Geoarchaeology:Space Use

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Space Use, Function and Human Activity
Many human activities result in the addition of material to the soil. Some of these (artefacts) we can see, but there are also a host of chemical and biochemical inputs that can't. In addition to these (bio)chemical signatures human activity may also directly affect the physical structure of the soil, for example, though trampling or cultivation.

Whilst certain structural or artefactual archaeological remains may be indicative of a particular function or activity, many more aren't. Using microscopic or chemical signatures of past human activity geoarchaeology can help to identify the sphere of human influence around "sites", detect different functional areas within stuctures, aid interpretation of the nature of the space use, and may even help reconstruct the pattern of past human activity.

Geoarchaeological investigations of functional areas and space use have been applied to domestic (reference), industrial (reference), agricultural (e.g. Enwistle et al. 2000), civil (reference), and defensive (reference) sites.

The role of post-depositional processes, however, should always be kept in mind when interpreting such signatures, or their absence. Biochemical signatures such as lipids and sterols are sensitive to degradation; physical signatures may be destroyed by bioturbation or compaction, and chemical signatures are subject to a range of adsorption and leaching processes that means that chemical concentrations in the soil may relate more to soil properties than the chemistry of the anthropogenic inputs.

Analytical Methods
Click on the links below to find out more about some of the analytical techniques commonly used in the identification of space use and functional areas:
 * Phosphate analysis
 * Multi-element analysis
 * Micromorphology

Case study
Case studies of the use of geoarchaeology to address questions of space use and function include:
 * Multi-element analysis to aid interpretation of former space use on archaeological sites, Tayside, Scotland