1st Edition

Ancient Technologies and Archaeological Materials

Edited By Sarah U. Wisseman, Wendell S. Williams Copyright 1994

    First Published in 1993.This book is a user-friendly introduction to the interface between archaeology and the natural sciences. It is intended as a secondary textbook for undergraduates in interdisciplinary courses in anthropology, archaeological science, museum studies, or materials science. This title will also be useful to graduate students taking a course outside their major field, and to archaeologists, curators, and scientists in a variety of settings who are engaged in interdisciplinary research. Each chapter includes references and suggested readings; a glossary of technical terms concludes the volume.

    Part I Introduction; 1. Why Study Artifacts? An Interdisciplinary Approach, Sarah Wisseman, Wendell Williams; Part II Ancient Technologies and Experimental Archaeology; 2. From Pots to People: Ceramic Production in the Ancient Mediterranean, Sarah U. Wisseman; 3. The Diffusion of Technological Knowledge: A Case Study in North American Ceramic Analysis, Thomas J. Riley, Philip Hopke, Rodger Martin, James W. Porter; 4. Invention, Thought, and Process: Strategies in Iron Tool Production, Charles Keller; 5. Classics and Technology: A Reevaluation of Heron's First-Century A.D. Steam Engine, Paul T. Keyser; Part III Organic Materials and the Reconstruction of Early Environments; 6. Can Elemental Analysis of Archaeological Skeletons Determine Past Diet and Health?, Linda Klepinger; 7. Plants and People: An Introduction to Paleoethnobotany, Margaret van de Guchte, Richard Edging; 8. History, Identification, and Characterization of Old World Fibers and Dyes, Mastura Raheel; Part IV Museums and Monuments; 9. Science and the Art Museum: The Analysis of Archaeological Materials, Wendell S. Williams; ch0010 X-Ray Vision: The Recovery of Early Medieval Ironwork, Barbara Oehlschlaeger-Garvey, Henry Maguire, Wendell S. Williams, Richard Keen; 11. Saving the Monuments of the Athenian Acropolis, Eric C. Freund; 12. Imaging the Past: Interdisciplinary Analysis of an Egyptian Mummy, Sarah Wisseman;

    Biography

    Sarah U. Wisseman, Wendell S. Williams

    "The authors and editors are careful to provide the theoretical bases for most of the instrumentation techniques used in archaeometry and material science. Their attention makes this book especially useful for beginners in these fields."

    "BAncient Technologies and Achaeological Materials/B can stimulate a bright student to appreciate the beauty and power of interdisciplinary research."