Cultural transformation of archaeological residues

Archaeological sites, of whatever size and complexity, are functions of human activities and of noncultural agencies, during occupation as well as after occupation. The regional and local geomorphic subsystem provides a landscape setting and contributes to the blend of cultural and noncultural processes that affect a site during its use and subsequently dictate its preservation or destruction. The degree to which such cultural residues provide a representative time slice of human activities (instantaneously fossilized, as it were) is only in part controlled by sedimentation, preservation on a stable surface, or dispersal by erosion. A multiplicity of cultural variables is another part of the same equation, before, during, and after the final phases of human activity related to a particular surface.

A framework for cultural transformations has been outlined by Schiffer (1976:Chapter 3) in terms of systemic versus archaeological context. Such a sophisticated approach is commendable for sociocultural interpretation, but for the purposes of excavation strategy the factors involved can more profitably be considered from three perspectives:

1. Primary cultural deposition. During the original utilization of an activity locus, the various archaeological materials are progressively discarded (partly in refuse areas), lost, or deliberately aggregated in burials, shrines, and caches. During abandonment, higher proportions of functional materials are left behind in areas of manufacture, use, and storage.