Soils in Archaeological Research [Hardcover]

Soils, invaluable indicators of the nature and history of the physical and human landscape, have strongly influenced the cultural record left to archaeologists. Not only are they primary reservoirs for artifacts, they often encase entire sites. And soil-forming processes in themselves are an important component of site formation, influencing which artifacts, features, and environmental indicators (floral, faunal, and geological) will be destroyed and to what extent and which will be preserved and how well. In this book, Holliday will address each of these issues in terms of fundamentals as well as in field case histories from all over the world. The focus will be on principles of soil geomorphology , soil stratigraphy, and soil chemistry and their applications in archaeological research.

1. Introduction
2. Terminology and Methodology
3. Conceptual Approaches to Pedogenesis
4. Soil Surveys and Archaeology
5. Soil Stratigraphy
6. Soil-Stratigraphy in Geoarchaeological Contexts
7. Soils and Time
8. Soils and Paleoenvironmental Reconstructions
9. Soils and Landscape Evolution
10. Soil Genesis and Site Formation Processes
11. Human Impacts on Soils
Appendix 1. Variations on U.S.D.A Field Nomenclature
Appendix 2. Soil Phosphorus: Chemistry, Analytical Methods, and Chronosequences
Appendix 3. Variability of Soil Laboratory Procedures and Results

The volume is well written and illustrated and includes extensive, current bibliography concentrating on, as the title would suggest, archeological applications. This excellent text is suitable for classes at the undergraduate and graduate levels, and as a general reference for field archeologists. While nonspecialists will find the reading stif going, professionals ouside archeology in the general area of earth sciences will find it a valuable survey of one area of their larger, more general interest --Choice