Experimental Archaeology

Go study Experimental Archaeology in York

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Unearth new answers to age-old questions! The University of York offers a new MSc/MA course in Material Culture and Experimental Archaeology starting in 2018. It is either 1 year full time or 2-3 years part time. Interweaving practical and theoretical approaches to material culture, this course explores ethnoarchaeological and experimental archaeological approaches to objects, alongside functional analyses of a broad range of artefact types. You will discover the theories underpinning our understanding of the material world while developing invaluable practical skills: from designing and executing your own experimental archaeology project, the analysis of microscopic wear and residue traces, working with objects from excavations and museum collections, to making a short documentary film for the heritage sector.

University of the Witwatersrand (ZA)

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The School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies is one of the leaders in African rock art studies, Palaeoarchaeology, the Stone Age, pre-colonial farming and herding societies and the formation of modern cultural identities in the last five hundred years.

The School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies is one of the leaders in African rock art studies, Palaeoarchaeology, the Stone Age, pre-colonial farming and herding societies and the formation of modern cultural identities in the last five hundred years.

The Mechanics of Splitting Wood and the Design of Neolithic Woodworking Tools

A. R. Ennos and
J. A. Ventura Oliveira (UK)
EXARC Journal Issue 2017/4
Experimental Archaeology
Because of the anisotropy of wood, trunks and branches can be vulnerable to splitting along the grain, especially radially. This fact was widely exploited in pre-industrial times, when wood was mostly cut and shaped by splitting it along the grain while still green, rather than by sawing...

Now we’re Cooking with Gas! How Experimental Archaeology Challenges Modern Assumptions about Metal Recycling

E. Giovanna Fregni (IT)
EXARC Journal Issue 2017/4
Experimental Archaeology
It is accepted knowledge that when re-melting alloys, some of the metal with a lower melting temperature is lost through oxidation, and more metal must be added in order to maintain the desired alloy proportions. In order to understand the changes in alloy content when recycling using Bronze Age technology, experiments were undertaken by the author and others...

Experimental Archaeology as Participant Observation: A Perspective from Medieval Food

Scott D. Stull (US)
EXARC Journal Issue 2017/4
Experimental Archaeology
10th EAC Leiden 2017
***Central to anthropology is the concept of participant observation, where a researcher engages in immersive learning through ethnographic fieldwork. This concept is also important for archaeologists as immersive learning provides an avenue for more robust interpretation and the development of...

Twenty Years with Flint. The Society for Experimental Prehistoric Archaeology – Where are We Now?

Grzegorz Osipowicz and
Justyna Kuriga (PL)
EXARC Journal Issue 2017/3
Experimental Archaeology
The Society of Experimental Prehistoric Archaeology (SEPA, www.keap.umk.pl) is an organisation affiliated with the Nicolaus Copernicus University’s Institute of Archaeology since 1998. The first academic supervisor of SEPA was Jolanta Małecka-Kukawka, now led by Grzegorz Osipowicz...

Research, Experimentation and Outreach in the Early Neolithic Site of La Draga (Banyoles-Spain)

A. Palomo,
R. Piqué,
X. Terradas,
J. A. Barceló,
J. A. Rodríguez,
M. Buch,
J. Junkmanns,
M. de Diego and
O. López (ES)
EXARC Journal Issue 2017/3
Experimental Archaeology
The exceptional preservation of organic material in the early Neolithic site of La Draga (Banyoles, north-east Iberian Peninsula) has allowed lines of research that had rarely been undertaken in the region. The research project carried out at the site of La Draga involves experimental archaeology as a...

The Colour Palette of Antique Bronzes: An Experimental Archaeology Project

Jonathan Devogelaere (FR)
EXARC Journal Issue 2017/2
Experimental Archaeology
Bronze is an alloy of copper and tin, with lead also added. Hellenistic and Roman bronze objects have a variable percentage of metals, and because of this the colour of the alloy will differ depending on the proportions. The colour of the alloy can be maintained by polishing, but it is also possible to give a patina to the surface of bronze using a reagent...