ABSTRACT
The Artifact Began its life as an unremarkable obsidian cobble within a vast field of similar cobbles near an extinct volcano. The classification of artifacts into types is generally done by hand, with a series of measurements being taken and compared to existing typologies. Archaeological sites and artifacts are classified according to particular attributes, such as size, content, color, material, and shape. All the artifacts and ecofacts collected from a site constitute an assemblage, a sample of the evidence for all the activities that took place at the site at a particular time. A broad array of metal artifacts occurs all over the world. Whereas a standard analysis of artifacts can reveal a great deal about the past, other information about archaeological materials requires special analyses, such as use wear, geochemical sourcing, residue analysis, and a DNA analysis. Basic artifact analyses begin with a descriptive analysis, in which archaeologists determine the associations among the materials and identify tool assemblages.
