Soils and archaeology

Soils and archaeology

Case studies showing the role soil plays in preserving and protecting our past.

The case studies in this theme take you from Roman villas and ancient settlements in Turkey to clay writing tablets, Icelandic turf buildings and the buried secrets of peat landscapes. You can also explore how placenames and sunken lanes reveal past land use, and how decisions about when to plant seeds connect modern farming to historical practice.

Archaeology and soil are inseparable. Almost everything we excavate has spent years, centuries or millennia in contact with soil, and the chemical and physical conditions underground strongly affect whether materials survive, decay or change form. Understanding soil acidity, wetness, texture and biological activity helps archaeologists interpret what they find and decide how best to protect it.

Did you know that until recent years, although soil was appreciated for preserving our past, little thought was given to how different soils could affect artefacts buried underground? Increasingly now, archaeologists take account of soil conditions in their investigations. This is made all the more important by the rise of so-called in-situ preservation — acknowledging that we should not simply dig everything up, but leave items for future generations. Leaving artefacts in the soil makes sense, but we have to understand the effects of soil on such materials, whether of bone, pottery or organic origin.