Five principles that help archaeologists decide which deposits should be excavated and analysed, and which should not. The principles are called AIMS-R from the initial letter of each (Association, In [..]

A person trained to study material remains such as artifacts and monuments of past human life and activities.

The study of the human past using material remains, from the most ancient to the relatively modern.

Soil and artifacts that are part of an archaeological feature.

The systematic removal of archaeological artifacts

As distinct from an artifact, a feature is an element of an archaeological site that cannot be removed from the site without losing its physical integrity. Privy pits, walls, and stone hearths are all [..]

Layer:

A place that contains the remains of past human activity in its original context. Sites include concentrations of debris from making stone tools, artifact-filled pits from nineteenth-century San Franc [..]

Survey:

Something made or modified by humans. Artifacts can be as simple as a stone tool chipped out of a pebble or as sophisticated as a city with all its buildings, roads, and infrastructure. A collection o [..]