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Aspects of maya civilization
Aspects of maya civilization
Aspects of maya civilization
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I chose four different anthropological projects from around the word in which I believe would be best for the Archaeology Conservancy to protect. I ranked these different projects based on quality of work, potential for public use, threatened nature, and heritage importance. I first reviewed the Mosfell Archeological project in Iceland. This area will construct a vivid picture of the human and environmental change in southwestern Ireland. The purpose of this project is to find the prehistory and early history of the Mosfell region. I also looked into the Pylos Regional Archaeological project. This project started in 1990 to look at prehistoric settlements in western Messenia, Greece. The Yaxuna project caught my attention because the project is in Yucatan, Mexico and I am Mexican. This project main concern is finding out more about the Mayan culture and way of life. My last site I would like to be protected is Jamestown Rediscovery. This project is based out of Virginia, the first known English colony in North America. The excavations began in 1994 and so far many artifacts have been found. The purpose of my research is in order for the Archaeology Conservancy, based out of New Mexico, to help continue these projects.
The Mosfell project has set goals which it would like to accomplish. The main goal of Mosfell is to find the prehistoric and historic artifacts of this region. They are seeking a more in-depth understanding of how this area evolved from its earliest form. The archaeologists involved have very definite goals which are achievable in the long term. The data they have found is presented in a journal type documentation in which they document each individual excavation year. The only details they provide about the excavat...
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...wn of the English in North America and students who want to learn excavation techniques. The purpose of the website is to encourage visitation in order to get monetary funds for their more research. They answered where it was which has now brought even more questions. Thankfully this project has no concern for protecting artifacts they have found along the way.
Works Cited
Byock, J., & Zori, D. (n.d.). Mosfell Archaeological Project (MAP). The Mosfell Archaeological Project (MAP). Retrieved February 14, 2004, from http://www.viking.ucla.edu/mosfell_project/index.html
Heath, S. (n.d.). Pylos Regional Archaeological Project. Pylos Regional Archaeological Project. Retrieved March 4, 2014, from http://classics.uc.edu/prap/
Yaxuna Archaeology Project. (n.d.). Yaxuna Archaeology Project. Retrieved May 4, 2014, from http://maya.csueastbay.edu/yaxuna/YaxFrames.html
The second question frequently asked regarding Schliemann’s legacy examines his motives and skill as an excavator: was Heinrich Schliemann a good archaeologist? This question has two sides. First, did Schliemann use the best techniques and technology available to him at time of his first excavation? Second, did he have the same values that other archaeologists have?
About 800 years ago, a great civilization inhabited the land in west Alabama, located along the Black Warrior River, south of Tuscaloosa. It encompassed a known area of 320 acres and contained at least 29 earthen mounds. Other significant features include a plaza, or centralized open area, and a massive fortification of log construction. The flat topped, pyramidal mounds ranging from three to 60 feet, are believed to have been constructed by moving the soil, leaving large pits that are today small lakes. As major ceremonial center, up to 3000 people inhabited the central area from 1200-1400 AD. An estimated 10,000 lived around the stockade, which surrounded three sides of the civilization (Blitz 2008:2-3; Little et al 2001:132).
The site played a significant role for the study of the strategic hunting method practiced by Native American. The native people hunted herds of bison by stampeding them over a 10- 18 metre high cliff. This hunting method required a superior knowledge of regional topography and bison behaviour. The carcasses of the bison killed were carved up by the native people and butchered in the butchering camp set up on the flats.
Kathryn book Life in the Pueblo is based on excavations that she did at Lizard Man Village (Kamp, 1997). This was a small pueblo located in Arizona which is believed to be inhabited between 11th and 13th century. These ancient excavations were first carried out by United States Forest Service and were parts of Grinnell College field school (Kamp, 1997). The aim of the book was to describe Lizard Man Village and present excavation processes and analysis. Kamp 1997 offers archaeological interpretation of the site in relation to the past understandings. She bring out successfully three narratives. These narratives include ethnographic data in relationship to traditional accounts from Hopi (a place which is believed to be the first resident of Lizard Man) (Kamp, 1997). He also bring out clearly the issue of archaeology as well as fictional account basing it on both ethnography and archaeology.
The Royal Alberta Museum holds a sacred object of the First Nations groups of Alberta and Saskatchewan, the Manitou Stone. This sacred object has a vast history to the Aboriginals but also has much controversy that surrounds it. Hundreds of years ago the object was removed from its original spot and was moved back and forth across the Canada, eventually ending up in Edmonton at the Royal Alberta Museum. This sacred object was said to have many powers for the First Nations people and when it was taken it brought great hardship to the First Nations groups that believed in the power of the Manitou Stone. This is only the beginning of the issues that surround this sacred object. Many different Aboriginal groups claim to own the piece but no decision has been made as to where the object should be placed. With the Manitou Stone now in the Royal Alberta Museum issues arise about the proper housing of the item and whether or not it should be retained in a museum or if it should be on First Nations land. Where the Manitou Stone is placed brings many complications and struggles for the Aboriginal people that claim ownership of the sacred object. When researching this object I was initially unaware of the significance that a museum could have to groups of people and the struggles that this could bring to these groups. This paper will explore the significance of the stone, the various viewpoints on why the object was moved originally from Iron Creek, who claims ownership to the object, and whether or not a museum is the proper place for sacred objects like the Manitou Stone to be kept.
To understand the unique aspects of a gorge created in just a few days, it is necessary to look back to the events which occurred 100,000 years ago. Described by James Lovelock in his book, The Age...
The art is locate more than 100 m into the cave and the artifacts were found at the cave’s opening. The artifacts were linked to the Early Woodland/early Middle Woodland to the Mississippian period. The ways that the artifacts were dated was by looking that the markings and the brushing of the ceramics. In the center of the...
Zságer, L., 2010. 'Miniature Carvings in the Canadian Dorset Culture: the Paleo-Eskimo Belief System'. Perspectivas Colombo-Canadienses, Volume vol. 3, pp. 108-121 [Online]. Available at: http://revistas.urosario.edu.co/index.php/perspectiva/issue/view/206/showToc [Accessed 17 December 2013]
In this ancient place there were all different kinds of remnants from what looked to be a permanent settlement, which led us to believe that it was formed in the Neolithic period. Scientists also believe from the skull fragments found that the Cro-Magnons were the hominid type that inhabited the area. Some of the fossils found helped to prove that the settlement was immobile because the fossilized plants were apparently in a specific arrangement, showing that they were planted purposefully. Some of the cotton grown in this area was apparently used to make woven cloth. Remnants of corn meal were used to make some of the mortar for their establishments, along with mud and sand. They also made their bricks, which were much larger than today’s, from mud. Some of the teeth from the Cro-Magnons were found to be stained. They were thought to be from the coffee ingested due to the high amounts of caffeine deposits in the bones.
Evidence for the pre-Clovis settlement at Monte Verde was amassed and carefully analyzed over the last two decades by a team of American and Chilean archeologists, led by Dr. Tom D. Dillehay of the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Remaining doubts were erased by Dillehay's comprehensive research report, which has been circulated among experts and is to be published next month by the Smithsonian Institution. And last month, a group of archeologists, including some of Monte Verde's staunchest critics, inspected the artifacts and visited the site, coming away thoroughly convinced.
The Truth Behind: Atlantis Documentary focuses on both supporting and debunking the existence of Atlantis at either the Bahamas, Crete, Knossos, or Thera/Santorini. Throughout this paper I will be deliberating how archeology works at these stated sites, how archeology impacts society as a whole in the context of Atlantis in regards to the modern day fascination and obsession with this seeming mystery, and how archaeological knowledge is acquired and conveyed at the site in order to substantiate certain theories about the past location or Atlantis. Analyzing all of these facets will allow me to think critically about archeology and evidently the archaeological concepts we’ve discussed throughout the course. Atlantis, within this movie, demonstrates
Participant observation is a method of collecting information and data about a culture and is carried out by the researcher immersing themselves in the culture they observing. The researcher becomes known in the community, getting to know and understand the culture in a more intimate and detailed way than would be possible from any other approach. This is done by observing and participating in the community’s daily activities. The method is so effective because the researcher is able to directly approach the people in the community in a natural context as opposed to taking the participant out of their environment. The aim of participant observation is to gain an understanding the subject’s life from their perspective, with the purpose of collecting more detailed information about a community’s habits, opinions, relationships and issues.
Processual Archaeology, was a movement in the archaeological field that began in the 1960‘s and changed the course of archaeology forever. Anthropologists such as Julian Steward were absolutely influential on many archaeologists and anthropologists during the early 1960s with his theories of cultural ecology which established a scientific way of understanding cultures as human adaption to the surrounding environment (Steward, 1955: 36-38). It was approaches such as Stewards that led eventually led to a rejection of culture-historical approaches to the archaeological record and propelled the ideas of cultural evolution and its reaction with the environment. This approach to cultural systems was essentially a rejection of the culture-historical approach of determinism by suggesting that the environment influences culture but is not a deterministic feature and that both culture and the environment were two separate systems that are dependent on each other for change (Steward, 1955: 36).
One of the most key examples of understanding human culture through archaeology is the topic of climate and the environment. As seen through history, there is an intricate relationship between the environment and life on earth. Through extensive research, archaeologists have the ability to take note of minor cultural changes that can be attributed to the environment during a particular time period. These changes include, shifts in methods of food collection, changes in the artwor...
One cannot generalize or predict all human behaviors, thought processes, morals, and customs. Because human nature is dominated by different types of cultures and societies in various parts of the world, this can often lead to misunderstanding which ultimately leads to the illusion of cultural superiority, and in most cases this can lead to genocide - the systematic murder or annihilation of a group of people or culture. Anthropology is the study of humans, our immediate ancestors and their cultural environments this study stems from the science of holism - the study of the human condition. Culture is crucial in determining the state of the human condition, as the cultures are traditions and customs that are learned throughout an individual