Just as every development scheme is different and presents a unique set of challenges, there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to archaeological investigations. Part of what we as archaeologists do is to understand the challenges facing our commercial partners and present the right solution.
With an increase in residential housing development, a focus on infrastructure projects and other large sites it’s about picking the right tool from our archaeological toolkit. So what are the available tools and what are their strengths for these kinds of schemes?
As the archaeology profession evolves alongside modern technology our toolkit expands, so this article isn’t a comprehensive rundown of all the available tools (phew), instead it’s a closer look at how certain techniques are being deployed to certain challenges.
Geophysical survey
Geophysical survey covers a range of techniques that essentially detect buried archaeological remains by measuring physical properties in the ground – no digging required! Magnetometer survey, the most commonly used, is highly effective at identifying features like pits and ditches and is really quick. With favourable conditions many hectares can be surveyed in a day.
We use a large sensor array which is mounted on a cart, together with a GPS antenna which logs our position in real time. This GPS tracking does away with the need to set out large numbers of grid markers across the survey area.
