Assessing the Utility of Large Excavators and other Heavy Equipment for Archaeological Excavation

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2023: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 88th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Archaeologists conducting long-term data recovery excavations at Hohokam sites in western Phoenix, Arizona used a large excavator (track hoe) to remove the plow zone and overburden from above prehistoric features. After extensive analysis, the large excavator proved to be faster, more efficient, more cost effective, and, in the hands of an experienced operator, as precise as a backhoe for uncovering features in plan view. The large excavator was especially useful in exposing linear canal features and the lateral canals that branched from them. The track hoe was also efficient at uncovering other common features including pithouses, earth ovens, and even delicate features. With this study, we provide quantitative data showing the increased efficiency, including a cost comparison, of these types of heavy equipment for archaeological excavation.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2023: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 88th Annual Meeting, Portland, OR (2023)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 36884.0