experiment

Experiment

A trial activity carried out in order to test a theory.
Definition source: Chambers 21st Century Dictionary

Stone Moulds from Terramare (Northern Italy): Analytical Approach and Experimental Reproduction

M. Barbieri and
C. Cavazzuti (IT)

Introduction

Although a long list of publications has been dedicated over the last several decades to the questions concerning early metallurgy, the achievements and the potential contributions of experimental archaeology in this area of interest still remain quite underestimated by a consistent part of academia, at least in Italy. At some official occasions the debate between the theoretical knowledge-holders and the technical skill-holders strongly emerges, but very few come back home with a true increased respect and acceptance for the counterpart's work. 

The Registry of Memory Process Applied to Experimental Archaeology in a Castromao “Oven”

Andrés Teira-Brión (ES),
Josefa Rey-Castiñeira (ES) and
Clíodhna Ní Líonain (IE)
7th UK EA Conference Cardiff 2013
***Memory is the cognitive process that codifies, stores and retrieves past actions that are perceived in the present, generating our remembrances and perceptions of the past and informing our knowledge of the world around us (...) Applied to archaeology, memory can be understood as the marks or...

Fire and Bone: An Experimental Study of Cremation

C. Snoeck and
R. J. Schulting (UK)
7th UK EA Conference Cardiff 2013
***Many bone fragments have been burned in controlled laboratory conditions but few have been burned on outdoor pyres. In order to study and understand cremated bone, it is crucial to conduct experiments in real environmental conditions. In this study several cremations were carried out outdoors...

Lithic Experiments in Rescue Archaeology: a Case from Southern Norway

S.V. Nielsen,
J. Åkerstrøm and
T. Vihovde (NO)

To test whether or not the form of the discovered quartz was a result of prehistoric technological choices, a fracture analysis on collected vein quartz from Aust-Agder County was conducted1 . Lithic experimentation is traditionally associated with either institutionalized academic research or post-production phases of excavations.

Drying Meat Today as During the Late Glacial Period

Edoardo Ratti and
Valeria Cosma (IT)
Western Europe during the Upper Palaeolithic, between 42,000 years ago and 12,000 years ago, was sparsely wooded, but later there was an increase in the percentage of specimens of birch, abies, fagus and tilia hosting wildlife similar to that already present during the Middle Palaeolithic. With the recent phase, starting from 24,000 years ago, humans in this territory become specialized...

The Quality of the Craft

Paul Eklöv Pettersson (SE)
In this study the sustainability of crucibles used during the Scandinavian Bronze Age is tested. Due to the crucible’s high or low sustainability the idea of it being a disposable object may be ratified or discarded. Earlier experiments focusing on the casting process in Scandinavian Bronze Age have concluded that crucibles such as the ones used during Bronze Age were disposable objects due...

What’s in an Experiment? Roman Fish Sauce: an Experiment in Archaeology

Sally Grainger (UK)

In the summer of 2009 I was engaged in the preliminary preparations for extensive experiments to manufacture fish sauces for my MA dissertation in Archaeology at Reading University. In my previous research into Roman food, it was clear that it was not going to be possible to truly understand ancient cuisine without...

The Theory of the Archaeological Raft: Motivation, Method, and Madness in Experimental Archaeology

P.J. Capelotti (US)

Between 1947 and 2006, nearly forty expeditions set out in recreated maritime drift vessels to demonstrate hypotheses with varying levels of relevance to archaeology and cultural diffusion. This paper divides the motivations of these expeditions into four major categories...