The issue of the need for excavations, their area and location is decided on the basis of intelligence data, depending on the specific needs of restoration and the degree of preservation of the monument. There are three types of openings - trenches, pits and excavations (Fig. 41, 42, 43).
41. Cathedral of St. Peter the Metropolitan of the Vysoko-Petrovsky Monastery. The results of excavations in the interior. The layers of the late 17th-18th centuries have been removed. in the altar and central parts, the original floors, altar structures, felled pilasters, etc. were discovered.
1 - modern concrete floor;
2 - bedding under the floors of the XVIII-XIX centuries;
3 - wood decay of the floor of the end of the 17th (?) century;
4 - bedding under decay;
5 - lime pouring under the brick floor of the XVI (?) - XVII centuries;
6 - remains of brick floor lay-outs;
7 - base of the altar barrier of the 16th-17th centuries;
8 - brick floors of the altar of the 16th-17th centuries;
9 - foundations of thrones of the 16th-17th centuries;
10 - service niches of the altar;
11 - the base of the altar;
12 - the foundation of the altar barrier;
13 - sandy outburst (mainland), filling under the floor of the 16th century;
14 - layer of the monastery of the XIV-XVI centuries. with traces of an ancient wooden temple;
15 - tombstones at the level of the cemetery of the 15th century;
16 - preserved parts of pilasters;
17 - general plan of the temple indicating the excavated part
42. Research of the remains of the unpreserved wall of the Sovereign's Court in Kolomenskoye with the help of pits and trenches
Trench A is an example of cutting through a fallen wall in order to restore the original height and decor of the facade with the basement part preserved;
trench B - an example of tracing the route of the wall along the moat from the dismantled foundation;
trench B is an example of determining the moment of termination of construction according to stratigraphy.
The complete absence of building remains on the day surface of the laying of the foundation and above proves that the brick part of the wall was not erected.
1 - white stone foundation;
2 - brickwork of the wall;
3 - the front part of the collapsed masonry in the profile;
4 - construction debris in the ditch from the dismantled foundation;
5 - turf of the XVIII-XX centuries;.
6 - cultural layer after the dismantling of the wall (XIX-XX centuries);
7 - cultural layer of the late 17th century. (after the construction of the wall);
8 - layer of wall construction;
9 - mainland
43. Excavated altar apse of the northern porch of the Church of Michael the Archangel in Smolensk. An example of a thorough cleaning of the excavation
The trench as a reconnaissance tool is indispensable in the study of ensembles with an insignificant thickness of the layer. It is used to search for lost structures or their parts, to establish the relationship between individual buildings and sites. By means of trenches, the tasks of studying the relief and organizing the territory of the ensemble in antiquity are solved. In case of discovery of an ancient structure, it is necessary to deploy a section of the trench into an excavation site, sufficient in size for its complete study. In no case should the structure be destroyed in order to deepen or extend the trench. On multi-layer sites with a thick cultural layer (from 1 m or more), trenches are harmful, as they touch numerous objects and cut through them, preventing them from fully exploring or at least understanding what it is. The trenches along the perimeter of the walls, from the point of view of archeology, are undesirable.
Trenches are often laid on the territory of the restored objects in the course of adaptation. They should be used for archaeological reconnaissance, since it is still impossible to refuse the gasket. The opening of the cultural layer of trenches is carried out manually to the mainland to a width not less than that accepted in archeology (1.5–2 m). Only upon completion of archaeological research in the communication zone can mechanisms be allowed to work. This order should not be replaced by simple archaeological supervision, except in cases where the cultural layer and the plan of the territory are well known and the discovery of antiquities is unlikely.
The concept of a pit in archeology is quite strict and is by no means applicable to any hole of arbitrary shape and profile dug on a monument. A pit is understood as a small rectangular pit with an area of 1x1 to 4x4 m. Smaller pits cannot be laid on monuments even with a very thin cultural layer; if the pit is large, it is almost always considered as an excavation. On architectural monuments, pits isolated from each other are acceptable for solving engineering and technical problems. The pits should not be excessively numerous, since they provide extremely fragmentary information, do not allow understanding the plan of the structures found in the ground and even stratigraphy.
The main means of archaeological research of a monument with a wide area is an excavation, i.e. a rectangular section of the surface excavated in layers to the mainland (ground untouched by human activity). The usual excavation area is from 100 to 400 m2. The absolute size depends on the objectives of the study and the thickness of the cultural layer. Excavations should make it possible to explore the restored monument or ensemble as fully as possible, linking individual sections of its territory to one another and obtaining not only a general stratigraphic picture, but also a detailed idea of the plans of the disappeared buildings or parts of the building. Lost parts, especially whole structures, can only be explored over a wide area, i.e. excavation. The excavation is obligatory for large earthworks (vertical planning) or when removing soil from the inside of the monument.
Trenches and excavations should be located so that they adjoin the wall of the building with their narrow side - this is the only way to connect the layers of the structure with the surrounding thickness of the cultural layer. Excavation of buildings only along the perimeter or digging near them of numerous, unrelated pits hopelessly pulls out structures from the cultural layer, harms not only this layer as a historical source, but also the architectural monuments themselves, destroys the information stored in the layer.
Excavations are carried out manually using the layer-by-square method adopted in archeology, with the obligatory sorting or sifting of the earth and with stripping for each removed “bayonet”. The finds of each layer are selected, described, sketched and stored in layers and squares (or pits, sections, rooms, etc.). Each find must be accurately fixed in its place in the vertical and horizontal planes, and the depths, as in general at excavations, are measured from a single benchmark. They collect all the finds, including mass ceramic and building materials, and not just the “most interesting” ones — individual and architectural ones. (The finds are state property and should go to the museum after processing.) You should carefully monitor the structure of the layer being opened - color, consistency, amount of sand, clay and humus, inclusions of construction residues (wood chips, wood, stone, brick, lime, mortar), traces of combustion (coal, ash, burnt soil), etc.
The reliability and completeness of stratigraphic information largely depend on the thoroughness of the breakdown and cleaning of excavations. They must be planned and tied to the ground with a high degree of accuracy, have right angles and parallel straight sides. The walls of the excavations must be perfectly vertical and carefully protected for fixation. The layering scheme is traced directly along the stripping, and then the resulting lines are transferred to the drawing. Similarly - for layered plans: a thorough horizontal cleaning allows you to read the contours of pits in the ground, spots of emissions, the edges of ditches. An important requirement of the technique is the study of all exposed layers of the cultural layer, and not only those related to the history of the site under study. It should be remembered that even a very late monument can be located above an archaeological object: a pagan burial ground, a Stone Age site, etc. The excavation should be brought to the mainland, even if the layers directly of interest to the architect remained higher. The exception is the excavation of monuments in cities with a multi-meter cultural layer, where there can be a gap of a meter or more from the base of the foundation to the mainland. Lowering the excavation to such a depth is dangerous for the safety of the building.
The study of the upper, most recent layers is also important. They carry information about the life of the studied monument in modern and recent times, up to the present. Material of the XVIII-XIX centuries. causes the growing interest of historians - ethnographers, art historians, museologists. The first attempts are being made to create a unified archaeological and ethnographic scale. Restoration researchers working with the late layer within the boundaries of developing cities have a unique opportunity to enrich these sciences with new information. Historians know the antiquities of the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages much better than the things of the late Middle Ages (XIV-XVII centuries), which are few in museums and which, until recently, were not paid due attention during excavations.
One of the basic rules of the field methodology is to carry out all archaeological work only in the presence, with the participation and under the guidance of the owner of the Open List (lead researcher). It is strictly forbidden to delegate the supervision of work to foremen, restorers, etc. In no case should it be limited to preliminary instructions to workers and subsequent fixation. You should constantly and carefully manage the progress of work, while at the same time comprehensively recording your observations and conclusions. Information is not contained in the monument in finished form, it only arises in the brain of the researcher as a result of comprehending observations and is recorded by the researcher himself. Therefore, during work, in no case should one rush, the layer should be removed methodically, so that there is time to fix the opening situations.
To understand the history of a building, it is necessary to understand the order of layers of both the monument itself and the cultural layer, to understand their sequence, correlation, mutual dependence, i.e. understand stratigraphy. Usually, up to five of the most typical main strata can be traced. The first from the bottom are the layers of building construction, which are characterized by abundant emissions of the mainland or an older layer from foundation ditches, leveling bedding for floors, pouring clay, mortar, lime, layers of brick, stone, wood chips and related elements of the construction site (lime pits , created, sometimes kilns, various kinds of workshops). The level of this construction overlaps the upper edge of the foundation, sometimes it also covers part of the basement. At this level, an effort should be made to ascertain the design of the original porches and exterior stairs (parts of a building that are often rebuilt) and the early layout of the surrounding area. It must be remembered that the marks of the ancient floor and the day surface 1) behind the walls of the building do not always coincide. Finds in the building layer are usually no older than the building itself; thus dates of finds and buildings are mutually verified or determined.
Above the level of the construction of the building and above the floor, there are layers of habitation, usually humus, relatively horizontal. They may include a series of new floors laid on top of the original, with debris and underfill between them, and outside - layers of minor repairs, blind areas, porches, paths, gutters, etc. At this stage, violations of the original building layers begin, as holes were dug in them, due to the operation of the building and the territory. The habitation layer includes layers of major repairs, partial destruction, re-planning, rebuilding, etc., sometimes significantly distorting the appearance of the original building. They combine the remains of ancient building materials from dismantling and new ones used in reconstructions.
The next layer is associated with the final destruction of the building or part of it and is usually formed by the mass of the blockage. These are heaps of debris from a collapsed roof, fallen masonry blocks of walls and vaults, sometimes with ash and coal, indicating in this case the cause of the destruction. Such layers go obliquely down from the surviving sections of the walls and reliably overlap the upper (ie, last) residential layer, so that the date of destruction can be easily determined from its contents.
The fourth layer is formed, in essence, by the same ruins, but gradually smoothed out under the influence of atmospheric phenomena. The recesses between loosely lying fragments are gradually tightened, overgrown with turf. Under the layer of collapse, thin ribbons of sagging and alluvium are formed, including small construction remains. This layer may in some places have lenses deposited during the periodic use of the surviving parts of the ruined building as a shelter, temporary housing. The last layer is traces of dismantling the ruins for the extraction of building materials, clearing the area for new construction, etc. It is usually easy to trace the trenches or pits from the selection of stone, the passages of treasure hunters, traces of the work of archaeologists of the 18th-19th centuries, if they were. This will also include the results of modern work.
Of course, this stratigraphic scheme is too general to be used in its undeveloped form at any site. In order to get closer to the specific stratigraphy of the site and be able to imagine the life of the monument for a certain period, archeology uses the concept of a building layer (or horizon), which describes a complex of structures that existed at the same time (albeit with a different date of occurrence). Within the tier, construction periods are distinguished, each of which is associated with a specific, specific ancient construction activity on the site, and therefore each of them has its own daily surface. The establishment of these surfaces, their relative and absolute dating is the core of any archaeological study of an architectural monument. For example, the first building
the reservoir must be necessarily subdivided into two levels - before the start of construction and at the time of "commissioning" of the finished building. Often they differ significantly from one another (moreover, there is a different picture from different sides of the building). There are artificial backfills that level the soil or change the relief, sometimes quite powerful, but there are also cases of cutting the soil before starting work. Usually, the difference between the two surfaces determines the amount of ejection from the ditch (clearly readable due to the ocher color of the mainland, if dug into it) and debris from construction work.
Of course, for an architectural archaeologist, both the history and the appearance of the site before the construction of the restored building are not indifferent. What was here? Wasteland or inhabited place? How was it used? Has life here changed with the erection of the building under study? Was it preceded by something similar in function and what happened to it?
In the second and third layers, which characterize the lifetime of the building and therefore are usually thicker than the first layer, the number of intermediate daily surfaces increases dramatically, especially since, in addition to repair and construction periods, it is also necessary to identify “non-building” levels that fix certain historical moments in life. settlements (eg large fires). Having singled out all intermediate daytime surfaces and placed them between construction periods within one of the tiers, the researcher obtains a relative dating, i.e. finds out which repairs took place before and which after the fire, how the individual outbuildings relate to each other in time, etc. To get absolute dates for surfaces, it is best to link at least a few layers to written data. Particularly important for this are layers of coal and ash, marking the level of large fires noted in chronicles or ice documents.
It is extremely important to create a solid chronostratigraphic grid of the building stages of the entire complex, since in this case the absolute dates associated with specific buildings or layers make it possible to calculate the rest with some degree of approximation. This method of cross stratigraphy is also applicable to the same building to correlate different parts of it in time. The strata of the fourth and fifth periods are stratigraphically much simpler, the main thing in them is the contents of the blockage itself, since it is here, in piles of construction debris, that often everything is contained that is necessary to restore the structure and decor of the building. The dismantling of rubble should be considered as a special case of archaeological research and should be carried out with all possible attention, sorting out materials (threaded blocks, profiled blocks, curved brick, brick with clamps, brick from the facades of the masonry and from its inner part, brick without traces of mortar, used for paving, oven bricks, tiles, floor tiles, tiles, etc.) in order to then make measurements, calculations, sketches, selection of collection items.
The scheme of stratigraphy of the layer outlined here in practice is read by the researcher just the opposite, because excavations are carried out from above: from the layers of the later, layers of destruction and dismantling, to the ancient building ones. Therefore, during excavations, it is necessary to constantly keep in mind the set stratigraphic tasks and collect material for their solution, studying in detail and fixing the layers being removed. The material can then be adjusted according to the excavation profiles.
Unfortunately, the picture of stratigraphy is almost never simple and clear, as in the diagram. The urban layer (near the ancient buildings in particular) was repeatedly dug up. The most frequent cases of digging are various utility and industrial pits (wells, cellars, cellars, garbage pits, pits, settling tanks), pits and ditches for the foundations of later buildings. The monastic and church complexes are characterized by grave pits, crypts, etc., which severely damage the layer. The most recent disturbances of the layer are pits left after the repair of foundations, restoration or research works of the 19th-20th centuries, communication trenches, etc.
These damages to the uniformly deposited layer lead not only to breaks in the horizontal stratigraphy, but also to the penetration of late materials into the earlier layers and into the mainland. They also "carry" early things to late daytime surfaces as part of ejecta from pits. If these pits, diggings and outcrops are missed, if not singled out, then the entire absolute dating, and the stratigraphy as a whole, will be hopelessly confused. The sooner and fuller the holes are revealed, the better. Sometimes the dark humus of the layer is inseparable in color from the filling of the pit, but usually the pit is distinguished by light continental inclusions or a “colored” boundary due to ancient wood paneling or plastering, firing of the walls, etc. The pit can almost always be found by looser filling and other composition of the finds, especially construction debris, kitchen residues, and stove emissions. It is easy to determine the hole even in the most dug-up layer, if it falls into the profile, as well as when it cuts through the building horizontal layer. Then the pit is selected without damaging the surrounding layer, its profile, shape, dimensions, filling, and findings are fixed. It is very important to establish the level from which the hole is dug and the filling period. The more often the dug, the more holes (when they repeatedly violate each other, it is very difficult to unravel them), the more difficult the task of the researcher. There are cases of complete destruction of the stratigraphy of the site, then you have to look for another, better preserved place near the monument; usually it is located. If the cultural layer is excessively damaged, it makes sense to search for the ancient layers inside the building or under the ruins of its unpreserved parts. Usually they are stored near the porches, exits, doors of buildings and under the paths, if their direction has not changed for a long time.
1) The day surface in archeology is the level formed in a certain period as a result of long-term habitation.
Archaeological excavations require achieving an optimal balance between two, often polar circumstances, for example, the need, on the one hand, to destroy some structures, and on the other, to obtain the maximum amount of information about the past, or to obtain the necessary funds for excavation, or to satisfy momentary needs. society. If excavations are carried out, then their ultimate goal is to obtain a three-dimensional document (record) about the archaeological site, in which various artifacts, buildings and other finds will be recorded, correctly placed according to their origin and context in time and space. And after this stage is completed, the document must be published in full in order to preserve the information for posterity.
Continuous and selective excavations
The advantage of continuous site excavations is that they provide detailed information, but they are expensive and undesirable due to the fact that after them it will not be possible to carry out subsequent excavations, possibly with better methods. Usually continuous excavations are carried out within the framework of such RBM projects, in which the monuments are threatened with inevitable destruction.
The most typical are selective excavations, especially in cases where time is of the essence. Many sites are so large that continuous excavation is simply not possible, and exploration is carried out selectively, using sampling methods or carefully calibrated trenches. Selective excavations are carried out to obtain stratigraphic and chronological information, as well as to obtain samples of ceramics, stone tools and animal bones. Based on this evidence, the archaeologist can make a decision about the expediency of subsequent excavations.
Vertical and horizontal excavations
Vertical excavation are always selective. During their holding, limited areas of the monument are revealed in order to obtain specific information. Most vertical excavations are probing deep archaeological layers, their real purpose is to obtain a chronological sequence on the site. Horizontal excavations are carried out to uncover a simultaneous settlement over a large area. However, it should be emphasized that all excavation strategies are based on decisions made as the excavation and research project progresses. Anyway, the examples given here and in other texts show already completed excavations. During the excavation, the archaeologist may well switch from vertical to horizontal excavations, and vice versa, even during short-term work.
Vertical excavation. Almost always, vertical excavations are carried out to establish stratigraphic sequences, especially at such sites where the area is limited, such as in small caves and rock shelters, or to resolve chronological issues, such as sequences along trenches and earthworks (Figure 9.4). Some vertical trenches reach impressive dimensions, especially those dug in residential hills. However, in most cases, such excavations are not large-scale.
Pit holes, which are sometimes called by the French word sondages or telephone booths, often look like vertical excavations. They consist of small trenches that can fit one or two excavators and are designed to penetrate the lower layers of the site to establish the limits of the archaeological layers (Fig. 9.5). The pits are dug to extract samples of artifacts from the lower layers. This method can be improved with drills.
The pits are a precursor to large excavations, as the information obtained from them is limited at best. Some archaeologists dig them only outside the main site, as they destroy important layers. But rationally placed pits can provide valuable information about the stratigraphy and contents of a site before the main excavation begins. They are also dug to obtain samples from different sites of the site, such as shell deposits, where there is a high concentration of artifacts found in the layers. In such cases, the holes are dug on a grid and their position is determined by statistical sampling or based on regular patterns such as alternating squares. A series of checkerboard pits is especially effective during excavation of earthworks, as the walls of the pit, separated by unexcavated blocks, provide a continuous stratigraphic sequence through the entire fortification.
Vertical trenches were widely used in the excavation of ancient monuments - settlements in southwest Asia (Moore - Moore, 2000). They can also be used to obtain a cross-section of a monument in danger of destruction, or to inspect outlying structures near a village or cemetery that have been extensively excavated. When creating such vertical excavations, it is almost always expected that as a result of this, the most important information will be in the form of recording layers in the walls of trenches and finds in them. It is clear that the information obtained from such excavations is of limited value compared to larger surveys.
Horizontal (zone) excavations. Horizontal or zone excavations are carried out on a larger scale than vertical excavations and are the next step to continuous excavations. By zone excavation, we mean covering large areas to restore building plans or plans for an entire settlement, even historical gardens (Fig. 9.6, see also the photograph at the beginning of the chapter). The only monuments that inevitably unearth completely are very small hunters' camps, detached huts and mounds.
A good example of horizontal excavation is the site at St. Augustine, Florida (Deagan, 1983; Milanich and Milbrath, 1989). Saint Augustine was founded on the east coast of Florida by the Spanish conquistador Pedro Menedes de Avil in 1565. In the 16th century, the city was subjected to floods, fires, hurricanes, and in 1586 it was sacked by Sir Francis Drake. He destroyed the walled city, whose purpose was to protect the Spanish fleet, carrying treasures through the straits of Florida. In 1702, the British attacked Saint Augustine. The inhabitants of the city took refuge in the fortress of San Marcos, which has survived to this day. After a six-week siege, the British retreated, burning the wooden buildings to the ground. In their place, the settlers built stone buildings, and the city continued to grow until the first half of the 18th century.
Kathleen Deegan, along with a team of archaeologists, explored the 18th-century city and its earlier parts, combining the preservation of the city with archaeological excavations. Excavations of the 18th century city are difficult for many reasons. This is partly due to the fact that the three-century archaeological layer is only 0.9 meters high and has been largely disturbed. The excavators cleared and fixed dozens of wells. They also excavated horizontally and uncovered the foundations of 18th-century buildings constructed from earthen concrete, a cement-like substance made from oyster shells, lime, and sand. Foundations made of oyster shells or earthen concrete were laid in trenches in the shape of a house under construction (Fig. 9.7), then walls were erected. The earthen concrete floors quickly deteriorated, so a new floor was created on the ground. Since the layers around the house were disturbed, artifacts from the foundations and floors were very important, and selective horizontal excavations were the best method to uncover them.
The problems of horizontal excavation are the same as in any excavation: stratigraphic control and careful measurements. In such zone excavations, large open areas of soil are exposed to a depth of several tens of centimeters. A complex network of walls or pillars may lie within the survey area. Each feature correlates with other structures. This ratio must be clearly fixed for the correct interpretation of the monument, especially if we are talking about several periods of settlement. If an entire area is uncovered, it is difficult to measure the position of the structures in the middle of the trench, far from the walls at the edge of the excavation. More accurate measurement and fixation can be achieved by using a system that gives a network of vertical stratigraphic walls across the excavated zone. Such work is often done by laying out a grid of square or rectangular excavation units with walls between the squares several tens of centimeters thick (Fig. 9.8). Such excavated units can be 3.6 sq. meters or more. Figure 9.8 shows that this system allows stratigraphic control of large areas.
Large-scale grid excavations are extremely expensive, time-consuming, and difficult to carry out on uneven ground. Nevertheless, "grid excavations" were successful at many sites: buildings, city plans and fortifications were uncovered. Many zone excavations are "open", during which large sections of the monument are exposed layer by layer without a grid (see Fig. 9.1). Electronic survey methods have solved many of the recording problems in large horizontal excavations, but the need for precise stratigraphic control remains.
The removal of overlying layers of no archaeological significance in order to reveal subsurface details is another type of large-scale excavation. Such a removal is especially useful when the monument is buried shallowly below the surface and traces of buildings are preserved in the form of pillars and changes in the color of the soil. Excavators almost always use earthmoving equipment to remove large areas of surface soil, especially in RCM projects. Such work requires both skilled drivers and a sound understanding of soil stratigraphy and texture (Figure 9.9).
Russian archaeologist, publicist and writer. 1899 Born - the largest specialist in Scythian-Sarmatian archeology, classical philology and ancient ceramic epigraphy, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor. 1937 Was born Igor Ivanovich Kirillov- Doctor of Historical Sciences, professor, specialist in archeology of Transbaikalia. 1947 Was born Davron Abdulloev- Specialist in the archeology of medieval Central Asia and the Middle East. 1949 Was born Sergey Anatolyevich Fast- archaeologist, doctor of historical sciences, professor, specialist in the early Iron Age of the Northern Black Sea region. Also known as a poet. Days of Death 1874 Died Johann Georg Ramsauer- An official from the Hallstatt mine. Known for discovering and conducting the first excavations there in 1846 of the burial places of the Hallstatt culture of the Iron Age.
EXCAVATIONS
(archaeological) - opening up the layers of the earth to study the archaeological monuments located in the earth. The purpose of R. is to study the given monument, its parts, found things, etc. and the reconstruction of the role of the studied object in the historical. process. Scientific tasks, setting the historical problems is determined both by the choice of the R. object and the order in which its parts are studied (if the R. are designed for many years). R. are not an end in itself, each R. must answer some questions related to the history of the society that created this monument. R. precede archaeological exploration. Archaeologists have developed a number of special techniques that take into account the specifics of each object and allow to study its features in detail. R. settlements are associated with the destruction of the cultural layer, which in itself is also an object of scientific research. observations. Therefore, it is extremely important to carefully record all the stages of R. Unlike the laboratory experiment, R.'s process is unique, it is impossible to excavate the same cultural layer twice. Full disclosure of the studied archeol is desirable. object, since only it gives the most complete picture of his past life. However, the process of resurfacing is very time-consuming and costly, so sometimes they are limited to opening a part of the monument; many monuments are excavated for years and decades.
The study of the object chosen for R. begins with its measurements, photographing and description.
Sometimes, in order to determine the thickness of the cultural layer, its direction, or in search of some object, the existence of which is known from written sources (wall, building, temple, etc.), on archaeological sites. soundings (pits) or trenches are made on the monument. This method is acceptable only in a very limited form - for intelligence purposes, because. pits and trenches spoil the cultural layer and make it impossible to form a holistic view of the settlement under study.
To establish the facts of past life in the settlement, it is desirable to simultaneously open a large continuous area. However, the area should not be excessively large, as this will make it difficult to observe sections of the cultural layer and remove the earth. That limited place, on which R. are produced in the settlement, called. excavation. Its dimensions are determined by the tasks set, technical. and material possibilities. Having chosen a place for excavation, determine the direction of its sides according to the cardinal points and its position in relation to some fixed and constant point on the ground (benchmark). The surface of the excavation is leveled. Most often, geodesics are used for this. tools. The excavation area is divided into squares (most often 2×2 m). The opening of the cultural layer is carried out in layers of 20 cm each and in squares with fixation on the plan of all ancient things and structures. R. is made only by hand with shovels, and sometimes with knives. Mechanical diggers (scrapers, bulldozers, etc.) are used only to remove ballast and to excavate the embankments of large burial mounds. The cultural layer excavated with shovels and sorted by hand is removed from the excavation by conveyors and electric winches. Sometimes a narrow-gauge railway is laid to the place of R. d.
In addition to horizontal excavation plans, stratigraphic (see Stratigraphy) vertical drawings of its walls and drawings of sections of the cultural layer (the so-called "profiles") within the excavation wherever they can be recorded. Observation of the alternation of cultural layers deposited in a given place makes it possible to establish a relative chronology within the entire cultural stratification or to state its single-layer nature (i.e., the simultaneity of the existence of all discovered objects). If life on a multi-layered monument was interrupted for a long time, then between the archeol. layers are the so-called. sterile layers that do not contain cultural residues. The profiles also make it possible to find out whether the sequence of strata has ever been disturbed, whether there were excavations, the presence of which complicates the establishment of chronology.
One of the indispensable requirements for R. is the opening of the entire cultural layer to its entire depth, regardless of which of the historical. epochs and, accordingly, parts of the layer are of interest to the researcher himself. To fully cover all periods of the life of a given settlement, the archaeologist must pay equal attention to all layers.
The disadvantage of the R.'s method of conducting horizontal layers is that, as a rule, archaeol. the layers do not match the layers; this makes it difficult to observe and draw conclusions. Therefore, if the layers on the monument are clearly traced and their direction is established by preliminary reconnaissance (trenches or pits), then the opening of the monument is carried out in layers, without division into layers, with the registration of finds and structures within the layer.
On a multi-layer monument, the layers are numbered as they are opened, i.e., from top to bottom, but this order is the reverse of the time the layers appeared: the older the layer, the lower it lies. When publishing a report on R., the scientist sometimes names the most ancient layer of the site as the first layer, while in R.'s diary, the latest layer is named first. This creates confusion. Cultures or cultural phases found at a given site should be numbered in order from earliest to latest.
A special technique can be applied in the reconstruction of the remains of ancient buildings. The researcher finds one of the walls of the building and, following it, gradually clears it. This makes it possible to find out the plan of the structure without unnecessary expenditure of effort. However, the need to establish a connection between the building and its surroundings, to date it, to establish construction periods, the time of destruction, etc., forces the researcher not to confine himself to clearing the walls, but, as in other cases, to work on a wide area and be sure to obtain accurate sections of the cultural surroundings of the building. layer.
Wood in general, and wooden buildings in particular, are preserved only in particularly favorable conditions: in very moist soil (eg, in a peat bog), or in a very dry climate (eg, in Egypt). Most often, the tree rots in the ground. In our country, in most places (except, for example, Novgorod and some other cities), wooden buildings are not preserved and are identified by barely noticeable traces in the ground.
Pits from dugouts, cellars, wells, etc., retain traces of wooden fasteners imprinted on the walls, according to which the entire structure is being reconstructed. Observations of pits from poles are very important.
The renovation of decayed wooden structures is more difficult than the renovation of buildings made of raw (unbaked) bricks. The collapse of walls made of such bricks differs little from the surrounding land, in which the building was buried. It is necessary to take into account the shades of clay, the difference in humidity, the admixture of straw, which happens in raw brick, etc., in order to outline the boundaries of the building.
R. of large or long-existing settlements must be strictly planned, because. chaotic research, whatever that means. it did not cover the area, it will not give an opportunity to present the historical. picture of the life of the settlement.
In addition to graphic, photographic and film documentation, the R. process and open objects are described in detail in the research diaries. During R. burials (see Burial grounds), although in most cases they do not have a proper cultural, i.e., residential layer, which is formed over a long period of time. time are also needed stratigraphic. observations. Burial mounds are not only just hills piled over the grave, but ritual structures that are complex and diverse in their design. The structure of the mound reflects the features of the burial rite, which can be fully studied only if the entire mound is removed for demolition. To clarify the structure of the mound in the center of the mound, one or two transverse earthen walls are left, the so-called. "edges", which are removed only at the very end of the R. Sometimes, for the same purpose, they open the barrow not immediately over the entire area, but by cutting out successively individual segments. In diaries, drawings and photographs, later inlet burials that open in the mound or under it, traces of a funeral feast (feast), bonfires, stone layings and all burial structures are noted; wooden and stone crypts, ground and side-pit graves, stone boxes, etc. The construction of ground burials, which do not have any structures on the surface of the earth, is usually made in large areas. This makes it possible to determine the boundaries of the burial ground, find grave pits and establish the relative position of the burials.
When individual things, structures, burials or their traces are found in the cultural layer, shovels are replaced with knives, tweezers and brushes. Each found item is cleaned with a brush, sketched or photographed in the position in which it is in the ground, the point of its location is carefully recorded. The mutual arrangement of things gives the archaeologist in the sense of reconstructing the past no less than the things themselves. Many items, especially from organic substances - wood, leather, fabrics, are quickly destroyed when exposed to air. For the preservation of such finds, their immediate conservation is required, here, in the excavation. They are poured with gypsum or sprayed with molten paraffin, sometimes immersed in water or some kind of solution. Some objects are completely destroyed in the ground, but leave traces in the form of voids or imprints. The voids, cleared of dust and later deposits, are filled with plaster and receive a cast of the disappeared thing.
During excavations, it is necessary to collect all things and various remains that testify to the natural and other conditions in which the ancient population was located. A chemical sample is taken from different layers of the cultural layer. analysis. Chemical analysis allows you to find out from which organic. substances formed humus, which tree species left ash and coal, etc. Landscape reconstruction is of particular importance for very distant eras, for example. Paleolithic, when natural conditions differed sharply from modern ones. They collect plant pollen, animal bones, and use them to reconstruct the ancient flora and fauna, climate, etc. Anthropological the study of individual bones and entire skeletons of people contributes to the establishment of physical. type of ancient population.
Recently, radiocarbon and paleomagnetic methods have become increasingly important for dating the site. The archaeologist must take samples of coal, wood, organic matter for analysis. residues and fired clay according to spec. instructions developed for taking such samples. After the completion of the R., the extracted materials are subjected to restoration and conservation, as well as detailed study in the laboratory. As a result of R., various structures, archit. monuments, to-rye must be preserved in place. Their conservation is a very difficult task, especially when it is necessary to protect wall paintings, carvings, etc. from destruction.
Excavations in the USSR are carried out only by specialist archaeologists with special permits - the so-called. open sheets issued by the Institute of Archeology of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR for the right to R. monuments of all-Union significance and listed in the state. lists of the USSR, as well as monuments located on the territory. RSFSR. For R. monuments of the Republic. values of open sheets are issued by the Academy of Sciences of the Union Republics. The researcher is obliged to submit a report on R. at the place of issue of open sheets. Reports are stored in archives and represent the state. fund of documents on the study of monuments.
Lit .: Blavatsky V.D., Antique field archeology, M., 1967; Avdusin D. A., Archaeological exploration and excavations M., 1959; Spitsyn A. A., Archaeological excavations, St. Petersburg, 1910; Crawford O. G. S., Archeology in the field, L., (1953); Leroi-Gourhan A., Les fouilles préhistoriques (Technique et méthodes), P., 1950; Woolley C. L., Digging up the Past, (2 ed.), L., (1954); Wheeler, R. E. M., Archaeology from the Earth, (Harmondsworth, 1956).
A. L. Mongait. Moscow.
Soviet historical encyclopedia. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia. Ed. E. M. Zhukova. 1973-1982 .
Synonyms:See what "EXcavations" is in other dictionaries:
Digging, digging, digging Dictionary of Russian synonyms. excavation n., number of synonyms: 3 excavation (5) ... Synonym dictionary
Archaeological excavations on the territory of the Kremlin in Uglich ... Wikipedia
Excavations- Field study of archaeol. memory, foresight performance specific. type of earthwork. Such works are accompanied by the inevitable destruction of all memory. or parts of it. Repeated R. are usually impossible. Therefore, methods of study. must be max. accurate, ... ... Russian humanitarian encyclopedic dictionary
Archaeological, see Archaeological excavations ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
A method of investigating ancient settlements, buildings, graves, etc., originating from accidental finds or intentional, in order to obtain material benefits, searches in the ground, in graves, under foundations, etc. Raised into the scientific system of R. ... Encyclopedic Dictionary F.A. Brockhaus and I.A. Efron
I. DIGGING METHODS R. in the Near East, Marietta in Egypt (1850-1980), P.E. Botta and O.G. Their goal was to acquire for Europe. museums, if possible, as many as possible ... ... Brockhaus Bible Encyclopedia
Mn. 1. Works aimed at finding and extracting something hidden in the ground, snow, under ruins, etc. 2. Opening up the layers of the earth in order to extract the ancient monuments located in the earth. 3. The place where the extraction work is being carried out ... ... Modern explanatory dictionary of the Russian language Efremova
How are archaeological excavations carried out?
To excavate means, as it were, to raise the entire thickness of the earth, which for centuries and millennia was applied by winds, streams of water, layered with the remains of decaying plants, to raise so as not to disturb everything that was left, lost or abandoned in bygone times. The layer of earth above the remains of abandoned settlements and other traces of human life is growing even now, every year and every day. According to experts, at present, 5 million cubic kilometers of rock annually rises into the air, and then settles. The waters erode and carry more soil from place to place.
“Archaeology is the science of the shovel,” old textbooks say. This is not entirely accurate. You have to dig not only with a shovel, but also with a knife, a medical scalpel and even a watercolor brush. Before starting excavations, the surface of the monument is divided with the help of pegs into equal squares of 1 (1 x 1) or 4 (2 x 2) m2. Each peg is numbered and put on the plan. All this is called a network. The grid helps to record finds on plans and drawings. During excavations, all work is done manually. It is still impossible to mechanize this difficult, delicate and responsible business. Only the removal of earth from the excavation is mechanized.
Very often there are multi-layer monuments - usually these are places in which people settled more than once. In Central Asia and the Middle East, where adobe houses were built from raw bricks, the ruins of ancient cities layered on top of each other formed hills several tens of meters high - telli. It is difficult to understand such a multi-layered monument. But it is even more difficult to stratify those ancient settlements where houses were built of wood. From such settlements, only a thin layer of decayed remains of wood, ash, coals and incompletely decayed organic remains remains. This layer of dark color is clearly visible in the wall of a collapsing ravine or in the edge of a washed-out river bank. In archeology, such a layer is called a cultural layer, since it contains the remains of one or another ancient human culture. The thickness of the cultural layer is different. In Moscow, during the construction of the metro, it was found that in the city center it reaches 8 m, and in the Sokolniki district it is only 10 cm. On average, 5 m of the cultural layer was deposited in Moscow over 800 years. At the Roman Forum, the thickness of the cultural layer is 13 m, in Nishgur (Mesopotamia) -
20 m, in the settlement of Anau (Central Asia) - 36 m. Above the Paleolithic sites in Africa - hundreds of meters of stone. At the Karatau site in Tajikistan, 60 m of clay above the cultural layer.
Ancient people dug dugouts, pits for storing food, recesses for fires, without caring, of course, about the safety of the cultural layer for archaeologists. In order to better understand the stratigraphy (alternation of layers) of the monument, narrow strips of untouched areas - brows - are left between the squares. After the completion of the excavations, one can see from the brows how one cultural layer is replaced by another. Eyebrow profiles are photographed and sketched. Between the brows, the earth is simultaneously removed in layers of no more than 20 cm over the entire excavation area.
The work of an archaeologist can be compared to that of a surgeon. A small slip results in the death of an ancient object. During excavations, it is necessary not only not to damage the finds, but also to conserve them, save them from destruction, describe everything in detail, photograph, sketch, draw up a plan of ancient structures, stratigraphic profiles of excavations, accurately mark the sequence of alternation of layers on them. It is necessary to take all kinds of materials for analysis, etc.
I continue the theme of the inconsistency of versions of the thickness and composition (clay) of cultural layers that are exposed during archaeological excavations
Previously posted content:
Kostenki
At the beginning of 2007, a sensation shocked the scientific world of the planet. During excavations near the village of Kostenki, Voronezh region, it turned out that the finds found were about 40 thousand years ago.
Apparently, archaeologists came up with this date because of the depth of the finds. Because even taking into account all the radiocarbon datings carried out, the age is doubtful for one reason: scientists still do not know the content of radioactive carbon in the atmosphere of the past. Was this indicator constant or changed? And repelled by modern data.
In the place of archaeologists, I would pay attention to the depth of the artifacts. It is they who speak of the cataclysm. How can archaeologists themselves fail to see this objective fact?
Although they themselves write about it, and omit the conclusions:
It turns out that during the cataclysm-flood there was a strong volcanic activity! The ash layer is solid, given that the nearest volcano is thousands of kilometers away. So, because of such a smoky atmosphere - there was a long and harsh winter!
Animal bones. As in the case of mammoths - a huge cemetery.
“Horse” layer IV “a” from the Kostenki site 14. Excavations by A.A. Sinitsyn
A layer of mammoth bones from the Kostenki site 14. Excavations by A.A. Sinitsyn
At the conference in 2004, they examine the section of the Kostenki 12 parking lot
Excavations on the Angara River (Irkutsk Region - Krasnoyarsk Territory)
Here the thickness of the "cultural layer" can be explained by the floods of the river in the past. But the river cannot deliver such an amount of clay and sand, it will rather wash it away and carry it downstream. I think the water stood for a long time, and then the river washed its floodplain in these deposits. So:
Excavation at the Okunevka site
Archaeological excavations of Ust-Yodarma
Excavations at the construction site of the Kuyumba-Taishet oil pipeline at the Paleolithic and Neolithic sites "Elchimo-3" and "Matveevskaya Square" in the Lower Angara region on the left and right banks of the Angara
And found this:
Iron arrowheads! During the Paleolithic and Neolithic eras!!??
In total, about 10 thousand square meters were excavated. m, excavation depth - 2.5 m.
During the excavations, archaeologists found about 10 arrows of the 13th-15th centuries with iron tips. All arrows were in one place, which surprised archaeologists.
And they immediately rejuvenated the find to the 13th-15th century! Those. it looks like this. If, during excavations, archaeologists find only bone products, primitive stone objects and tools, this is the Neolithic or even Paleolithic. And if bronze products - the Bronze Age. From iron - not earlier than the XIII century! And even after the arrival of the Europeans, after Yermak.
At this depth:
find these iron products:
Remains of stone buildings on the Angara under a layer of clay
If we go back to how thick and what exactly the cultural layer looks like, then look at these photos:
Excavations in Novgorod
Almost to the ground, a rotten log house in humus on the surface of the earth - everything is as it should be (Novgorod)
Excavations of the sanctuary of Ust-Poluy, YNAO
A wall, a fence made of logs was simply cut off by a stream of water or mudflows. Those. the wall was not burned, it did not rot, the logs were simultaneously broken at the base
Archaeological Museum of Berestye, Belarus
Berestye is a unique archaeological museum in the city of Brest (Belarus), on a cape formed by the Western Bug River and the left branch of the Mukhavets River, on the territory of the Volyn fortification of the Brest Fortress. The museum was opened on March 2, 1982 at the site of archaeological excavations carried out since 1968. At the heart of the museum are the unearthed remains of the settlement of ancient Brest, the construction of a craft settlement of the 13th century. On the territory of Berestye, at a depth of 4 m, archaeologists excavated streets paved with wood, the remains of buildings for various purposes, located on an area of about 1000 m². The exposition presents 28 residential log buildings - one-story log cabins made of logs of coniferous trees (including two of them preserved for 12 crowns). Wooden buildings and pavement details were preserved with specially developed synthetic substances.
Around the opened ancient settlement there is an exposition dedicated to the way of life of the Slavs who inhabited these places in ancient times, archaeological finds made during excavations are presented - products made of metals, glass, wood, clay, bones, fabrics, including numerous jewelry, utensils, details weaving machines. The entire exposition is located in a covered pavilion with an area of 2400 m².
After the excavation, the object was surrounded by a building and covered with a glass roof. But look, it is 3-4 m below the current level of the earth's surface. Were the ancients so wild that they built fortifications in pits? Another cultural layer? As we found out, it does not happen like that at the age that they give buildings.
This is what the castle might have looked like
The pavement was obviously made during the reconstruction from the remnants of the roof, etc., that they dug up, but did not know where to attach ...
Iron ax found during excavations
Tool
Found leather shoes. This fact suggests that the catastrophe happened here quite recently. But it is possible that the soil isolated the shoes from oxygen, and to this he owes such safety.
Glass bracelets. So in what century did glass appear?
An interesting fact is the discovery of the skulls of a cat, dog, horse and bison. Question: were they buried next to the dwellings (or were the skulls of the eaten bison and horse thrown out nearby) or were they all covered by a mudflow wave? And so fast that even cats and dogs could not feel the threat, as they usually feel earthquakes and try to escape.
