Services Provided
Geoarcheology Research Associates, Inc. (GRA) is one of the few companies that utilizes methods of the earth sciences to assess cultural resources and site preservation potential. Our strategies are innovative, scientifically sound and ultimately cost-effective. Strategies stress assessments of the sediments in which artifacts are housed to judge the integrity and antiquity of archeological sites. In urban environments, for example, rapid industrialization has obliterated ancient landscapes, resulting in accumulations of fill whose depth precludes preservation of sites and eliminates tracts from additional assessments of sensitivity. Conversely, certain types of natural environments could not have preserved archeological materials because they are either too old or people would never have lived in them. The illustration below was prepared for an archeological sensitivity determination for an industrial park in New Jersey's Hackensack Meadowlands. Geoarcheological testing included the use of hydraulic cores to probe subsurface deposits that contained deep accumulations of urban landfill over peat deposits and ancient lake beds. The urban deposits were disturbed and the lake beds pre-date human occupation of the Northeast. Only the peat deposits had potential for preserving cultural material. This limited testing effort narrowed the potential for recovery of archeological materials to a thin deposit, only 3 ft. thick. The strategy saved the planning agency from undertaking a complex stripping program and pedestrian testing.
For details on the principles and advantages of geoarcheology you may also view an ACRA White Paper on geoarcheology prepared by Dr. Schuldenrein.
Geoarchaeological Analyses
Geoarcheology Research Associates, Inc. (GRA) is one of the few companies that utilizes methods of the earth sciences to assess cultural resources and site preservation potential. Our strategies are innovative, scientifically sound and ultimately cost-effective. Strategies stress assessments of the sediments in which artifacts are housed to judge the integrity and antiquity of archeological sites. In urban environments, for example, rapid industrialization has obliterated ancient landscapes, resulting in accumulations of fill whose depth precludes preservation of sites and eliminates tracts from additional assessments of sensitivity. Conversely, certain types of natural environments could not have preserved archeological materials because they are either too old or people would never have lived in them. The illustration below was prepared for an archeological sensitivity determination for an industrial park in New Jersey's Hackensack Meadowlands. Geoarcheological testing included the use of hydraulic cores to probe subsurface deposits that contained deep accumulations of urban landfill over peat deposits and ancient lake beds. The urban deposits were disturbed and the lake beds pre-date human occupation of the Northeast. Only the peat deposits had potential for preserving cultural material. This limited testing effort narrowed the potential for recovery of archeological materials to a thin deposit, only 3 ft. thick. The strategy saved the planning agency from undertaking a complex stripping program and pedestrian testing.
For details on the principles and advantages of geoarcheology you may also view an ACRA White Paper on geoarcheology prepared by Dr. Schuldenrein.
