Experimental Archaeology

University of Manchester (UK)

Member of EXARC
No

The Experimental Archaeology Group was established in 2017 to create the opportunity for both staff and students to get hands-on experience of making, using and researching the artefacts and material culture that they learn and teach about within degree units.

Since forming, the group has explored prehistoric and historical ethnographic knapping techniques, prehistoric bone and antler working, organic cordage from a range of plant fibre sources and willow work, including basketry and fish traps.
These sessions provide us as archaeologists with a new understanding of certain aspects of material culture, including time, skill, knowledge, effort and sensorial experience, all of which expand our understanding of the past.

Newcastle University (UK)

Member of EXARC
No

The School of History, Classics and Archaeology is home to several archaeologists conducting experimental archaeology. 

Dr Chloe Duckworth has experience with among others Roman and medieval glass. She teaches for example the module “you are what you make”. This module explores - and helps you to learn - the skills and techniques humans have used for millennia to control, manipulate, and construct the world around us. 

University of Kyiv (UA)

Member of EXARC
No

At the Department: Archaeology and Museum Studies, Assoc. Ryzhov Sergey Nikolaevich teaches a module on experimental archaeology. 
Experimental archaeology is a field of modern archaeology through which the reconstruction or modelling of particular techniques or technologies of the past is carried out on the basis of previous research into archaeological sources.

Experimental archaeology uses a hypothetical-deductive method of checking and evaluating archaeological information. In the process of checking the sources, practical historical reconstructions are carried out for each individual chronological and territorial complex of archaeological sites.

Bringing Experimental Lithic Technology to Paleoamerican Brazilian Archaeology: Replication Studies on the Rioclarense and Garivaldinense Industries

Author(s)
João Carlos Moreno De Sousa 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2019/3

Introduction

Despite experimental archaeological approaches being well known in Brazilian archaeology since the 1970’s, it has rarely produced studies until the beginning of the 21th century. The first deep debate on the subject of experimental archaeology was provided by Miller Jr. (1975), specifically on the application of the approach to lithic technology using Corumbataí flint - typical raw material from the Rioclarense industry. In that occasion, Miller Jr.

X-Ray Tomography and Infrared Spectrometry for the Analysis of Throwing Sticks & Boomerangs

Author(s)
Luc Bordes 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2019/3

In 2009, confronted to the study of throwing sticks collections from several museums and private collections (including more than three hundreds artefacts) and the need to evaluate their aerodynamic and functions, I developed a throwing stick classification and a methodology to measure their characteristics (Bordes, 2014). This approach is complementary to the gathering of ethnographic or archaeological contextual data to confirm or invalidate hypotheses about theirs functions. 

Experimental Bonfirings of Pottery with Camel Dung Fuel, Jordan, July 2018

Author(s)
Maria-Louise Sidoroff 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2019/2
The objective of this series of experimental pottery firings with camel dung fuel was to isolate the function of this fuel type within the context of a simple mode of pottery firing for data applicable to studies of ancient pottery manufacture...

Skills Shortage: A Critical Evaluation of the Use of Human Participants in Early Spear Experiments

Author(s)
Annemieke Milks 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2019/2
Hand-delivered spears are the earliest clear hunting technology in the archaeological record, with origins from 400,000 years ago, before the evolution of our own species. Experimental archaeological approaches to early weaponry continue to grow, and both controlled and naturalistic experiments are making significant contributions to interpreting such technologies...

Going Underground: An Experimental Archaeological Investigation of an Early Medieval Irish Souterrain

Author(s)
Tom Meharg 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2019/2
During the summer of 2018 I completed a master’s degree in experimental archaeology and material culture at University College Dublin, this research was carried out for the final dissertation. The project was to build and test a 1:1 model of an early medieval Irish souterrain. The subterranean structure is based on one of over 3,500 examples of this feature identified in Ireland...

Experience and Discovery: Engaging the Public in Research. A Survey on Experimental Archaeology Contemporary Practice and Meaning – Preliminary Results

Author(s)
Lara Comis 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2019/2

Introduction

The traditional way of engaging the public with the past has changed. Archaeological and historical heritage is not exiled anymore to an inaccessible showcase. Now it is possible to have a direct, physical contact with the “past” through a wide number of activities and locations, among which Archaeological Open-Air Museums (AOAMs) are the most utilized. But, as researchers are aware, the means used to engage the public are the fruit of an active process of investigation, especially in experimental archaeology.

The Mother of All Bead Furnaces: Testing a Hypothesis about a Natural Draft Bead Furnace

Author(s)
Neil Peterson 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2019/2
As a part of the ongoing exploration of Viking Era glass bead production, the Dark Ages Re-creation Company (DARC) team perform new pilot experiments on a regular basis. These experiments provide a preliminary understanding of a specific construct or research question, allowing us to judge the validity of further experiments, as well as what equipment or additional questions may be necessary as a part of...