Archaeology on television has been a widely debated subject amongst academic archaeologists. Perhaps the dilemma that archaeologists face is that archaeology – its practice, its interpretations and...Show moreArchaeology on television has been a widely debated subject amongst academic archaeologists. Perhaps the dilemma that archaeologists face is that archaeology – its practice, its interpretations and the archaeological record it studies – is much like television, in that they both require high degrees of involvement to give them meaning. Thus concerns arise over the validity and ambiguity of the television programme’s information, and the archaeologist’s authority in discerning the past. However, should archaeologists be concerned about portrayal of archaeology in television documentaries? To provide answers to this question, the presentation of archaeological research, sites, objects and researchers in nine documentaries on the National Geographic Channel in the Netherlands in 2013, that were produced in 2012 and 2013, were analysed through ethnographic content analysis. The documentaries mainly focused on the practice of research, including the scientist’s fascination with research. Sometimes research methods were repeated before the camera after it initially had taken place, or they were shown ‘live’ and its results were analysed first-hand. However, the appearance and discussion of the research processes varied per type, possibly due to the structure of the method. In particular, archaeological fieldwork is a difficult process to capture on film, but the process of archaeological interpretation was often embedded in the entire storyline. Amongst other researchers, archaeologists appeared few in number. However, the archaeologists had a specific authoritative role as guides in understanding the past, and they would appear several times in a documentary to provide context or to interpret research results. It was found that certain narrative styles enabled, or disabled, involvement in the research and interpretation processes. There were many cases in which archaeology was presented in an open, yet informative way, while regarding the archaeologists (and researchers in other fields) as authorities. However, research can also be faked or appear unauthentic and authority can be abused. Therefore in communicating archaeology to the public a high degree of transparency is key.Show less
Since 1983 several rescue excavations have been performed in the lignite mine of the German town Schöningen. During one of those excavations the world famous, 300kyr old hunting spears were found....Show moreSince 1983 several rescue excavations have been performed in the lignite mine of the German town Schöningen. During one of those excavations the world famous, 300kyr old hunting spears were found. The site hosting these spears has been the subject of extensive research ever since and excavations still take place to this day. The other sites did not get much attention anymore and there are still many questions unanswered. In this bachelor thesis research has been carried out on the zoological assemblages of the Schöningen 12 sites and what they can tell us about the former climates and environments. Since not much research had been done yet on the faunal compositions many bones still had to be determined and entered into the database of Schöningen. After the completion of this task the climatic and environment preferences of all identified species were studied. Using the results points were divided over the preferred climates and environments. These were then used to create graphs to make the former climates and environments more visible. Not all sites yielded enough complete material to be used for further research. Comparisons of the faunal results of the resourceful sites with earlier research on the geology and botany of Schöningen show that during the sedimentation of layer II-1 the climate was on the warm side and the area was a mix of forest and open ground. Through time the area gradually cooled down and become more open, the latter was also visible in the faunal assemblages of the Schöningen 13 sites. Only the faunal composition of Schöningen 12 II-4 does not support this change, since only one individual of Bos primigenius has been encountered. Despite the fact that this zoological study did not add much new information to the knowledge about the former environments, it does confirm the conclusion drawn by geological and botanical research. At the same time this is the first time a complete overview of the zoological remains of Schöningen 12 that are stored in Leiden.Show less
The Palaeolithic locality Schöningen (Germany) is known particularly well for its magnificently preserved hominin crafted spears and the remains of large mammals with traces of butchering and...Show moreThe Palaeolithic locality Schöningen (Germany) is known particularly well for its magnificently preserved hominin crafted spears and the remains of large mammals with traces of butchering and marrow exploitation. The Palaeolithic sites in the Schöningen area yielded also several other find categories such as botanical remains, fish, amphibians, reptiles and birds. This thesis reports on the investigation of the avian remains from Schö 13 II-4, the site where they found the wooden spears. Most (≥70%) of the bird remains are from that site. For the identification of the bird remains three different comparison collections as well as the literature have been consulted. At least five species have been identified; four different ducks and a member of the Phasianidae family. The avian assemblage seems to have natural origins; there are no distinctive anthropogenic marks on the bones and the quantity of the elements is one to be expected after a natural death. The avian fauna does not contradict previous palaeoenvironmental reconstructions i.e. the occurrence of open water, temperate climate conditions and a somewhat sheltered type of vegetation.Show less
