ABSTRACT

In 1979, the same year that the Association for Environmental Archaeology was founded, Hassan (1979) critically reviewed the relationship between Archaeology and the Earth Sciences, in an important paper which identified the main components of the (then) new field of Geoarchaeology. These are listed below (Table 1) with some modifications suggested by Goudie (1987). Ten years on, it is perhaps timely to consider how successful in practice collaboration between archaeologists, geologists and geomorphologists within Britain has actually been. In this paper discussion will focus in particular on the environmental interpretation of archaeological records in alluvial stratigraphic contexts, reviewing some of the more important research themes and problems which have emerged from geoarchaeological-based investigations of river valley archaeology in Britain over the last decade. Three topics, however, are chosen for special consideration as areas that, in the opinion of the author, will most probably be at the forefront of research in the 1990’s in the now well established fluvial geoscience tradition within British archaeology (see Macklin and Needham 1992 for a recent review). These are:-

The role of river processes in moving and modifying archaeological assemblages in channel and floodplain environments;

The reconstruction of past land-use in river basins from investigations of alluvial sediments produced by anthropogenic catchment disturbance;

The integration of Quaternary alluvial histories and the archaeological record.

The main components of Geoarchaeology (after Hassan 1979 and Goudie 1987) https://www.niso.org/standards/z39-96/ns/oasis-exchange/table">

The location of sites

Geomorphological analysis of site areas

Regional stratigraphic studies

Sedimentary analysis of deposits

Palaeo-environmental analysis

Technical studies of artefacts

Modelling of the dynamic relationship between human activities and landscape

Conservation and preservation from natural hazards

Dating