Chance and Study of the Past

Archaeological and fossil records are imperfect. Chance circumstances of preservation have determined what has and what has not survived the ravages of time. Thus the biology and culture of our ancestors are reconstructed on the basis of incomplete and possibly unrepresentative samples of physical and cultural remains. This is further compounded by the role that chance continues to play in the discovery of prehistoric remains. Remains may come to light due to factors ranging from changing sea level, vegetation, or even a local government’s decision to build a highway.

Ancient cultural processes have also shaped the archaeological and fossil record. We know more about the past due to the cultural practice of deliberate burial. We know more about the elite segments of past societies because they have left more material culture behind. However, as archaeologists have shifted their focus from gathering treasures to the reconstruction of human behavior, they have gained a more complete picture of ancient societies.

Similarly, paleoanthropologists no longer simply catalogue fossils; they interpret data about our ancestors in order to reconstruct the biological processes responsible for who we are today. The challenge of reconstructing our past will be met by a continual process of reexamination and modification as anthropologists discover new evidence in the earth, among living people, and in the laboratory leading to new understanding of human origins.

Questions for Reflection

1.  How would you decide who owns the past? Have

There been any examples of contested ownership in your

Community?

2.  The cultural practice of burial of the dead altered the fossil record and provided valuable insight into the beliefs and practices of past cultures. The same is true today. What beliefs are reflected in the traditions for treatment of the dead in your culture?

3.  Controversy has surrounded Kennewick Man since this skeleton was discovered on the banks of the Columbia River in Washington in 1996. Scientists and American Indians both feel they have a right to these remains. What kinds of evidence support these differing perspectives? How should this controversy be resolved?

4.  Why is dating so important for paleoanthropologists and archaeologists? Would an interpretation of physical or cultural remains change depending upon the date assigned to the remains?

5.  How have random events as well as deliberate cultural practices shaped both the fossil and archaeological records? Why do we know more about some places and peoples than others?

Suggested Readings

Fagan, B. M., Beck, C., & Silberman, N. A. (1998). The Oxford companion to archaeology. New York: Oxford University Press. This encyclopedia of archaeology and prehistory contains 700 entries written in an engaging style by over 300 experts in the field. Topics range from fossils to historic sites, conveying the field’s critical transition from an amateur to a scientific discipline.

Feder, K. L. (2008). Frauds, myths, and mysteries: Science and pseudoscience in archaeology (6th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill. This very readable book enlightens readers about the many pseudoscientific and even crackpot theories about past cultures that all too often have been presented to the public as solid archaeology.

Joukowsky, M. (1980). A complete field manual of archaeology: Tools and techniques of fieldwork for archaeologists. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

This book, encyclopedic in its coverage, explains for the novice and professional alike all of the methods and techniques used by archaeologists in the field.

Loubser, J. H. N. (2003). Archaeology: The comic. Lanham, MD: Altamira.

Taking advantage of the graphic novel format (a story line and constant illustrations), this book conveys complex technical aspects of archaeology and provides an excellent introduction to the field.

Sharer, R. J., & Ashmore, W. (2007). Archaeology: Discovering our past (4th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

One of the best presentations of the methods, techniques, and theories that most archaeologists accept as fundamental to their discipline. The authors confine themselves to the operational modes, guiding strategies, and theoretical orientations of anthropological archaeology in a manner well designed to lead the beginner into the field.

Shipman, P. (1993). Life history of a fossil: An introduction to taphonomy and paleoecology. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

In order to understand what a fossil has to tell us, one must know how it came to be where the paleoanthropologist found it (taphonomy). In this book, anthropologist-turned-science writer Pat Shipman explains how animal remains are acted upon and altered from death to fossilization.

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Challenge Issue The recent popularity of human evolutionary studies in the media has brought with it new challenges. How can the self-correcting nature of science function against a backdrop of “tweets,” Google logos, and unprecedented sale prices for fossil specimens paid by museums to private collectors. Consider the case of “Ida,” an entirely complete juvenile skeleton as well as some soft tissue and gut contents of a 47-million-year-old fossil primate who defined a new fossil primate species: Darwinius masillae.

Ida was actually discovered nearly thirty years ago but her remains were separated and sold to two different collections: one a museum and the other private. In 2006, the better-preserved part of Ida, pictured on the left, was reported to have been sold by a private collector to the Natural History Museum of Oslo for an unprecedented $750,000.

Once the two sections of Ida were reunited, the process of careful scientific scrutiny could begin. Various anatomical features led some scientists to suggest that Ida is a “missing link,” one of the ancestors in the evolutionary line leading to humans. The notion that Ida could be a “missing link,” perhaps along with her high sticker price, captured the media’s attention and led to a book deal, a planned documentary, and even a logo on Google.

While all scientists agree that Ida is a remarkable find other scientists have disputed Ida’s place on the human line suggesting instead that she is ancestral to the lemurs. Ida’s story illustrates the kinds of commercial and public relations challenges scientists and the public alike face as media hype has come to play a role in the study and interpretation of fossil specimens.