A Historic View on the Development of Skis

National Geographic: History of Skis

This chart, from National Geographic, shows the development of skis through the ages. But how would one search the prehistoric cultures in eHRAF Archaeology for skis or other equipment that was used to navigate deep snow? A keyword search for snowshoe*, sleigh*, or sled* might do (the asterisk “*” is used to get the plural and singular forms of the word). Or in an Advanced Search one could use the OCM subjects “locomotion” or “transportation” paired with the words snow* or winter*. This screenshot of an Advanced Search in eHRAF Archaeology shows how this is done….http://screencast.com/t/MIXft4A6P.

Searching for prehistoric sundials in eHRAF Archaeology

Use eHRAF Archaeology to find information on prehistoric “sundials” such as the one recently found in a bronze age site in the Ukraine (see  http://www.archaeology.org/news/1380-131009-ukraine-sundial-bronze-age).  Simply use a keyword as shown in this Advanced Search example (see http://screencast.com/t/GoLN9vZbbExa ), or make use of the HRAF specific subject “Ordering of Time” (OCM 805) in combination with word “sun” (see the Advanced Search example at http://screencast.com/t/nxEJjucT66UN).  This will bring up interesting finds in archaeological traditions from around the world, including, of course, the Classic Maya, Inka, and Protohistoric Egypt.  If you use the OCM subject “Ordering of Time” in Advanced Search without keywords will yield even more search results including information on that subject for archaeological traditions such as Akkadians of Mesopotamia, the Hohokam of the American Southwest, or the Tiahuanaco of the Andes.

Contact HRAF at www.yale.edu/hraf for temporary access to eHRAF Archaeology, or email hraf@yale.edu with your specific research question.

Comparative Archaeology – How eHRAF Archaeology Can Help

You’ve excavated a high altitude site in the Rocky Mountain region and found evidence of paleoindian occupation.  You’d like to know whether archaeological traditions of other geographic regions and time periods show similar evidence of human activities (e.g. projectile points, scrapers, bifaces, etc.) and structures (e.g. camps, shelters) with hunting game animals (e.g. bison, elk, moose, caribou). Ideally you would like to focus only on culture complexes and sites found in high elevations.

eHRAF Archaeology can help find this type of very detailed information.  All searches first get “channeled” through major regions such as North and South America.  Once you click on a tradition name (e.g. Highland Andean Archaic) you’ll find the results at the paragraph or page-level of documents (e.g. books, journal articles, essays, or dissertations).  The ability to “jump” from one culture to the next within or across regions makes eHRAF ideal for comparative archaeology.

Use the HRAF specific cultures and subjects in combination with keywords to build a powerful Advanced Search. This screenshot of an Advanced Search for “high altitude camp sites” gives you an idea of how this works. Contact Christiane Cunnar at hraf@yale.edu to request a temporary log-in for eHRAF Archaeology, and don’t forget to tell her a little bit about your research topic so that she can give you some useful search tips.

Tools in Prehistoric Cultures: Shell Adzes and Comparative Archaeology

Tongan shell adze from the Te Rangi Hiroa Collection at the Bishop Museum in Honolulu, Hawaii

In the production of farming tools, such as adzes, prehistoric cultures usually used materials that occurred locally. In Polynesia shells served as resource, while in other regions prehistoric people preferred to use ground stone or metals such as copper or iron. Using eHRAF Archaeology you can search across archaeological traditions for specific words (e.g. adzes) in combination with OCM subjects such as Horn, Bone, and Shell Technology (OCM 321), Lithic Industries (OCM 324), or Nonferrous metal industries (OCM 328…see http://screencast.com/t/ybVKYGDDZx ). You can also search for specific words or phrases (e.g. “shell adze*) without using the OCM subjects (see http://screencast.com/t/wWnED1m84).  Contact Human Relations Area Files (HRAF) at www.yale.edu/hraf for temporary access to this unique database for comparative archaeology.

Evidence of Ancient Cheese-Making in Archaeological Traditions

According to the NPR’s recent report (http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2012/12/13/167034734/archaeologists-find-ancient-evidence-of-cheese-making) evidence of ancient cheese-making can be found on 7000 year old clay vessels.  Using eHRAF Archaeology (http://ehrafarchaeology.yale.edu/ehrafa) you can search across archaeological traditions in Africa, Europe, the Middle East and other parts of the world for prehistoric utensils and vessels that were used for making cheese. Contact HRAF at hraf@yale.edu for log-in information.

Olmec Tradition in eHRAF Archaeology

The Olmec are today’s featured tradition from eHRAF Archaeology. The height of the Olmec tradition dates from 3400 to 2100 BP, although the entire span may run from 3600 to 1750 BP. The Olmec cultural core area is the Gulf Coast plains and foothills of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (southern Veracruz and western Tabasco States, Mexico). Subsistence included maize agriculture, but remained quite generalized. At its height, Olmec culture expanded its influence from Central Mexico to northern Central America in the form of trading outposts and/or colonies, introducing other early stratified societies to a politico-religious ideology that arguably laid the groundwork for all subsequent Mesoamerican civilization. Olmec society is distinguished by what appears to be a hereditary ruling class, incipient urbanization, and an advanced degree of specialization as evidenced by multiple cultural innovations: work in greenstone, monumental stone sculpture, large-scale public architecture, and probable numerical, calendar and writing systems. Visit Olmec Tradition Summary in eHRAF Archaeology for log-in information.