96-642: The Gympie Pyramid is a nickname for an archaeological site otherwise known as Rocky Ridge , or Djaki Kundu by the Gubbi Gubbi / Kabi Kabi people. It consists of the rounded eastern end of a sandstone ridge, and is located on the Gympie Connection Road, some 5 km (3.1 mi) north-east of the town of Gympie in Queensland , Australia. It includes the ruins of six or seven low terraces associated with early settlers. Modern scholars have debunked
192-623: A megalithic stone circle, which early settlers allegedly described as thirteen pillars surrounding a round stone table with a hollow centre. Brett Green released a photograph of the summit, later debunked by Elaine Brown as being a photograph of Filitosa , a megalithic site in southern Corsica, France . Green also claimed the Gympie Ape was one of six statues found near the Gympie pyramid. In 2000 he published photographs of five other reptilian statues which had "gone missing". He later confessed to Brown that
288-552: A social science and a branch of the humanities . It is usually considered an independent academic discipline , but may also be classified as part of anthropology (in North America – the four-field approach ), history or geography . Archaeologists study human prehistory and history, from the development of the first stone tools at Lomekwi in East Africa 3.3 million years ago up until recent decades. Archaeology
384-464: A basic level of analysis, artifacts found are cleaned, catalogued and compared to published collections. This comparison process often involves classifying them typologically and identifying other sites with similar artifact assemblages. However, a much more comprehensive range of analytical techniques are available through archaeological science , meaning that artifacts can be dated and their compositions examined. Bones, plants, and pollen collected from
480-546: A big impact throughout Europe. However, prior to the development of modern techniques, excavations tended to be haphazard; the importance of concepts such as stratification and context were overlooked. In the mid-18th century, the German Johann Joachim Winckelmann lived in Rome and devoted himself to the study of Roman antiquities, gradually acquiring an unrivalled knowledge of ancient art. Then, he visited
576-401: A clear objective as to what the archaeologists are looking to achieve must be agreed upon. This done, a site is surveyed to find out as much as possible about it and the surrounding area. Second, an excavation may take place to uncover any archaeological features buried under the ground. And, third, the information collected during the excavation is studied and evaluated in an attempt to achieve
672-451: A field survey. Regional survey is the attempt to systematically locate previously unknown sites in a region. Site survey is the attempt to systematically locate features of interest, such as houses and middens , within a site. Each of these two goals may be accomplished with largely the same methods. Survey was not widely practised in the early days of archaeology. Cultural historians and prior researchers were usually content with discovering
768-521: A four-lane divided highway between Gympie and Curra , in October 2020, with the new section is due to open in 2024. However a group of local Kabi Kabi people say that Djaki Kundu is a sacred site, which had been used for their gatherings and ceremonies for a long time, and had connections to the songlines of the seven sisters, the water spirit and four fish dreamings. Work was suspended in November 2020 after
864-477: A lack of public interest, and opposition to the excavation of human remains. In Ancient Mesopotamia , a foundation deposit of the Akkadian Empire ruler Naram-Sin (ruled c. 2200 BC ) was discovered and analysed by king Nabonidus , c. 550 BC , who is thus known as the first archaeologist. Not only did he lead the first excavations which were to find the foundation deposits of
960-528: A large region or site can be expensive, so archaeologists often employ sampling methods.) As with other forms of non-destructive archaeology, survey avoids ethical issues (of particular concern to descendant peoples) associated with destroying a site through excavation. It is the only way to gather some forms of information, such as settlement patterns and settlement structure. Survey data are commonly assembled into maps , which may show surface features and/or artifact distribution. The simplest survey technique
1056-530: A paddock close to the Gympie pyramid site. In 1978 Rex Gilroy claimed the statue was verified by unnamed experts as being a 3000-year-old statue of the Egyptian god Thoth . It is currently on display at the Gympie Gold Mining and Historical Museum. Wheeler believes it was probably carved by Chinese gold prospectors. The "Sun Stone", a crudely-shaped obelisk , was found in a swampy area near Gympie. The stone
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#17330860600721152-423: A pyramid shape. By the time of the second observation, McPherson’s Paddock had been surveyed for the purposes of gold mining leases, one of which had been taken up in 1875 by a Swiss miner with an interest in horticulture , named John William Cauper. The stone walls are thought to be the ruins of a terraced vineyard built by Cauper. Cauper owned the land between 1875 and 1890. In 1884 Cauper wrote an article in
1248-504: A site excavated depends greatly on the country and "method statement" issued. Sampling is even more important in excavation than in survey. Sometimes large mechanical equipment, such as backhoes ( JCBs ), is used in excavation, especially to remove the topsoil ( overburden ), though this method is increasingly used with great caution. Following this rather dramatic step, the exposed area is usually hand-cleaned with trowels or hoes to ensure that all features are apparent. The next task
1344-414: A site reveals its stratigraphy; if a site was occupied by a succession of distinct cultures, artifacts from more recent cultures will lie above those from more ancient cultures. Excavation is the most expensive phase of archaeological research, in relative terms. Also, as a destructive process, it carries ethical concerns. As a result, very few sites are excavated in their entirety. Again the percentage of
1440-408: A sole source. The material record may be closer to a fair representation of society, though it is subject to its own biases, such as sampling bias and differential preservation. Often, archaeology provides the only means to learn of the existence and behaviors of people of the past. Across the millennia many thousands of cultures and societies and billions of people have come and gone of which there
1536-640: A stone block dug up in the area". An amateur archaeologist, Marilyn N. Pye, became convinced that the "pyramid" and other features were evidence of ancient settlement in Australia by the Incas of South America. Gavin Menzies suggests that it is "direct and persuasive evidence of the Chinese visits to Australia" and that "its size, height and shape are typical of Ming Dynasty observation platforms". However, Wheeler argues that
1632-527: A stone wall, will develop more slowly, while those above other types of features (such as middens ) may develop more rapidly. Photographs of ripening grain , which changes colour rapidly at maturation, have revealed buried structures with great precision. Aerial photographs taken at different times of day will help show the outlines of structures by changes in shadows. Aerial survey also employs ultraviolet , infrared , ground-penetrating radar wavelengths, Lidar and thermography . Geophysical survey can be
1728-482: A systematic guide to the ruins and topography of ancient Rome in the early 15th century, for which he has been called an early founder of archaeology. Antiquarians of the 16th century, including John Leland and William Camden , conducted surveys of the English countryside, drawing, describing and interpreting the monuments that they encountered. The OED first cites "archaeologist" from 1824; this soon took over as
1824-455: A time with Kabi Kabi people. John Mathew , a clergyman turned anthropologist, also spent five years with them at Manumbar and mastered their language. During his time there he met Kabi bushranger Johnny Campbell , and described their society in a 1910 monograph, Two Representative Tribes of Queensland . Mathew also wrote an extensive notebook on the language of the Kabi Kabi people, which
1920-433: A total of six applications for native title, with some earlier ones combined into later ones and one as of 2021 still active. The first two, made in 2006, were discontinued, while the third in the same year was dismissed. Claims made in 2013, and 2016 were combined, resulting in a sixth claim in 2018, which is still active. This claim covers an area from Redcliffe , not far north of Brisbane to around Isis Junction , in
2016-520: A variety of alternative theories that claim that the site was constructed by extra-terrestrials , ancient Egyptians , Phoenicians , the Mayans , or that the Chinese built a pyramid on the site. There is a disputed claim as to the Aboriginal significance of the site. The earliest evidence of use of the site is the presence of several large grinding grooves in rocks at the top of the ridge, suggesting that
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#17330860600722112-495: A wide range of influences, including systems theory , neo-evolutionary thought , [35] phenomenology , postmodernism , agency theory , cognitive science , structural functionalism , Marxism , gender-based and feminist archaeology , queer theory , postcolonial thoughts , materiality , and posthumanism . An archaeological investigation usually involves several distinct phases, each of which employs its own variety of methods. Before any practical work can begin, however,
2208-405: Is decorated with an inscription of a symbolic sun and two bowing snakes facing away from each other. Claims were made that it was examined by a university and that the examination showed that the inscriptions were made using soft metal tools, not modern tools, and that an archaeologist confirmed that Aboriginal people had not made them. However, no such examination has been found and when interviewed,
2304-600: Is distinct from palaeontology , which is the study of fossil remains. Archaeology is particularly important for learning about prehistoric societies, for which, by definition, there are no written records. Prehistory includes over 99% of the human past, from the Paleolithic until the advent of literacy in societies around the world. Archaeology has various goals, which range from understanding culture history to reconstructing past lifeways to documenting and explaining changes in human societies through time. Derived from Greek,
2400-451: Is little or no written record or existing records are misrepresentative or incomplete. Writing as it is known today did not exist in human civilization until the 4th millennium BC, in a relatively small number of technologically advanced civilizations. In contrast, Homo sapiens has existed for at least 200,000 years, and other species of Homo for millions of years (see Human evolution ). These civilizations are, not coincidentally,
2496-426: Is no one approach to archaeological theory that has been adhered to by all archaeologists. When archaeology developed in the late 19th century, the first approach to archaeological theory to be practised was that of cultural-historical archaeology , which held the goal of explaining why cultures changed and adapted rather than just highlighting the fact that they did, therefore emphasizing historical particularism . In
2592-616: Is now held in State Library of Queensland . The Kabi Kabi people he grew up with numbered no more than a score by the early 1880s, and by 1906, after they had been forcibly removed to the Barambah reserve (an Aboriginal reserve created under the Aboriginals Protection and Restriction of the Sale of Opium Act 1897 ), he stated that only 3-4 full-blooded members of the group remained among
2688-443: Is reflected or emitted from the observed scene. Passive instruments sense only radiation emitted by the object being viewed or reflected by the object from a source other than the instrument. Active instruments emit energy and record what is reflected. Satellite imagery is an example of passive remote sensing. Here are two active remote sensing instruments: The archaeological project then continues (or alternatively, begins) with
2784-428: Is surface survey. It involves combing an area, usually on foot but sometimes with the use of mechanized transport, to search for features or artifacts visible on the surface. Surface survey cannot detect sites or features that are completely buried under earth, or overgrown with vegetation. Surface survey may also include mini-excavation techniques such as augers , corers, and shovel test pits. If no materials are found,
2880-592: Is through archaeology. Because archaeology is the study of past human activity, it stretches back to about 2.5 million years ago when the first stone tools are found – The Oldowan Industry . Many important developments in human history occurred during prehistory, such as the evolution of humanity during the Paleolithic period, when the hominins developed from the australopithecines in Africa and eventually into modern Homo sapiens . Archaeology also sheds light on many of humanity's technological advances, for instance
2976-431: Is to form a site plan and then use it to help decide the method of excavation. Features dug into the natural subsoil are normally excavated in portions to produce a visible archaeological section for recording. A feature, for example a pit or a ditch, consists of two parts: the cut and the fill . The cut describes the edge of the feature, where the feature meets the natural soil. It is the feature's boundary. The fill
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3072-420: Is what the feature is filled with, and will often appear quite distinct from the natural soil. The cut and fill are given consecutive numbers for recording purposes. Scaled plans and sections of individual features are all drawn on site, black and white and colour photographs of them are taken, and recording sheets are filled in describing the context of each. All this information serves as a permanent record of
3168-645: The Gympie Times demonstrating his extensive knowledge of vine growing and grafting. In 1905, the Gympie Times described the area as "the old vineyard". In 1938 a retaining wall, featuring polygonally -cut stone, was built at the Surface Hill Uniting Church by relief workers, at a cost of £3000. The Queensland Government started work on upgrading the Bruce Highway , involving the construction of
3264-595: The Bundaberg region, but excluding Maryborough. In June 2024, the Federal Court under Justice Berna Collier formally recognised a claim over 365,345 ha (902,790 acres) of land and waters on the Sunshine Coast , including Gympie , Noosa , Maroochydore , Caloundra , Bribie Island , and Mudjimba Island . The ruling was significant for two reasons: it was the first to have been granted over an urbanised area on
3360-516: The Burnett River . The slaughter was extensive, and the bones of many of the dead were uncovered on the site many decades later. Blaxland was in turn killed in a payback action sometime in July–August 1850. His death was revenged in a further large-scaled massacre of tribes in the area. The escaped convict James Davis , in addition to dwelling with several other tribes, is said to have lived for
3456-522: The Department of Transport and Main Roads ), to investigate the historical cultural heritage of the hill. The report came to the conclusion that there is "no evidence to support claims that the terraces on Rocky Ridge were part of a 'pyramid' built by ancient Egyptian, Phoenician, Extra-terrestrial, Mayan or Chinese visitors". The "Gympie Ape" is a carved stone statue discovered in 1966 by Dal Berry while ploughing
3552-424: The Sunshine Coast . As is often the case, ethnonyms distinguishing one tribe from another select the word used by any one group for the concept "no", which is the meaning of kabi/gubi/gabi . However, AIATSIS 's Austlang database prefers Gubbi Gubbi. The name Gubbi Gubbi , as shown in early history books, has been used in recent times interchangeably with Kabi Kabi . AIATSIS favours Gubbi Gubbi as for
3648-614: The Turrbal to the south, the Taribelang north, Goreng Goreng to their northwest and the Wakka Wakka westwards. There have been a number of native title claims by various groups of contemporary Gubbi Gubbi/Kabi Kabi people, all through the same representative body, the Southern and Western Queensland Region. Other groups of descendants, using the "Kabi Kabi" spelling of the name, have made
3744-739: The east coast , and the first occasion on which the right to "take resources from the area for any purpose" was recognised in South East Queensland . Former rights have been restricted to "personal, communal, and non-commercial purposes". The decision relates to Part A of the Kabi Kabi people's claim, with two further parts still to be determined. The rights are non-exclusive, meaning that they are subject to state and federal laws, and do not include freehold land. The area includes many sacred and ceremonial sites , including bora rings , and sites where paintings and axe-grinding stones exist. The determination makes no difference to residents living within
3840-474: The traditional owners of the area according to local historian Elaine Brown. In 1868, government geologist D’Oyly Aplin described the ridge as "a stratified quartz pebble drift of older date than the existing valleys... in a large pocket of the creek known as McPherson’s Paddock". W. H. Rands, also a geologist, described Rocky Ridge in 1889 as "a drift of water-worn pebbles... consisting of quartz and of hardened, waterworn sandstone". Neither made any mention of
3936-567: The trench method , on several Native American burial mounds in Virginia . His excavations were prompted by the "Moundbuilders" question ; however, his careful methods led him to admit he saw no reason why ancestors of the Native Americans of his time could not have raised those mounds. One of the major achievements of 19th-century archaeology was the development of stratigraphy . The idea of overlapping strata tracing back to successive periods
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4032-412: The "remnants". The Gubbi Gubbi/Kabi Kabi were divided into several clans or bora : Honours Archaeologist Archaeology or archeology is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture . The archaeological record consists of artifacts , architecture , biofacts or ecofacts, sites , and cultural landscapes . Archaeology can be considered both
4128-549: The 1870s. These scholars individuated nine different cities that had overlapped with one another, from prehistory to the Hellenistic period . Meanwhile, the work of Sir Arthur Evans at Knossos in Crete revealed the ancient existence of an equally advanced Minoan civilization . The next major figure in the development of archaeology was Sir Mortimer Wheeler , whose highly disciplined approach to excavation and systematic coverage in
4224-642: The 1920s and 1930s brought the science on swiftly. Wheeler developed the grid system of excavation , which was further improved by his student Kathleen Kenyon . Archaeology became a professional activity in the first half of the 20th century, and it became possible to study archaeology as a subject in universities and even schools. By the end of the 20th century nearly all professional archaeologists, at least in developed countries, were graduates. Further adaptation and innovation in archaeology continued in this period, when maritime archaeology and urban archaeology became more prevalent and rescue archaeology
4320-751: The Gubbi Gubbi lands as roughly coextensive with the Mary River Basin , though stretching beyond it north to the Burrum River and south along the coast itself. He estimated their territory to cover 8,200 square miles (21,000 km ). According to Norman Tindale , however, the Gubbi Gubbi people were an inland group living in the Wide Bay–Burnett area, and their lands extended over 3,700 square miles (9,600 km ) and lay west of Maryborough . The northern borders ran as far as Childers and Hervey Bay . On
4416-580: The Gubbi-Gubbi and Butchulla languages , compiled by Jeanie Bell , with assistance from Amanda Seed, was published in 1994. The dictionary includes both Gubbi-Gubbi and Butchulla language vocabularies with an English finder-list; sources of words given; and notes on phonology, morphology, and syntax. During the colonisation of Queensland , there were particularly bloody frontier wars as settlers moved onto land that had been occupied by Aboriginal peoples for millennia. Some Gubbi Gubbi/ Kabi Kabi died in
4512-613: The Gympie Pyramid in 1975 and that the "pyramid" was created by Egyptians who had mining operations in Australia centuries ago. According to Gilroy, the terraced hill was the remains of a pyramid, based on the fact that a stone wall nearby was of unusual construction, there had been local legends and taboos about entering the area, and that there was cactus of South or Central American origin growing nearby. In addition, "a statue (the 'Iron Man' or 'Gympie Ape') of non-Aboriginal manufacture [had been] found nearby, and some crude inscriptions on
4608-501: The Pegg brothers, were speared on the property while herding sheep. Gregory Blaxland, the 7th son of the eponymous explorer Gregory Blaxland took vengeance, heading a vigilante posse of some 50 squatters and station hands and, at Bingera , ambushed a group of 100 sleeping myalls of the "Gin gin tribe" who are usually identified now as the Gubbi Gubbi. They had feasted on stolen sheep. Marksmen picked off many, even those fleeing by diving into
4704-497: The Song period, were revived in the 17th century during the Qing dynasty , but were always considered a branch of Chinese historiography rather than a separate discipline of archaeology. In Renaissance Europe , philosophical interest in the remains of Greco - Roman civilization and the rediscovery of classical culture began in the late Middle Ages , with humanism . Cyriacus of Ancona
4800-652: The Spanish military engineer Roque Joaquín de Alcubierre in the ancient towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum , both of which had been covered by ash during the Eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 . These excavations began in 1748 in Pompeii, while in Herculaneum they began in 1738. The discovery of entire towns, complete with utensils and even human shapes, as well the unearthing of frescos , had
4896-753: The UK, metal detectorists have been solicited for involvement in the Portable Antiquities Scheme . Regional survey in underwater archaeology uses geophysical or remote sensing devices such as marine magnetometer, side-scan sonar , or sub-bottom sonar. Archaeological excavation existed even when the field was still the domain of amateurs, and it remains the source of the majority of data recovered in most field projects. It can reveal several types of information usually not accessible to survey, such as stratigraphy , three-dimensional structure, and verifiably primary context. Modern excavation techniques require that
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#17330860600724992-426: The ability to use fire, the development of stone tools , the discovery of metallurgy , the beginnings of religion and the creation of agriculture . Without archaeology, little or nothing would be known about the use of material culture by humanity that pre-dates writing. However, it is not only prehistoric, pre-literate cultures that can be studied using archaeology but historic, literate cultures as well, through
5088-408: The archaeological excavations being conducted at Pompeii and Herculaneum . He was one of the founders of scientific archaeology and first applied the categories of style on a large, systematic basis to the history of art He was one of the first to separate Greek art into periods and time classifications. Winckelmann has been called both "The prophet and founding hero of modern archaeology " and
5184-531: The archaeologist denied that he had even seen the inscriptions. Wheeler reported that the archaeologist also "described how investigation of the stone wall and Gympie Ape statue by a colleague in the Archeology Branch of the Queensland Department of Community Services had produced no support at all for the claimed existence of pyramids in the Gympie area". The summit of the pyramid was claimed to have
5280-434: The area surveyed is deemed sterile . Aerial survey is conducted using cameras attached to airplanes , balloons , UAVs , or even Kites . A bird's-eye view is useful for quick mapping of large or complex sites. Aerial photographs are used to document the status of the archaeological dig. Aerial imaging can also detect many things not visible from the surface. Plants growing above a buried human-made structure, such as
5376-555: The artifacts they had found in chronological order. A major figure in the development of archaeology into a rigorous science was army officer and ethnologist Augustus Pitt Rivers , who began excavations on his land in England in the 1880s. Highly methodical by the standards of the time, he is widely regarded as the first scientific archaeologist. He arranged his artifacts by type or " Typology (archaeology) ", and within types chronologically. This style of arrangement, designed to highlight
5472-563: The best-known; they are open to the inquiry of historians for centuries, while the study of pre-historic cultures has arisen only recently. Within a literate civilization many events and important human practices may not be officially recorded. Any knowledge of the early years of human civilization – the development of agriculture, cult practices of folk religion, the rise of the first cities – must come from archaeology. In addition to their scientific importance, archaeological remains sometimes have political or cultural significance to descendants of
5568-456: The boundaries of the title, and there is no right to block access to anyone from crown land , but that Kabi Kabi people could help to share their cultural heritage, as well as activities such as cultural burning to help care for the environment. The Sunshine Coast Council hopes to increase public access to culturally significant land, and provide educational tools such as signposts and information boards on walking trails. The Dictionary of
5664-453: The claims of an extraordinary origin for the pyramid are unfounded, writing that the Gympie "Golden" pyramid is in fact a hill that had been terraced by early Italian immigrants for viticulture . The shape was due to erosion and the stones from the retaining walls having been removed for other uses. He says that all of the statements supporting other theories were either misquoted, deliberately falsified or fabricated. Marilyn Pye also suggested
5760-473: The early 20th century, many archaeologists who studied past societies with direct continuing links to existing ones (such as those of Native Americans , Siberians , Mesoamericans etc.) followed the direct historical approach , compared the continuity between the past and contemporary ethnic and cultural groups. In the 1960s, an archaeological movement largely led by American archaeologists like Lewis Binford and Kent Flannery arose that rebelled against
5856-628: The empirical evidence that existed for the understanding of the past, encapsulated in the motto of the 18th century antiquary, Sir Richard Colt Hoare : "We speak from facts, not theory". Tentative steps towards the systematization of archaeology as a science took place during the Enlightenment period in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries. In Imperial China during the Song dynasty (960–1279), figures such as Ouyang Xiu and Zhao Mingcheng established
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#17330860600725952-639: The established cultural-history archaeology. They proposed a "New Archaeology", which would be more "scientific" and "anthropological", with hypothesis testing and the scientific method very important parts of what became known as processual archaeology . In the 1980s, a new postmodern movement arose led by the British archaeologists Michael Shanks , Christopher Tilley , Daniel Miller , and Ian Hodder , which has become known as post-processual archaeology . It questioned processualism's appeals to scientific positivism and impartiality, and emphasized
6048-620: The evolutionary trends in human artifacts, was of enormous significance for the accurate dating of the objects. His most important methodological innovation was his insistence that all artifacts, not just beautiful or unique ones, be collected and catalogued. William Flinders Petrie is another man who may legitimately be called the Father of Archaeology. His painstaking recording and study of artifacts, both in Egypt and later in Palestine , laid down many of
6144-533: The father of the discipline of art history . The father of archaeological excavation was William Cunnington (1754–1810). He undertook excavations in Wiltshire from around 1798, funded by Sir Richard Colt Hoare. Cunnington made meticulous recordings of Neolithic and Bronze Age barrows , and the terms he used to categorize and describe them are still used by archaeologists today. Future U.S. President Thomas Jefferson also did his own excavations in 1784 using
6240-746: The fifteenth century, and the general accuracy of his records entitles him to be called the founding father of modern classical archeology." He traveled throughout Greece and all around the Eastern Mediterranean, to record his findings on ancient buildings, statues and inscriptions, including archaeological remains still unknown to his time: the Parthenon , Delphi , the Egyptian pyramids , the hieroglyphics . He noted down his archaeological discoveries in his diary, Commentaria (in six volumes). Flavio Biondo , an Italian Renaissance humanist historian, created
6336-528: The first history books of India. One of the first sites to undergo archaeological excavation was Stonehenge and other megalithic monuments in England. John Aubrey (1626–1697) was a pioneer archaeologist who recorded numerous megalithic and other field monuments in southern England. He was also ahead of his time in the analysis of his findings. He attempted to chart the chronological stylistic evolution of handwriting, medieval architecture, costume, and shield-shapes. Excavations were also carried out by
6432-468: The ideas behind modern archaeological recording; he remarked that "I believe the true line of research lies in the noting and comparison of the smallest details." Petrie developed the system of dating layers based on pottery and ceramic findings , which revolutionized the chronological basis of Egyptology . Petrie was the first to scientifically investigate the Great Pyramid in Egypt during the 1880s. He
6528-653: The images were fake. Gubbi Gubbi people The Kabi Kabi people, also spelt Gubbi Gubbi , Gabi Gabi , and other variants, are an Aboriginal Australian people native to South Eastern Queensland . During the Australian frontier wars of the 19th century, there were several mass killings of Kabi Kabi people by settlers. They are now classified as one of several Murri language groups in Queensland. A 2024 determination granted non-exclusive native title rights over an 365,345-hectare (902,790-acre) area of land and waters on
6624-472: The importance of a more self-critical theoretical reflexivity . However, this approach has been criticized by processualists as lacking scientific rigor, and the validity of both processualism and post-processualism is still under debate. Meanwhile, another theory, known as historical processualism , has emerged seeking to incorporate a focus on process and post-processual archaeology's emphasis of reflexivity and history. Archaeological theory now borrows from
6720-489: The language, but also gives other spellings and name variants. but in recent publications has referred to the people as Kabi Kabi . Native title claims have been lodged in the name of Kabi Kabi people by the Kabi Kabi Aboriginal Corporation. There is a dance group called Gubbi Gubbi Dance Troupe that performs traditional dance and Welcomes to Country . John Mathew , who lived among them, described
6816-444: The lives and interests of the populace. Writings that were produced by people more representative of the general population were unlikely to find their way into libraries and be preserved there for posterity. Thus, written records tend to reflect the biases, assumptions, cultural values and possibly deceptions of a limited range of individuals, usually a small fraction of the larger population. Hence, written records cannot be trusted as
6912-665: The locations of monumental sites from the local populace, and excavating only the plainly visible features there. Gordon Willey pioneered the technique of regional settlement pattern survey in 1949 in the Viru Valley of coastal Peru , and survey of all levels became prominent with the rise of processual archaeology some years later. Survey work has many benefits if performed as a preliminary exercise to, or even in place of, excavation. It requires relatively little time and expense, because it does not require processing large volumes of soil to search out artifacts. (Nevertheless, surveying
7008-584: The mass poisoning of upwards of 60 Aboriginal people on the Kilcoy run in 1842. A further 50-60 are said to have been killed by food laced with arsenic at Whiteside Station in April 1847. As colonial entrepreneurs pushed into their territory to establish pastoral stations, they together with the Butchulla set up a fierce resistance: from 1847 to 1853, 28 squatters and their shepherds were killed. In June 1849 two youths,
7104-536: The matter was sent to an independent assessor, a specialist in First Nations matters, but the area was deemed not of sufficient significance to be protected. After work was resumed following "a final decision from the Federal Environment Minister", protesters tried to block the site, but were removed by police and five people were arrested for trespassing. Elaine Brown says that the names and stories of
7200-720: The most effective way to see beneath the ground. Magnetometers detect minute deviations in the Earth's magnetic field caused by iron artifacts, kilns , some types of stone structures , and even ditches and middens. Devices that measure the electrical resistivity of the soil are also widely used. Archaeological features whose electrical resistivity contrasts with that of surrounding soils can be detected and mapped. Some archaeological features (such as those composed of stone or brick) have higher resistivity than typical soils, while others (such as organic deposits or unfired clay) tend to have lower resistivity. Although some archaeologists consider
7296-443: The now-destroyed archaeology and is used in describing and interpreting the site. Once artifacts and structures have been excavated, or collected from surface surveys, it is necessary to properly study them. This process is known as post-excavation analysis , and is usually the most time-consuming part of an archaeological investigation. It is not uncommon for final excavation reports for major sites to take years to be published. At
7392-529: The original research objectives of the archaeologists. It is then considered good practice for the information to be published so that it is available to other archaeologists and historians, although this is sometimes neglected. Before actually starting to dig in a location, remote sensing can be used to look where sites are located within a large area or provide more information about sites or regions. There are two types of remote sensing instruments—passive and active. Passive instruments detect natural energy that
7488-413: The past. Since its early development, various specific sub-disciplines of archaeology have developed, including maritime archaeology , feminist archaeology , and archaeoastronomy , and numerous different scientific techniques have been developed to aid archaeological investigation. Nonetheless, today, archaeologists face many problems, such as dealing with pseudoarchaeology , the looting of artifacts,
7584-693: The people who produced them, monetary value to collectors, or strong aesthetic appeal. Many people identify archaeology with the recovery of such aesthetic, religious, political, or economic treasures rather than with the reconstruction of past societies. This view is often espoused in works of popular fiction, such as Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Mummy, and King Solomon's Mines. When unrealistic subjects are treated more seriously, accusations of pseudoscience are invariably levelled at their proponents (see Pseudoarchaeology ) . However, these endeavours, real and fictional, are not representative of modern archaeology. There
7680-550: The precise locations of objects and features, known as their provenance or provenience, be recorded. This always involves determining their horizontal locations, and sometimes vertical position as well (also see Primary Laws of Archaeology ). Likewise, their association , or relationship with nearby objects and features , needs to be recorded for later analysis. This allows the archaeologist to deduce which artifacts and features were likely used together and which may be from different phases of activity. For example, excavation of
7776-500: The recognised traditional owners of the area are shown in historical records, and that the descendants of those people do not agree with the group currently protesting construction on the site. Writing in the Omega Science Digest (2004), Anthony G. Wheeler discussed several assumptions made by amateur archaeologists over the decades in his article "In quest of Australia's lost pyramids". Rex Gilroy claimed that he discovered
7872-407: The site has been used from before the first English settlers reached the continent. Multiple scar trees can also be found on the site. A group of Kabi Kabi (also known as Gubbi Gubbi) people claim this specific area was an ancient sacred site important for their dreaming , and connected with a stellar origin story concerning the seven sisters , or Pleiades , although this claim is disputed by
7968-520: The south, they approached the headwaters of the Mary River and Cooroy . Westwards, they reached as far as the Coast Ranges and Kilkivan . Gubbi Gubbi country is currently located between Pumicestone Road , near Caboolture in the south, through to Childers in the north. Their country was originally rain forest, with cleared areas created by regular firing of the scrub. The neighbouring tribes were
8064-512: The stones used in the construction of the church's retaining wall in 1938 (see above) had been removed from the pyramid. Wheeler, along with local historian Dick Gould and Elaine Brown (former history officer of Gympie Regional Council ) have dismissed this claim. Reverend Stan Geddes has said the church's stone was quarried in the Rocks Road Area. A 2008 cultural heritage survey was conducted by Archaeo Culture Heritage Services of Brisbane (for
8160-475: The sub-discipline of historical archaeology . For many literate cultures, such as Ancient Greece and Mesopotamia , their surviving records are often incomplete and biased to some extent. In many societies, literacy was restricted to the elite classes, such as the clergy , or the bureaucracy of court or temple. The literacy of aristocrats has sometimes been restricted to deeds and contracts. The interests and world-view of elites are often quite different from
8256-511: The temples of Šamaš the sun god, the warrior goddess Anunitu (both located in Sippar ), and the sanctuary that Naram-Sin built to the moon god, located in Harran , but he also had them restored to their former glory. He was also the first to date an archaeological artifact in his attempt to date Naram-Sin's temple during his search for it. Even though his estimate was inaccurate by about 1,500 years, it
8352-476: The term archaeology means "the study of ancient history". The discipline involves surveying , excavation , and eventually analysis of data collected, to learn more about the past. In broad scope, archaeology relies on cross-disciplinary research. Archaeology developed out of antiquarianism in Europe during the 19th century, and has since become a discipline practiced around the world. Archaeology has been used by nation-states to create particular visions of
8448-555: The tradition of Chinese epigraphy by investigating, preserving, and analyzing ancient Chinese bronze inscriptions from the Shang and Zhou periods. In his book published in 1088, Shen Kuo criticized contemporary Chinese scholars for attributing ancient bronze vessels as creations of famous sages rather than artisan commoners, and for attempting to revive them for ritual use without discerning their original functionality and purpose of manufacture. Such antiquarian pursuits waned after
8544-576: The use of metal detectors to be tantamount to treasure hunting, others deem them an effective tool in archaeological surveying. Examples of formal archaeological use of metal detectors include musketball distribution analysis on English Civil War battlefields, metal distribution analysis prior to excavation of a 19th-century ship wreck, and service cable location during evaluation. Metal detectorists have also contributed to archaeology where they have made detailed records of their results and refrained from raising artifacts from their archaeological context. In
8640-472: The usual term for one major branch of antiquarian activity. "Archaeology", from 1607 onward, initially meant what we would call "ancient history" generally, with the narrower modern sense first seen in 1837. However, it was Jacob Spon who, in 1685, offered one of the earliest definitions of "archaeologia" to describe the study of antiquities in which he was engaged, in the preface of a collection of transcriptions of Roman inscriptions which he had gleaned over
8736-412: The years of his travels, entitled Miscellanea eruditae antiquitatis. Twelfth-century Indian scholar Kalhana 's writings involved recording of local traditions, examining manuscripts, inscriptions, coins and architectures, which is described as one of the earliest traces of archaeology. One of his notable work is called Rajatarangini which was completed in c. 1150 and is described as one of
8832-516: Was a restlessly itinerant Italian humanist and antiquarian who came from a prominent family of merchants in Ancona , a maritime republic on the Adriatic . He was called by his contemporaries pater antiquitatis ('father of antiquity') and today "father of classical archaeology": "Cyriac of Ancona was the most enterprising and prolific recorder of Greek and Roman antiquities, particularly inscriptions, in
8928-421: Was also responsible for mentoring and training a whole generation of Egyptologists, including Howard Carter who went on to achieve fame with the discovery of the tomb of 14th-century BC pharaoh Tutankhamun . The first stratigraphic excavation to reach wide popularity with public was that of Hissarlik , on the site of ancient Troy , carried out by Heinrich Schliemann , Frank Calvert and Wilhelm Dörpfeld in
9024-423: Was borrowed from the new geological and paleontological work of scholars like William Smith , James Hutton and Charles Lyell . The systematic application of stratigraphy to archaeology first took place with the excavations of prehistorical and Bronze Age sites. In the third and fourth decades of the 19th century, archaeologists like Jacques Boucher de Perthes and Christian Jürgensen Thomsen began to put
9120-421: Was developed as a result of increasing commercial development. The purpose of archaeology is to learn more about past societies and the development of the human race . Over 99% of the development of humanity has occurred within prehistoric cultures, who did not make use of writing , thereby no written records exist for study purposes. Without such written sources, the only way to understand prehistoric societies
9216-464: Was still a very good one considering the lack of accurate dating technology at the time. The science of archaeology (from Greek ἀρχαιολογία , archaiologia from ἀρχαῖος , arkhaios , "ancient" and -λογία , -logia , " -logy ") grew out of the older multi-disciplinary study known as antiquarianism . Antiquarians studied history with particular attention to ancient artifacts and manuscripts, as well as historical sites. Antiquarianism focused on
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