Preservation knowledge is important for those preparing archaeological collections for curation or requesting access to collections for research. Literature about the fields of archaeological conservation and curation is plentiful, but there are scant resources that offer a basic introduction to the knowledge needed to facilitate preservation of and access to archaeological collections. Much of the literature focuses on conservation in the field and in the lab. Archaeological curation standards and the importance of sustainable management of archaeological collections also are well documented. In contrast, this article serves as an introductory guide to preventive care, specifically to the agents of deterioration and the storage considerations that affect preservation of and access to archaeological collections. Collections specialists who work in museums, government repositories, or historical societies, as well as field archaeologists, academic archaeologists teaching and conducting research on collections, and descendant communities in tribal historic preservation offices and other repositories will find this guide useful as a reference and teaching resource.

With generous support from the National Science Foundation, we have spent the past four years developing an archaeological radiocarbon database for the United States. Here, we highlight the importance of spatial data for open-access, national-scale archaeological databases and the development of paleodemography research. We propose a new method for analyzing radiocarbon time series in the context of paleoclimate models. This method forces us to confront one of the central challenges to realizing the full potential of national-scale databases: the quality of the spatial data accompanying radiocarbon dates. We seek to open a national discussion on the use of spatial data in open-source archaeological databases.

In small developing countries like Belize, lack of funding for archaeological research and post excavation curation remains one of our greatest challenges to preserving our tangible cultural heritage. The state of curation of human remains and artefact collections at St. John's College in Belize City is a perfect example of what can go wrong in the absence of a properly funded and managed curation program both at the national and the institutional level. This article highlights the rediscovery of a historically significant group of over 70 human remains in the biological collection of Friar Deickman, which had been forgotten in an attic after his death in 2003. We outline the process of, and accomplishments in improving the curation conditions of these individuals while uncovering their importance to Belizean history in the eighteenth through twentieth centuries. Preliminary analysis reveals life histories of slavery and indentured servitude of individuals of African, Maya, European, and possible mixed African and European descent. We emphasize the importance of ethical responsibility in properly curating excavated human remains, and the challenges researchers face when poor curation results in lost provenience. We offer suggestions for scientific analysis in recovering information lost as a result of poor excavation or curation methods.

Formal models of past human societies informed by archaeological research have a high potential for shaping some of the most topical current debates. Agent-based models, which emphasize how actions by individuals combine to produce global patterns, provide a convenient framework for developing quantitative models of historical social processes. However, being derived from computer science, the method remains largely specialized in archaeology. In this paper and the associated tutorial, we provide a jargon-free introduction to the technique, its potential and limits as well as its diverse applications in archaeology and beyond. We discuss the epistemological rationale of using computational modeling and simulation, classify types of models, and give an overview of the main concepts behind agent-based modeling.

Archaeologists are using spatial data in increasingly sophisticated analyses and invoking more explicit considerations of space in their interpretations. Geographic information systems (GIS) have become standard technology for professional archaeologists in the collection and management of spatial data. Many calls have been made to develop and adapt digital geospatial technologies for interpretation and understanding past social dynamics, but this has been limited to some extent by the static nature of map-oriented GIS approaches. Here, we illustrate how coupling GIS with agent-based modeling (ABM) can assist with more dynamic explorations of past uses of space and geospatial phenomena.

Data preservation, reuse, and synthesis are important goals in contemporary archaeological research that have been addressed by the recent collaboration of the Eastern Archaic Faunal Working Group (EAFWG). We used the Digital Archaeological Record (tDAR) to preserve 60 significant legacy faunal databases from 23 Archaic period archaeological sites located in several contiguous subregions of the interior North American Eastern Woodlands. In order to resolve the problem of synthesizing non-standardized databases, we used the ontology and integration tools available in tDAR to explore comparability and combine datasets so that our research questions about aquatic resource use during the Archaic could be addressed at multiple scales. The challenges of making digital databases accessible for reuse, including the addition of metadata, and of linking disparate data in queryable datasets are significant but worth the effort. Our experience provides one example of how collaborative research may productively resolve problems in making legacy data accessible and usable for synthetic archaeological research.

Formally established in the fall of 1947, the Laboratory of Archaeology at the University of Georgia is an archaeological research and collection repository. It is considered one of the premier institutions for curation of archaeological collections from the American Southeast. For over 70 years, the Laboratory has served as a repository for objects and associated records generated from archaeological projects and research undertaken by faculty, students, CRM professionals, and state and federal agencies. The Laboratory curates over 20,000 cubic feet of artifacts as well as paper and digital archives. In addition, the Laboratory houses the Georgia Archaeological Site File and manages data from more than 59,000 archaeological sites, including over 11,500 archaeological reports. In this paper, we explore implementation procedures for bringing legacy collections up to modern curation standards. We also outline how we migrate the data on paper records into the digital realm, articulating them within a comprehensive framework.

The creation of digital repositories of human skeletal remains offers bioarchaeologists a variety of potential means of aiding efforts related to curation and analysis. We present a discussion of how issues of preservation and access can affect research and argue that digital repositories not only maintain a record of objects but that the digital format allows researchers to expand their studies to include otherwise inaccessible collections. Digital models can be utilized by bioarchaeologists to collect and analyze a wide variety of quantitative and qualitative data. We review several digital capture methods employed by bioarchaeologists, including CT scanning, laser scanning, and photogrammetry. While photogrammetry is underutilized by bioarchaeologists, we point out its many advantages over other methods.

A major challenge facing archaeologists is communicating our research to the public. Thankfully, new computational tools have enabled the testing and visualization of complex ideas in an easily packageable format. In this article we illustrate not only how agent-based modeling provides a platform for communicating complex ideas, but also how these game-like computer models can be explored and manipulated by members of the public therefore increasing their engagement in archaeological explanations. We suggest that these new digital tools serve as an excellent aid for education on the importance of archaeological sites and artifacts. To illustrate the above we walk the reader through a step-by-step pipeline of how to run an ABM model as an experiment and how to export it into a form ready to be sent to SHPO and THPO offices in tandem with reports. Ultimately, we hope that this work will help demystify the computational archaeology process and lead to more fluency in using agent-based modeling in research and outreach.

Care of archaeological materials should begin when recovered in the field. Care and stabilization of objects in the field will greatly increase their research and exhibit potential. Identifying problems and understanding basic solutions to object care and stabilization is an important part of training for all potential object handlers. Proper care and stabilization of objects can and should be a priority for all object users—excavators, lab analysts, museum staff, and researchers. Constant dialogue and communication between repository specialists and archaeologists can be the most useful source for care of all archaeological objects.

Even though Southeast Asia is one of the most densely populated regions of the world, its rock art is relatively unknown, and the rock art of Micronesia is even less so. As a starting point for comparing Philippine rock art within the region, a systematic quantitative literature review (SQLR) was conducted to assess the current body of accessible publications. The SQLR resulted in 126 viable references, and characteristics of those references were quantified and analyzed to ascertain the qualities of research published to date. The SQLR results show that scholarship in Southeast Asian rock art is increasing and that the research is dominated by Australia-affiliated scholars. It also quantitatively affirmed that the most noted color for rock art in the region is red and the most commonly identified motif is anthropomorphic. Many motifs found elsewhere in Southeast Asia are notably absent in the known corpus of Philippine rock art. Finally, we discuss SQLR methodology and propose integrating collaborative semantic web applications to increase efficiency and relevance.

Over the past few years, the lead author has had the opportunity to excavate multiple large sites in California, working on behalf of developers to keep their projects in compliance with their permits. She also worked in conjunction with local tribes to resolve burial issues with each excavation. During these excavations, she observed the challenges that the tribes encountered when dealing with fast-paced cultural resource management (CRM) projects where burial retrieval and a shortage of resources were the norm. For many years, archaeologists have viewed CRM as only dealing with the material culture of the past; however, archaeologists also consult and work with living cultures. This article will address the endemic problem in CRM that stems from a lack of planning, preparation, resources, and training and how it affects the burial excavations that archaeologists and tribes encounter in the CRM setting. It will also look for solutions to remedy a long-broken system that continues to ignore existing laws set in place to protect resources, as well as the relationships between the Native American community, agencies, researchers, and land developers.

The issue of pesticide-contaminated archaeological collections has generated concern among staff in collecting institutions. Pesticides have long been used, but the awareness of their unseen persistence and their potential as a human health hazard is a new aspect of preventive conservation. Background information and guidelines for developing a pesticide history are provided for repositories, museums, cultural resource management companies in the private and public sectors, academia, and other public collections.

MOLA (Museum of London Archaeology) is one of the leading archaeological companies in the UK. It provides professional archaeological services and implements award-winning community engagement programs with a high-profile online presence. Its Facebook page is an important communication channel, serving the organization in raising public awareness, reaching the widest audiences, and engaging with the community. MOLA has developed a strategic approach to its archaeological communication on Facebook by ensuring regular updates of its research and by providing rich archaeological content aligned with media campaigns of the most notable archaeological excavations. This strategy helps the organization build a steady and engaged community of interest. The use of social networks for public engagement, the possibilities of rapid dissemination, and the challenges of ensuring sustainable online participation via social networks resonate with major concerns discussed by different researchers in the field. This review explores MOLA's Facebook page, seeking to showcase how the archaeological organization communicates through Facebook on a day-to-day basis and to reveal how Facebook users react to different kinds of archaeological content through measurable metrics.

Human skeletal remains constitute remarkably informative finds, both biologically and socioculturally. Their recovery, preservation, conservation, storage, and analysis are complex issues that need to be addressed within any given biocultural context. Given the country's geography and the long history of human occupation, Greek field archaeology is intense and ongoing, with both rescue and systematic excavations. Human burials are thus frequently encountered in excavations throughout Greece, resulting in the accumulation of osteological material. Some of the common challenges of bioarchaeological research in Greece consist of insufficient time, funding, and documentation in the field; unmet conservation needs and lack of storage space; as well as the long time-gap between excavation and analysis. Here, we give a brief overview of excavation, curation, and bioarchaeological practice within a Greek archaeological framework. We focus on the newly launched Phaleron Bioarchaeological Project on a vast necropolis from the wider Athens region in order to present our methodological approach. Finally, we consider the role of interdisciplinary collaboration in managing large-scale bioarchaeological projects and serving long-term heritage preservation goals.

Although archaeology has become increasingly concerned with engaging diverse publics, and has embraced the internet as a means of facilitating such engagement, attitudes towards Wikipedia have—understandably—been more ambivalent. Nevertheless, we argue here, Wikipedia's popularity and reach mean that archaeologists should actively engage with the website by adding and improving archaeological content. One way to do this is in the classroom: this paper provides a detailed how-to for instructors interested in having students create new Wikipedia content. We provide a case study in Wikipedia engagement from an advanced undergraduate course on African Archaeology, assess a program (Wiki Education) designed to help, and suggest further avenues for future outreach. We conclude that Wikipedia's utopian mission aligns with many of the goals of public archaeology, and argue that archaeology has much to gain by engaging with—rather than ignoring or even shunning—Wikipedia.

The systematic excavation, long term storage, inventory, and analysis of complete human skeletal remains is a new concept in East Asia. This study examined four problematic cases where there was a demonstrated need for the implementation of conservation techniques. The first case included several naturally mummified skulls from Xinjiang, Province, China. Salt crystals were found to be solidifying on the outer table. The second case involved four naturally mummified cave burials from southwestern Mongolia. Once removed from the dry environment, they began to decompose again. The two last cases were permafrost burials in northern Mongolia. The skeletons were wrapped and stored in a manner which encouraged mold growth. This study will give recommendations for thorough archaeological recovery, cleaning, packaging for transport, reconstruction, and long-term storage of human skeletal remains.

3D printing is a rapidly developing technology that has been championed as a revolutionary tool for the museums and heritage sector. Prints can provide innovative and engaging haptic experiences with objects in collections that cannot be handled, akin to craft replicas that have traditionally been employed. Large museums now regularly commission prints, yet evidence for the success of their deployment is largely anecdotal. This review considers how 3D prints have been utilized in museum contexts, with a focus on their successes and weaknesses as tools for public engagement.

With the advent of commercially available digital cameras in the late 1990s resulting in the near-exclusion of analog photographic prints today, most archaeological repositories around the world have a mix of analog and digital photographic prints. That ratio is increasingly moving toward digital print processes, of which there are several types. To minimize the loss of image quality, collection managers must become familiar with the unique curation challenges of photographic prints from digitally created images. Likewise, creators of digital content must be aware that choices made when selecting a print process for reposit will have a direct effect on image and print permanence. Site photographs are critical evidence of archaeological activity, and so the preservation of digital prints is in the interest, and is the responsibility, of collection managers and archaeologists alike.