Data analysis in archaeology.

Abstract

Historically, analytical techniques have been applied to archaeological data in four different stages or levels. The first saw the use of elementary statistical and graphical tools that had no notable influence on the archaeological methods used; during the second stage, sophisticated multivariate data analysis techniques were applied to information gathered by classical means; at the third level, statistical methods whose potential and limitations were better understood were applied to newly developed research tools in archaeology, i.e., typology, analysis of shapes, seriation, identification of material cultures, spatial analysis of dwellings, and provenance studies. The fourth level of data analysis applications to archaeology is characterized by the integration of data analysis into a global cognitive process, the scope of which is discussed here.