately after death, with the end of normal bodily functions and the spread of internal bacteria. These processes cause the tissues of the human body to rupture and break down. Once the soft tissues have fully decomposed, all that remains is the skeleton.