Nondestructive Subsurface Mapping

Abstract

Archaeological excavation provides unparalleled detail of past lives, but it is a costly process and destructive to the site under investigation. Cost and respect for the resource means that excavation can only be applied over limited areas. By contrast, subsurface mapping methods can cover wide areas while leaving the site intact (Scollar et al. 1990). These methods, once regarded only as a means of finding sites (prospection), represent now a complementary tool kit for detailed archaeological investigation of a site and its surrounding landscape. The methods provide overviews of human activity and buried structures of archaeological and historical interest in increasing detail over considerable areas. Subsurface mapping also permits the selection of high-potential areas for targeted scientific excavations and provides a broader settlement context for sites already excavated. Recent developments based on high-resolution multichannel near-surface geophysical technology and advances in state-of-the-art remote sensing now permit the cost- and time-efficient spatiotemporal archaeological investigation and documentation of buried features across entire landscapes. This has applications in both research and rescue projects.