Sherd Movement in the Ploughzone - Physical Database into Computer Simulation

Summary

During the last decade a major research programme has been carried out at the Butser Ancient Farm to explore the annual movement of simulated potsherds in the ploughsoil under a continuous arable regime (Reynolds 1986). The reasons for this programme lie in the fundamental question of whether the topsoil overlaying an archaeological site should be regarded as worthy of excavation in that the artefacts it may contain still bear a relationship to underlying features and therefore will have some interpretational value. The current view is that since the topsoil has been subjected to discontinuous agitation by plough action through time, it can be summarily dismissed. Hence the normal process prior to excavation is the stripping of the soil layer to the uppermost archaeological surface. There are, however, a number of arguments to be raised against this assumption. First, and most obviously, many sites are located by the surface scatter of pottery brought up by the plough. The greater the density of potsherds on the surface, the tighter is the isolation of the artefacts in the topsoil with underlying site. Some exploration of the relationship of artefacts in the topsoil with results has been carried out archaeologically, with results demonstrating clear association (Hinchcliffe 1979). Similarly sites are often located by soil marks. If ploughing disperses artefacts, it would be reasonable to expect that ploughing would similarly disperse soil marks soil marks. This too has been demonstrated not to be the case (Taylor 1.987). Again, utilising enhanced magnetic susceptibility of magnetic oxides in the top soil, clear associations have been isolated with underlying features (Clark 1982). Ironically most archaeologists regard the soil heap from an excavation as their richest source of artefacts! One can further observe that both prehistoric and historic men were generally separated from the first archaeological layer by a cushion of soil especially in the rural zones.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Butser Ancient Farm Archive 1973-2007   •
• EXARC Experimental Archaeology Collection

Keywords

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): EXARC Experimental Archaeology Collection Manager

Record Identifiers

ExArc Id(s): 4720

Notes

Rights & Attribution: The information in this record was originally compiled by Dr. Roeland Paardekooper, EXARC Director.

General Note: More information about the Butser Ancient Farm Archive and this document can be found at butser.org.uk.

Rights & Attribution: Christine Shaw contributed a copy of this document to the collection. EXARC thanks her for her dedication to preserving the Butser Ancient Farm Archive.

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