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• Underwater Cultural Heritage: An ACUA Seminar

  • When
    22 Oct 2020
  •  
    1:00 PM - 3:00 PM (UTC-04:00)

  Instructor: Dave Ball

  Cultural resource managers, land managers, and archaeologists are often tasked with managing, interpreting, and reviewing archaeological assessments for submerged cultural resources. This seminar is designed to introduce non-specialists to issues specific to underwater archaeology. Participants will learn about different types of underwater cultural heritage (UCH) and some of the methods employed to help protect those sites. This seminar is not intended to teach participants how to do underwater archaeology, but instead will briefly introduce different investigative techniques and international best practices. The purpose of this seminar is to assist non-specialists in recognizing the potential for UCH resources in their areas of impact. This is an abbreviated version of a half-day workshop typically offered at the Society for Historical Archaeology’s annual Conference on Historical and Underwater Archaeology.

  Location:  Online

  Registration Closed!
  
  

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• An Introduction to Geoarchaeology: How Understanding Basic Soils, Sediments, and Landforms can make you a Better Archaeologist

  • When
    5 Nov 2020
  •  
    1:00 PM - 3:00 PM (UTC-05:00)

  Instructor: Teresa Wriston

  Archaeologists know the importance of cultural context in understanding the past but often fail to recognize the importance of the natural contexts of sites, features, and artifacts in their interpretations. Looking through a geoarchaeological lens can help every archaeologist begin to understand the natural contexts of their finds. This course is designed to introduce basic geoarchaeological methods to archaeologists interested in improving their research designs, optimizing their fieldwork strategies, enhancing their stratigraphic descriptions in ways that aid component definition and sampling procedures, and using natural contexts to complement their interpretations.

  Location:  Online

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• Defining Mitigation in Cultural Resource Management

  • When
    20 Nov 2020
  •  
    2:00 PM - 3:00 PM (UTC-05:00)

  Instructor: Kurt Dungoske, Kurt Anschuetz

  What is mitigation? As part of CRM mitigation processes, direct, indirect, and cumulative effects on cultural resources that fulfill one or more of the National Register of Historic Places’ (NRHP’s) Criteria for Evaluation (36 CFR 60.4) must all be identified in order to address any competent approach to and for mitigation.

  Two key questions must then also arise within any mitigation process:

  (1) By whom is mitigation developed and implemented? and

  (2) For whose interests, concerns, benefits, and well-being are addressed?

  Historically in the United States, mitigation in CRM has focused on the status and character of a material property itself. Recognition of traditional cultural properties (TCPs) in Bulletin 38 and Properties of Traditional and Religious Cultural Importance (PTRCI) in 1992 amendments to the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) have provided productive directives to identify and consider properties vital to different cultural groups’ living identities, histories, values, belief systems, and lifeways. These directives have concomitantly presented a challenge to consider what culturally sensitive and respectful mitigation may—or may not—be.

  We present examples from our experiences working with the Acoma and Zuni people to illustrate how approaches to mitigation of adverse effects on cultural resources that are important to the histories and identities of members of these communities, including resources that lack tangible material traces typically known to be valued by archaeologists, can be sensitive and respectful, as well as lessen harms and losses that the people are asked to endure.

  Location:  Online

  Registration Opens Soon!
  
  

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• Introduction to Bayesian Chronological Modeling

  • When
    3 Dec 2020
  •  
    1:00 PM - 3:00 PM (UTC-05:00)

  Instructor: Carla S. Hadden

  Bayesian chronological modeling revolutionized chronology building in archaeology by providing a robust mathematical framework for incorporating all the dating information available, including radiocarbon dates, stratigraphy, artifact typologies, and the written historical record.

  The purpose of this seminar is to provide archaeologists with an introduction to the key concepts, assumptions, and terminology used in Bayesian chronological modeling; an overview of the basic structures and applications of age models; and an introduction to the “iterative approach” to sample selection and chronological modeling.

  We will introduce the audience to the several software options available for age modeling (OxCal, BCal, and various packages implemented in R) and compare their pros and cons. We will not provide a step-by-step “how to” for constructing models in any one program, but participants will receive a workbook and “quick start” guide for modeling in OxCal.

  The intended audience includes students, academic faculty, and professional archaeologists who have no previous experience in Bayesian chronological modeling. This course will enable participants to understand and evaluate age models that they encounter in archaeological literature; will provide a necessary foundation for those interested in exploring how Bayesian models could contribute to their own projects; and will provide resources for those who wish to learn more about constructing chronological models.

  Location:  Online

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• Advanced Metal Detecting for the Archaeologist

  • Start
    25 Jun 2021
  •  
    (UTC-04:00)
  • End
    27 Jun 2021
  •  
    (UTC-04:00)
  • Location
    Valley Forge, Pennslyvania

  Advanced Metal Detecting for the Archaeologist (AMDA) will present its 15th class offering in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, on June 25-27, 2021. The Valley Forge National Historical Park (National Park Service) will be the local partner for this class.

  AMDA is certified under the Register of Professional Archaeologists continuing professional education program. The goal of the class is to provide professional archaeologists with an understanding of current best practices in metal detecting and to provide the opportunity to gain hands-on experience with a variety of devices from a variety of manufacturers.

  The course is offered as 24-credits. There are 8 hours of classroom work and the field portion is 16 hours.

  Fees will be $375.00 for 24 credits. At this class, both the classroom instruction and the fieldwork will be at Valley Forge National Historical Park.

  The field sessions will contribute to ongoing research for the National Park Service. Valley Forge is beginning a three-stage project at the purported (map projected) location of the winter quarters of the artillery under General Knox. These winter quarters were cabins like the other winter camps at Valley Forge. The project area will cover 12-16 acres of meadow.

  PLEASE NOTE: The class dates are subject to change dependent on Covid-19 issues. AMDA will structure the class to limit the classroom and follow NPS and our internally developed Covid-19 policies.

  All participants will adhere to class Covid-19 guidelines.

  
  

  Class size is limited to 30.

  
  

  Registration closes 25 May 2021.

  
  

  Training location: Valley Forge National Historical Park, 1400 North Outer Line Drive, King of Prussia, PA 19406.

  For more information visit the AMDA website at: http://amda.modernheritage.net/ 

  Joe Balicki at josephbalicki1@gmail.com

  or Joel Bohy at jrb712@comcast.net 

  
  

  
  

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