1.Anartifact’sprovenienceis:​
a.​thegeologicsourceoftherawmaterialfromwhichtheartifactwasmanufactured.
b.theartifact’slocationrelativetoasystemofspatialdatacollection.
c.​thefacilitywheretheartifactiscurrentlystored.
d.​howtheartifactwasusedintheprehistoricpast.
2.Itisessentialthatarchaeologiststakeabundant,accurate,anddetailedfieldnotesduringexcavationsbecause:​
a.​archaeologydestroysdataasitisgathered;onceasiteisexcavateditcannotbere-excavated.
b.​federallegislationmandatesabundant,accurate,anddetailedfieldnotes.
c.​archaeologystudentsgenerallylearnfieldtechniquesfromthesenotes.
d.​noneoftheabove;itisnotessentialbecausearchaeologistscanalwaysgobackandreconstructthe
excavationlater.
3.TheFolsomsiteinNewMexicowasdiscoveredby:​
a.​GeorgeMcJunkin,anex-slaveandrancher.
b.​JesseFiggins,directoroftheColoradoMuseumofNatureandScience.
c.​BoucherdePerthes,aFrenchcustomsofficialandnaturalist.
d.​A.V.Kidder,FounderofAnthropologicalArchaeology.
4.TheFolsomsiteisimportantinthehistoryofAmericanarchaeologybecause:​
a.​itwasthefirstsitethatwasexcavatedusingthestratigraphicmethod,abreakthroughinarchaeological
techniquethatallowedforchronologicalcontrol.
b.​itfinallydisprovedtheMythoftheMoundbuilders,establishingthatNativeAmericanshadindeedbuiltthe
earthworksoftheeasternUnitedStates.
c.​itprovedtheextentofhumanantiquityintheAmericas.
d.​atatimewhenmostAmericanarchaeologistswereconcentratingonAmericanprehistory,itdemonstrated
theimportanceofhistoricarchaeology.
5.WhichofthefollowingistrueaboutthePleistocene?​
a.​Itwasageologicperiodlastingfrom2millionto10thousandyearsago.
b.​Itwascharacterizedbyperiodsofextensiveglaciation.
c.​ManyspeciesofnowextinctfaunaexistedduringthePleistocene.
d.​Alloftheanswersarecorrect.
6.Ifanartifactissaidtobeinsitu,itis:​
a.​missing.
b.​inplace.
c.​intheprocessofbeinganalyzed.
d.​embeddedinananimalbone.
7.TheantiquityofhumansintheNewWorldwasestablishedbytheFolsomsite.Why?​
a.​ThedrydesertenvironmentofnortheasternNewMexicoallowedforthebestpreservation.
b.​Carefulproveniencethatrecordedcontext:theassociationofaspearpointwiththeskeletonofanextinct
formofbison.
c.​Theageofthesite,establishedbyradiocarbondatingcharredcornrecoveredduringexcavation.
d.​Alloftheanswersarecorrect.
8.TheduckdecoysofLovelockCave,Nevadaillustrate:​
a.​thatcaveswereimportanthabitationsitesthroughoutGreatBasinprehistory.
b.​theimportanceofcontextinarchaeologicalexcavations.
c.​theamazingdegreeofpreservationpossibleindrycaves.
d.​alloftheabove.
9.Organicremainsarebestpreservedin:​
a.​acave,whereconditionsremainpermanentlycoolanddry.
b.​abog,whereconditionsremainpermanentlywetanddepletedofoxygen.
c.​afield,exposedtohot,dryconditionswithperiodicrainfall.
d.​bothapermanentlydry,coolcaveandapermanentlywetbog.
10.WaterloggedsitessuchasOzetteonWashington’sOlympicPeninsulademonstrate:​
a.​howwatercandestroystructuresandorganicremainsthatwouldnormallybepreservedindryconditions.
b.​howorganicremainscanberemarkablypreservedifsaturatedbywaterandsealedinananaerobic
environment.
c.​thatarchaeologistscannotexcavatethesekindsofsites.
d.​therelativeeaseofunderwaterexcavationcomparedtoexcavationsondryland.
11.Otzi,theIceManoftheAlps,providesanexampleof:​
a.​howcoldconditionscaninhibitdecompositionoforganicmaterialbypreventingtheproductionof
microorganismsthatcausedecay.
b.​thepeacefullifeanddeathofaNeolithicfarmer.
c.theimportanceofarchaeologicalsurveyinhighaltitudemountainsettings.
d.​Alloftheanswersarecorrect.
12.Atestexcavationwouldbemostappropriateinwhichofthefollowingsituations?​
a.​Whendeterminingwhetherornotfieldschoolstudentsunderstandarchaeologicalfieldmethods.
b.​Whentryingtodetermineasite’spotentialforansweringaresearchquestion.
c.​Whenaresearchquestionmustbeansweredwithalimitedamountoftimeandmoney.
d.Whenaresearcherisalreadyknowswhattoexpectduringexcavations.
13.Whenarchaeologistsdigexcavationunits,theyareconcernedwith:​
a.​horizontalprovenience.
b.​verticalprovenience.
c.​keepingthewallsoftheunitstraightandperpendicular.
d.​Alloftheanswersarecorrect.
14.Whydoarchaeologistsuseadatumpointratherthansimplymeasuringfromthegroundsurface?​
a.​Thedatumpointprovidesauniversalreferencepointthatcanbeusedacrossanyarchaeologicalsite,
allowingarchaeologiststoeasilycomparedatabetweenexcavations.
b.​Whileverticalproveniencecouldeasilybemeasuredfromthegroundsurface,obtainingaccuratehorizontal
proveniencewouldbemuchmoredifficultwithoutadatumpoint.
c.​Thegroundsurfacedoesnothavethesameelevationconsistentlyacrossasitewhileadatumpointprovides
afixedreference.
d.​Useofadatumpointisanarchaeologicaltraditionestablishedintheearly20thcentury;whileitservesno
usefulpurpose,itisanexampleofhowoutdatedexcavationmethodologyisstillembeddedinarchaeology
today.
15.WhiletheverticalexcavationstrategyatGatecliffwasdesignedtoclarifychronology,thehorizontalexcavation
strategywasdesignedto:​
a.​exposelivingfloors.
b.​reinforcetheartifacttypologiesinuseatthetime.
c.​clarifythesite’sstratigraphy.
d.​alsoclarifychronology,butonalargerscale.
16.Ifanarchaeologistisexcavatinginarbitrarylevels:​
a.​heorsheisfollowingthenaturalbreaksinthesediments(followingthestratigraphy).
b.​naturalstrataareprobablylackingordifficulttorecognize.
c.​thenaturalstratamaybemorethan10centimetersthick.
d.​thenaturalstrataareprobablylackingordifficulttorecognize,andmaybemorethan10centimetersthick.
17.Naturallevelsarepreferabletoarbitrarylevelsbecause:​
a.​arbitrarylevelscanpotentiallyjumbletogetherartifactsthatcomefromdifferentnaturalstrataandthus
differentperiodsoftime.
b.​thedepthofnaturallevelsisdeterminedbystatisticalsamplingstrategies,whilearbitrarylevelsarechosen
subjectively.
c.​arbitrarylevelsfollowthenaturalstratigraphy,whichmaynotbeabletodistinguishbetweenoccupational
surfaces.
d.​naturallevelsaremuchsimplerandfastertoexcavatethanarbitrarylevels.
18.ByrecordingtheprovenienceofallartifactsencounteredinsituduringGatecliff’sexcavations,thearchaeologists
weretryingto:​
a.​documentdifferencesinartifactsequencesthroughtime.
b.​obtaininformationthatwouldallowthemtoreconstructtheactivitiesthattookplaceondiscretelivingfloors.
c.​determinethedepthoftimerepresentedbythedepositsintherockshelter.
d.​speeduptheexcavationprocesswithoutlosingimportantinformation.
19.Inadditiontoanartifact’sprovenience,archaeologistsmightalsobeinterestedin:​
a.​whichsideofanartifactwas“up”whenitwasuncovered.
b.​thecompassorientationofanartifact’slongaxis.
c.​whetherornottheartifactisburned.
d.​Alloftheanswersarecorrect.
20.Atotalstation:​
a.​isaccurateto+/-3millimeters.
b.​iseasilyaffordablebystudentsandprofessionalsalike.
c.​isroughlythesameintermsofaccuracyasalinelevelandameasuringtape.
d.​Alloftheanswersarecorrect.
21.Whyarearchaeologistsconcernedaboutthefutureofartifactcuration?​
a.​Somecurationfacilitiescannotaffordtomeetfederalguidelines,andsoarchaeologicalcollectionsarebeing
keptinsubstandardconditions.
b.​Somecurationfacilitieshaveshuttheirdoorsbecausetheynolongerhaveroomforanymorearchaeological
collections
c.​Somecurationfacilitiesaresostrainedtocatchuponinventoriesthattheycannotaffordthetimetoloan
materialstoresearchers,contradictingtheverypurposeoftherepository.
d.​Alloftheanswersarecorrect.
22.Water-screeningisanespeciallyusefultechniquewhen:​
a.​thedepositsarecoarse-grainedandhavelowclaycontent.
b.​artifactsareexpectedtobelargeandnoteasilybroken,aswaterscreeningcanbeverydestructive.
c.​artifactsareexpectedtobesmalland/ordifficulttofindwithoutwashing.
d.​tinyfragmentsofcarbonizedplantremainsmustberecovered.
23.Let’ssayyouareexcavatingasite.Youarebeingprettycareful,andareusing1/4″meshscreenstosievethedirt
afteritisremovedbyatrowelanddustpanfromthesite.Youfindafewverysmallbutwell-preservedfishbones.
Thenextday:​
a.​youdecidetostopusingtrowelsandstartusingdentaltoolsfortheexcavation;youareprobablynot
recoveringmanyfishbonesbecausetheyarebeinginadvertentlydestroyedbytroweling.
b.​youconcludethatpeopleinthepastwerenotusingminnowsandyouceaseexcavation.
c.​youfearthatthe1/4″meshofthescreenmayallowmostoftheverysmallfishbonestopassthrough;you
decidetoswitchto1/8″mesh,andmaybeevenscreenasampleofdirtthrough1/16″meshtoseeifyouare
findingfewbonesbecausetheyarenotpresent,orbecausethescreeningmethodissystematicallylosing
them.
d.​yourealizethatfishwerenotbeingusedprehistoricallyanddecidethatasinglebackhoetrenchthroughthe
sitewillprobablygiveyouasufficientamountofremainsofotheranimalstopermityoutotestyour
hypothesis.
24.Whichofthefollowingwerethetextbookauthors,ThomasandKelly,interestedinmappingatGatecliff?​
a.​Thelocationofanyartifactsfoundinsitu
b.​Thelocationofanyfeatures,suchashearths
c.​Thelocationofanylargeecofacts
d.​Alloftheanswersarecorrect.
25.Matrixsortingisatechnique:​
a.​thatinvolveshandsortingofprocessedbulksoilsamplesforminuteartifactsandecofacts.
b.​inwhichlarge,obviousartifactsareremovedpriortoscreeningtopreventtheartifactsfrombeingdamaged
bythescreeningprocess.
c.​thatusesfluidsuspensiontorecovertinyburnedplantremainsandbonefragments.
d.​inwhichsedimentisplacedinascreenandthematrixiswashedawaywithhoses.
26.Theprocessofflotationisbasedontheprinciplethat:​
a.​themostappropriatescreensizeforrecoveringcarbonizedplantremainsandbonefragmentsis1/4”mesh.
b.​carbonizedplantremainsandverysmallbonefragmentswillfloatwhensubmergedinwater,whileheavier
items(includingdirt)willnot.
c.​artifactprovenienceisthemostimportantinformationanarchaeologistcanrecordduringanexcavation.
d.​Alloftheanswersarecorrect.
27.Theimportanceofplantsinprehistoricdietswaslargelyunknownuntilwhichofthefollowingtechniqueswasused?​
a.​Totalstationmappingofinsituartifacts
b.​Thestratigraphicmethod
c.​Excavationbynaturalratherthanarbitrarylevels
d.​Flotation
28.Atotalstation,orEDM,isadevicethat:​
a.​allowstheboundariesofarchaeologicalsitestobeobjectivelydetermined.
b.​efficientlyandaccuratelyanalyzesartifactsfoundduringsurvey.
c.​usesabeamofinfraredlightbouncedoffaprismtodetermineanartifact’sprovenience.
d.​usestriangulationfromradiowavesreceivedfromsatellitestodetermineyourposition,eitherintermsof
latitudeandlongitudeortheUTMgrid.
29.Proveniencerefersto:​
a.​therelationshipofanartifact,ecofact,orfeaturetootherartifacts,ecofacts,features,andgeologicstrataina
site.
b.​theartifact’slocationrelativetoasystemofspatialdatacollection.
c.​thepositionofthearchaeologistwhendocumentingasite.
d.​anoutdatedwaytomapasite.
30.TheperiodoftheIceAgeknownasthePleistoceneendedabout:​
a.​25,000yearsago.
b.​100,000yearsago.
c.​10,000yearsago.
d.​1.5millionyearsago.
31.Whenarcheologistsrefertotheplacewhereanartifact,ecofact,orfeaturewasfoundduringsurveyorexcavation,
theyusetheterm:​
a.​provenience.
b.​insitu.
c.​strata.
d.​position.
32.RealizingthesignificanceofÖtzi,the“IceMan”,archaeologistsscouredthesiteandrecovered:​
a.​clothing,tools,andpreservedfood.
b.​clothing,tools,andstomachcontents.
c.​clothing,tools,andacedarcanoe.
d.​tools,stomachcontents,andanimalbones.
33.Decompositioniscarriedoutbymicroorganismsthatrequire:​
a.​cold,oxygen,andwatertosurvive.
b.​warmth,carbondioxide,andwatertosurvive.
c.​warmth,oxygen,anddryconditionstosurvive.
d.​warmth,oxygen,andwatertosurvive.
34.Thefollowingitemsarenecessaryintheexcavator’stoolkit,allexcept:​
a.​toiletpaper.
b.​rootclippers.
c.​toothpicks.
d.​aCDplayer.
35.Whendiggingtestpits,archaeologists:​
a.​maintainthree-dimensionalcontrolofthefinds.
b.​recordonlyhorizontalcoordinates.
c.​recordonlyverticalcoordinates.
d.​digroundholes.
36.Whenanarchaeologistsreferstoadatumpointheorshemeans:​
a.​thezeropointthatisnotfixedsothatitcanbeusedasamoveablereferencepoint.
b.​thezeropointthatisfixed,butcannotbeusedasareferencepoint.
c.​thezeropointthatisfixedandcanbeusedasareferencepoint.
d.​thatthearchaeologistisusinganoutdatedsystemtorecordasite.
37.Thedifferencebetweenanaturallevelandanarbitrarylevelis:​
a.​naturallevelisaverticalsubdivisionandanarbitrarylevelisahorizontalsubdivision.
b.​naturallevelisahorizontalsubdivisionandanarbitrarylevelisaverticalsubdivision.
c.​naturallevelisaverticalsubdivisionbasedonnaturalbreaksinsedimentsandarbitrarylevelisavertical
subdivisionusedonlywhennaturalstrataarelackingormorethan10cmdeep.
d.​irrelevant.Naturallevelsarenolongerusedinarcheology,onlyarbitrarylevelsareused.
38.Inarcheology,alivingfloorrefersto:​
a.​adistinctburiedsurfaceonwhichpeoplelived.
b.​anindistinctburiedsurfaceonwhichpeoplemayhavelived.
c.​adistinctsurfaceonwhichpeoplestilllive.
d.adistinctsurfacewherelivingorganismscanstillbedetected.
39.Provenienceisessentialtoanartifact’s:​
a.​material.
b.​age.
c.​context.
d.​value.
40.Thekeytomaintaininginformationaboutanartifact’scontextistorecord:​
a.​archaeologist’sname.
b.​artifact’smaterial.
c.​provenience.
d.​dateofdiscovery.
41.AttheFolsomsiteinNewMexico,artifactswerediscoveredbetweentheribsofmoderncowbones,thus
establishingtheantiquityofhumanintheAmericas.​
a.True
b.False
42.Organicmaterialscanonlybepreservedinextremelydryorcoldconditions,suchasindrycaveoraglacial
environment.​
a.True
b.False
43.Archaeologistswillgenerallyagreethatalltrowelsaresimilarinquality,andanybrandisjustassuitablefor
excavationasanother.​
a.True
b.False
44.Inanarchaeologicalexcavation,thepointfromwhichallhorizontalandverticalmeasurementsaremadeistermed
thedatumpoint.​
a.True
b.False
45.Itisgenerallyacceptedthatproveniencemeasurementstakenduringanarchaeologicalexcavationcanbetaken
fromeitherthemoderngroundsurfaceofthesiteorfromadatumpoint.​
a.True
b.False
46.Archaeologistsprefertodiginarbitraryratherthannaturallevelswheneverpossibletoreducetheriskofmixing
artifactsfromdifferentstrata.​
a.True
b.False
47.Theuseofdryscreeningdeviceswith1/4″meshisemployedtofinditemssuchascharredseeds,fishbones,and
beadsinarchaeologicalsites.​
a.True
b.False
48.Becausepiece-plottingartifactsisaverytime-consumingprocess,thenumberofartifactspieceplottedduringan
excavationoftendependsonhowmuchtimeyouhavetoexcavate,aswellasthequestionsyouneedtoanswer.​
a.True
b.False
49.Screensizeisanimportantconsiderationwhenprocessingdirtfromexcavationsbecausethesizeofthescreen
affectswhatisrecoveredaswellashowfastitisrecovered.​
a.True
b.False
50.Thedesignandworkmanshipofarchaeologicalscreenswillvaryfromsitetosite,andismuchlessimportantthan
meshsize.​
a.True
b.False
51.Althoughithasprovenusefulintherecoveryofcarbonizedplantremainsandbonefragments,flotationisan
uncommonarchaeologicaltechniquebecauseitisextremelytimeconsumingandcostly.​
a.True
b.False
52.Artifactsareassignedcatalognumbersinthelabaftertheyareexcavatedbecausethecatalognumberiswhatties
theartifactbacktoobservationsmadeinthefield,ensuringthatanartifact’sprovenienceisneverlost.​
a.True
b.False
53.WhyistheFolsomsiteimportantinthehistoryofAmericanarchaeology?Whatwasdiscoveredthere?Howdoes
thestoryoftheFolsomsiteillustratetheimportanceofcontextinarchaeology?​
54.Whatisanartifact’sprovenience?Whyisprovenienceimportantinarchaeologicalexcavations?​
55.Underwhatconditionsareorganicremainspreservedinarchaeologicalcontexts?Provideexamplesusingspecific
sites.​
56.Whatisarchaeologicaltesting?Whyaretestexcavationsconducted?​
57.Howarearchaeologicalexcavationsconducted?Describetheprocessofexcavation,beginningwithwhyitis
importanttoestablishadatumpoint.Whathappenstoartifactsastheyareexcavated?Whathappenstothedirt
removedfromexcavationunits?​
58.Whatinformationdoarchaeologistsrecordastheyexcavate?Howdotheyrecordit?​
59.Whattechniquesdoarchaeologistsusetorecoversmallartifactsthatweremissedduringexcavation?Howdo
thesetechniqueswork?Whatfactorscanaffecttheartifactrecoveryrateofthesetechniques?​
60.Whataresomeimportantpiecesofequipmentthatexcavatorsshouldcarryintheirtoolboxes?Whyarethese
itemsimportantduringexcavation?​
61.Whathappenstoartifactsoncetheyleavethefield?Whathappenstoartifactsinthelab?Whyisitimportantto
makesurethatartifactsareproperlycataloged?​
62.Todayarchaeologistsexcavateonlywhatisnecessarytoanswertheirresearchquestions.Why,whenthemorewe
knowaboutthepastthebetterweunderstandourselves?​
63.Whydoarcheologistsdigsquareholes?Ifitisnotpossibletolearnallyouneedtoknowaboutarchaeologicalfield
techniquesfromabook,whatadditionalworkisnecessarytolearnthebasics?​