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Site Formation Processes

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Encyclopedia of Geoarchaeology

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

Introduction

Site formation processes are “the factors that create the historic and archaeological records” (Schiffer, 1987, 7). These factors include both natural and anthropogenic forces operating in different depositional environments and contributing to postdepositional disturbances. Formation processes affect the spatial integrity of both artifacts and sites, and they affect cultural deposits in different ways depending on the site’s age, geomorphic setting, sediments and soils, climate, and type and the complexity of occupation (Goldberg and Macphail, 2006). Schiffer (1972, 1987) stressed that the reconstruction of human behavior must be inferred from the archaeological context, which he defined as the three-dimensional spatial patterning of individual artifacts, features, and other debris on a site. However, before archaeologists can reach meaningful conclusions about human behavior from the archaeological context, they must know how it was created (Waters, 1992, 11).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anthropology, University of Kansas, 1415 Jayhawk Blvd, 622 Fraser Hall, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA

    Rolfe D. Mandel

  2. Department of Archaeology, Emeritus at Boston University, Boston, 72070, MA, USA

    Paul Goldberg

  3. Anthropology and Departments Geosciences, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA

    Vance T. Holliday

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  1. Rolfe D. Mandel
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  2. Paul Goldberg
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  3. Vance T. Holliday
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Correspondence to Rolfe D. Mandel .

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  1. Fordham University, Bronx, NY, USA

    Allan S. Gilbert

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Mandel, R.D., Goldberg, P., Holliday, V.T. (2017). Site Formation Processes. In: Gilbert, A.S. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geoarchaeology. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-4409-0_147

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