Recovery of human remains Flashcards
Archaeological recovery
What?
Commercial
Research dig
What happen upon it
How?
Recording
Excavation
Why?
For recovery
Elements, industrial or building/housing projects
Soil conditions
Different soil condition will
impact the remains
Certain soils are better than
others
It can give us the wrong results
in a macroscopic analysis
Peaty or silty
Varied preservation
It can be quite acidic if
it is dry – bone does
not fossilize
Wet peat – think of bog
bodies
Clay
Not great preservation
Very acidic
Wet
Varied preservation, but
often good
The water allows the wet
bones to degrade slower
Sand
Very good for bone
preservation
Drains and keeps them
dry
Archaeological recovery
Finds will be kept for potential
research
Notes are important, but for the
historic record
Forensic recovery
Finds are items of evidence
Contemporaneous notes will be kept
