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Approaches and Methods for Commissioned Archaeology in Wetlands: Experience from the E4 Project in Skåne, Southern Sweden

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 January 2017

Per Lagerås*
Affiliation:
National Heritage Board (Riksantikvarieämbetet), Lund, Sweden
*

Abstract

In this article I discuss problems and possibilities connected with commissioned archaeology in wetlands. The cultural heritage of wetlands is threatened by large-scale infrastructure projects, and there is a need within commissioned archaeology to develop approaches and techniques for systematic surveying in wetlands. With examples from an on-going project in southern Sweden, different surveying techniques are presented together with some results and interpretations. Attempts to grasp the complexity of the wetlands right from the beginning of the project proved to be fruitful, in that the palaeoenvironmental interpretations were decisive for the selection of sites for trial excavations. Interpretation of peatland expansion through time was important for the reading of the landscape and the search for settlement sites. Some techniques for trial excavations in waterlogged peat are also presented.

Résumé

Résumé

Dans ce papier, je discute des problèmes et des possibilités liés à l'archéologie commanditée dans les régions humides. L'héritage culturel des zones humides est menacé par des projets de grande envergure et il y a, au sein de l'archéologie commanditée, un besoin de développer des approches et des techniques pour faire le levé systématique de ces zones. A l'aide d'exemples provenant d'un projet actuellement en cours en Suède méridionale, différentes techniques d'inspection sont présentées ensemble avec un certain nombre de résultats et d'interprétations. Des efforts pour saisir la complexité des zones humides dès le début d'un projet ont prouvé être utiles, dans la mesure où les interprétations paléoenvironnementales sont décisives pour la sélection des sites des fouilles d'essai. L'interprétation de l'expansion des tourbes au fil du temps est importante pour la compréhension du paysage et pour la recherche des implantations humaines. De plus sont présentés quelques techniques à utiliser lors des fouilles d'essai dans de la tourbe imprégnée d'eau.

Zusammenfassung

Zusammenfassung

In diesem Aufsatz werden Probleme und Möglichkeiten diskutiert, die mit Auftragsarchäologie in Feuchtgebieten verbunden sind. Das kulturelle Erbe von Feuchtgebieten wird durch großflächige Infrastrukturprojekte bedroht; und es besteht innerhalb der Auftragsarchäologie die Notwendigkeit, Ansätze und Techniken für die systematische Aufnahme von Feuchtgebieten zu entwickeln. Anhand von Beispielen eines laufenden Projektes in Südschweden werden verschiedenen Survey-Techniken gemeinsam mit einigen Ergebnissen und Interpretationen vorgestellt. Versuche, die Komplexität der Feuchtgebiete von Anfang des Projektes an zu erfassen, stellten sich als dahingehend fruchtbar heraus, dass die Interpretationen der Paläo-Umwelt ausschlaggebend für die Auswahl der Plätze für Sondagegrabungen waren. Interpretationen der Ausdehnung vertorfter Gebiete im Laufe der Zeit waren wichtig für das Verständnis der Landschaft und die Suche nach Siedlungsplätzen. Außerdem werden einige Techniken für Testgrabungen in vollgesogenem Torf präsentiert.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © 2003 Sage Publications 

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