ANTHROP 3FA3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Ground-Penetrating Radar, Archaeological Theory, Biological Anthropology

• School: McMaster University
• Department: Anthropology
• Course: ANTHROP 3FA3
• Professor: Rebecca Gilmour

Document Summary

Applies archaeological theory and methods to solve medico-legal and humanitarian issues. Ideally, forensic archaeologists also have training in biological anthropology. Surface survey: look at the things on the surface. An area of interest has been identified and it may be small, large, or very large. Different detection methods are needed for different types of sites. Steep terrain vs. open field vs. dense forest. Must be flexible, search techniques may need to be modified. Systematic search: an adaptable type of search based on scene and terrain. Goal: look for surface remains or evidence of possible burials. Line leaders usually don"t participate in the search. Probably come across more evidence by spiralling in and ensure thorough searching occurs. Probably come across more evidence by spiralling in. Grid searches allow for thorough searches as everything gets searched twice. When you "find" something, reduce the grid pattern to define the boundary. Soil inside burial may appear different than surrounding layers.