Chapter 2: What is Left?

Archaeological sites may be defined quite simply as:

places where significant traces of human activity are identified

At Ozette, the extraordinary preservation of such organic materials as wooden containers, baskets, weaving equipment, and fishing and hunting equipment, was the result of:

a mudslide covering the settlement

An example of an artifact made of inorganic materials is:

a stone tool

Objects used, modified or made by people are known as:

artifacts

The mummies of the Andes are a good example of exceptional preservation of organic material resulting from its location in a:

cold climate

Although the American Southwest did not produce true humanly created mummies as in Egypt, its arid environment nonetheless promoted exceptional preservation when the pueblo dwellers buried their dead:

in dry caves

The material immediately surrounding an artifact, usually some sediment such as gravel, sand, or clay, is known as the:

matrix

Organic and environmental remains, or ecofacts, which were not made by humans but still provide information about the past include such items as:

soils, sediments, animal bones, plant remains

The Pazyryk bodies, found in _________, were so well preserved by their constant frozen state that archaeologists not only recovered linen shirts, aprons, and stockings but could also see tattoos.

southern Siberia

The major archaeological problem with waterlogged finds, particularly those made out of wood, is:

that they deteriorate rapidly when they are removed from the water

Original human behavior activities, which are a type of cultural formation process, include all of the following except:

the destruction of a settlement during a mudslide

Typically, the most destructive types of climate for organic materials are:

tropical climates

Temperate climates are not usually conducive to organic preservation at archaeological sites because of:

variable temperatures and fluctuating precipitation