Key Words: Ground Penetrating Radar, Clandestine Burials, Geophysical Applications in Anthropology, Historic Cemeteries introduction and purpose
GPR in Archaeology, an Early Example
Download 0.69 Mb. View original pdf
|
| GPR in Archaeology, an Early Example An early and excellent example of the use of GPR in an archaeological context can be found in the work conducted by Tsuneo Imai and others in in Japan (Imai et al., 1987). Imai notes that geophysical methods are regularly used at archaeological sites in Japan both before excavation or construction and as a form of cultural resource documentation. Imai and colleagues used a combination of GPR and resistivity surveys to investigate four sites, the first three buried under successive layers of volcanic ash. Imai’s first three sites were located in the Gumma Prefecture of the Kanto region. The first site was surveyed using a bistatic GPR antenna and sought to discover foundation walls and dwelling floors located up to 70 centimeters below surface. The second site was far more complex in size and variability. At this site Imai sought to map and delimit the remains of a small town buried under up tom of pumice deposits from an eruption in the sixth century AD. Most notable at this location was the determination of a large burial mound with a diameter of nearly m. Imai noticed a unique reflection profile from within the mound that suggested an inner stone tomb, later confirmed through excavation. The third site was used by Imai to test the ability of GPR to differentiate between what he terms culture layers essentially noting the cultural continuity associated with differing stratigraphic layers (Imai, 1987). Imai noted that these layers were distinctive in detection up to nearly m below surface and that GPR was thus fit to adequately map the distribution of culturally significant stratigraphic layers in relation to each other. Imai’s fourth site showed the utilization of resistivity and GPR surveys to detect a stone-lined waterway in a Nara-period town, which was mapped and confirmed through excavation. Imai and others conducting early archaeological work using geophysical methods set the stage for further analyses and refinements of methods. This early paper on GPR prospecting in an archaeological context illustrates the utility and purpose of future research into this field of study. Download 0.69 Mb. Share with your friends:
|