Uncovering the past 00 Page 1 Monday, August 5, 2002 8:10 AM CHAPTER 1 UNCOVERING THE PAST When archaeologists uncover evidence of the past, they are finding objects that were made to last, or everyday objects that were simply lost or left behind. Sometimes the evidence is the result of an unexpected disaster, such as the volcanic eruption that destroyed the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum in AD 79. These discoveries are often very valuable because they reveal people caught in the act of doing what they normally do. They provide a clear snapshot of what life was like in another time. These skeletons, the remains of some of the people of Herculaneum, have a story to tell of what it was like to be in that town on that fateful day in history. 1 How do you think these people might have died? 2 Why are they huddled together? What does this tell you? 3 What other evidence, besides bones, might you expect to find here? Why? YOU WILL DISCOVER How evidence like these skeletons is discovered Why the study of history is important What primary and secondary sources are How scientists work out how old evidence is Why timelines are helpful Not all evidence of the past is found buried in land. Some of it lies in deep water. The jars shown above were part of the cargo being carried by a Roman ship that sank in the Mediterranean Sea some 2000 years ago.
Uncovering the past 03 Page 6 Friday, August 2, 2002 4:06 PM Collecting the evidence H ISTORIANS USE two sources of evidence primary sources and secondary sources. They may be written or non-written. Primary sources existed or were made or written during the period being studied. Secondary sources were made or written after that period. Both can be very useful to a historian. Different sources different times Primary sources date back to the period the historian is looking at. They may be the remains of people who lived then. They may be the letters, songs, poems, legends or inscriptions they wrote down or created. They may be their buildings, statues, paintings, roads or tombs, or their artefacts such as weapons, tools, pots, coins and jewellery. Secondary sources are written or created after the period the historian is studying. They attempt to reconstruct the past. They may include textbooks like this one, articles, illustrations, films, maps, timelines, 3-D reconstructions and oral recordings. Evaluate sources It is important when studying history to recognise the differences between primary and secondary sources, and to appreciate the benefits and limitations of each. This ziggurat at Ur was built when the Sumerians lived. It is therefore a primary source. A ziggurat was the tallest and most important building in a Sumerian city. It was believed to house the gods. This is a modern artist s impression of what a ziggurat might have looked like. It is therefore a secondary source. What information does the primary source give you? Are there any gaps in the information it provides? Could the primary source be a fake? What evidence would you look for to be sure it was genuine? What information does the secondary source provide? Does it fill in some of the gaps in knowledge? How? Do you think the artist who prepared the secondary source of the ziggurat was exaggerating or presenting a biased or false view? Explain. 6 SOSE ALIVE 1
Uncovering the past 03 Page 7 Friday, August 2, 2002 4:06 PM Go to The royal tombs at Ur In 1927, while excavating around the ancient Sumerian city of Ur, the British archaeologist Leonard Woolley found the first of some 1500 burial sites. The tombs, 16 of which are thought to be royal, lay at the end of sloping ramps. Many had been robbed. One that had escaped the thieves was the tomb of Queen Pu-abi. Her body had been decorated with an elaborate headdress and jewellery made of gold and precious stones. Nearby were a number of gold drinking cups, beautiful ornaments and the remains of a harp. Many tombs also held the remains of servants, guards, chariots, oxen and chariot drivers. The people all seemed to have died willingly. Their remains were neatly laid out there was no sign of panic. This restored statue of a ram caught in a bush is one of the items found in the tombs at Ur. It is made of gold and decorated with shells and lapis lazuli a blue stone often used in the manufacture of jewellery in ancient societies. This is an extract from what Woolley wrote about one of his discoveries.... At the foot of the ramp lay six soldiers, orderly in two ranks, with copper spears by their sides and copper helmets crushed flat on the broken skulls; just inside... were two wooden four-wheeled wagons each drawn by three oxen... [Deeper inside the tomb] lay the bodies of nine women... and the whole space between them and the wagons was crowded with other dead... while the passage that led along the side of the chamber to its arched door was lined with soldiers carrying daggers, and with women. Black Sea Mediterranean Sea Key Red Sea Euphrates Tigris River River Mesopotamia, as it may have been some 6000 7000 years ago. Ancient coastline GUTIUM ELAM Susa Babylon Nippur Kish Lagash SUMER Uruk Ur Eridu BABYL O N IA N Persian Gulf 0 200 400 km Sumer was the name given to a group of city-states in the southern part of an ancient area called Mesopotamia. Sumer is often called the cradle of civilisation. This is because its people built the first cities (around 5000 BC), were the first to use writing (called cuneiform), invented the wheel, wrote down laws and made the first chariots. 7 UNCOVERING THE PAST REMEMBER 1 What is the difference between a primary source and a secondary source? 2 List four examples of: (a) a primary source (b) a secondary source. 3 Why might some secondary sources be especially helpful? COMMUNICATE 4 Conduct a class roleplay of what might have happened at Queen Pu-abi s funeral. Read a map (p. 123) 5 Look at source E and a modern atlas. (a) How many Sumerian cities are marked on this map? (b) Name Sumer s two main rivers. (c) What expanse of water lay south-east of Sumer? (d) Which of the following cities lay west of Uruk: Susa, Lagash, Ur, Kish and Eridu? (e) Approximately how far away from Ur was Babylon? (f) Which modern country contains what was once known as Sumer? (g) During Sumerian times, cities like Ur and Eridu lay on the coast. They are now well inland. What might have happened? Evaluate sources 6 Decide whether sources C, D and E are primary or secondary sources. (a) What are the benefits and limitations of each source? (b) Explain how these sources (including captions) help you to assess whether the Sumerians were (i) inventive, (ii) wealthy and (iii) civilised? checklist ODILY/KINAESTHETIC I can: tell the difference between a primary and secondary source interpret a map to obtain further information about a civilisation examine sources to draw some conclusions about the Sumerians. B worksheet 2
Uncovering the past 04 Page 8 Friday, August 2, 2002 4:06 PM Digging back through time A RCHAEOLOGISTS HELP historians build up a picture of our past by finding and describing the remains of former societies. Some of these remains might be temples, or treasures buried in the tombs of dead rulers. Other remains are everyday objects that were used by ordinary people. Archaeologists work very carefully when digging up or handling remains so that they do not damage them. Knowing where to dig Certain remains of ancient civilisations are easy to find. Most, however, are well hidden. So how do archaeologists know where to start? Some look for caves or earth mounds, especially in countries that were once the home of ancient cultures. Others turn to ancient writers for clues. Often, ancient remains are found purely by accident. Archaeologists today also use a number of scientific techniques. Aerial and satellite photography can locate patches of land that have, for example, darker or thicker vegetation. This might be a clue that there is something unusual below the surface, such as a ditch or a buried building. Special instruments can detect the magnetic fields of even very small objects lying deep underground. Techniques are available, too, to locate and photograph relics from the past that lie at the bottom of our oceans and seas. This Tyrannosaurus rex fossil was an exciting find. A slice of life Over time, the remains of our past are covered up. It might be by wind-blown sands or sediment from floods. It might be by ash and lava from volcanoes or by the debris that builds up when settlements are destroyed by wars or earthquakes. New settlements then spring up on the remains of those before. 8 SOSE ALIVE 1
Uncovering the past 04 Page 9 Friday, August 2, 2002 4:06 PM Some remains need to be excavated extremely carefully. Organising a dig Once a likely site, or dig, has been found, the archaeological team must ask the government of that country for permission to excavate its land. If this is given, the team prepares a site plan and the dig is marked out in squares with string and pegs. Each square is given a name and a number. Heavy earth-moving machinery is often used to shift the top layers of earth and rock. The team then digs further using shovels, picks, wheelbarrows and buckets, being careful not to damage any remains. When they find something delicate, such as a skeleton, Go to worksheet 3 VISUAL/SPATIAL they use tools such as teaspoons, brushes and toothpicks to excavate it. The work is often dirty and dusty, so practical clothing and shoes are worn. As they remove earth and stones, the team looks carefully for remains. These might be human or animal bones, pieces of pottery, artefacts such as coins, pieces of metal, even shells, seeds and the stones of fruit (as these can reveal what people ate). Each item is labelled with the name and number of the dig square. Its description is carefully recorded and it may be photographed. REMEMBER 1 Name some ways evidence of past civilisations is found. 2 Write a job description for an archaeologist. Describe what the person will do, and the personal qualities they need. UNDERSTAND 3 How do you think some ancient remains end up under water? 4 What conclusions might an archaeologist reach if: (a) a specific area of an ancient dwelling contained a number of seeds, shells, animal bones and broken pottery? (b) an area around an excavated ditch contained arrowheads and broken wheels. CREATE 5 Divide the class into two teams. Each is to create a society that is, decide how the people dress, what their houses look like and what their artefacts are. Each member will make (e.g. from clay) either a person or object from that society. Each piece of evidence should be painted and decorated to reveal evidence about the society. All evidence must be prepared in accordance with the rules agreed for the society. The evidence for each society is then buried in a shallow sand pit. Each team will then carefully excavate the evidence of the other team and draw conclusions about the society. COMMUNICATE 6 Work in small groups for this task. You are working on a dig near the ancient city of Sydney. The year is AD 3000. You have dug up the artefact shown below. You do not know that it is a vacuum cleaner, as such things are no longer used. You do know that Sydneyites used electricity. 9 UNCOVERING THE PAST Other relevant artefacts found in the same stratum include: a plastic bottle with the words Cleaning agent pressed into it an ornament stamped with the words Sydney Olympic Games part of an old book that includes a discussion on the domestic roles of women parts of an old magazine that contains advertisements for cleaning equipment (but not a vacuum cleaner) a number of faded images that show clean building interiors. (a) Decide when this item might have been made. (b) Decide what the item might have been used for. Justify your opinion. (c) What conclusions can you draw about the people who produced or used this item? INVESTIGATE 7 Study sources A and B carefully. For each of the people shown in these two photographs, describe what each might be doing, and why. checklist I can: explain what an archaeologist does analyse the details in a photograph to draw conclusions through roleplaying, think about how artefacts are analysed and interpreted.
Uncovering the past 05 Page 10 Friday, August 2, 2002 4:08 PM Facts and opinions U NTIL 1942, very little was known about the ancient Olmec culture of Central America. Since then, more evidence has been found. This has confirmed some facts about these people and settled some differences of opinion. Gradually, a picture of these people now thought of as the mother culture of Central American civilisations is emerging. Even so, there is still much that is unclear. Historians have developed hypotheses to fill in some of the gaps in knowledge. Facts about the Olmec In 1862, farm workers digging in the fields around Tres Zapotes in southern Mexico found what looked like the base of a huge stone pot. They kept digging. Soon they had uncovered a massive stone head the first evidence of a past civilisation. A clever and well-organised people Olmec remains found since the early 1940s include human bones, stone altars, ornaments, rubber balls, remains of buildings, underground water supply and drainage systems, inscriptions and monuments. Scholars now agree the evidence provides enough facts to prove the Olmec were a well-organised and advanced people. They had knowledge of astronomy and mathematics and had a writing system and a complex calendar. They built pyramids, and made ceramic artefacts. They carved basalt (the hard rock formed when lava cools) even though they had no metal tools, and used a magnetic compass hundreds of years before the Chinese. Tres Zapotes Tuxtla Mountains Gulf of Mexico Laguna de los Cerros La Venta San Lorenzo N PACIFIC OCEAN 0 150 300 km The Olmec heartland lay in the steamy river basin jungles around the lower part of the Gulf of Mexico. There were at least four city centres La Venta, San Lorenzo, Laguna de los Cerros and Tres Zapotes. These once contained large pyramids, wide stone plazas and public buildings. In 1942, an archaeological dig was started around a large earth mound in La Venta. Several grave sites were found, as well as a number of carved figures, jewellery and jade axe heads. At first, not all archaeologists agreed this was evidence of a very old culture. However, scientific techniques later confirmed that some of the remains dated back to around 1500 BC earlier than any other known Central American civilisation. Carved Olmec figures, thought to have been an offering to the gods Opinions about the Olmec There are different opinions about where the Olmec might have come from. Some scholars suggest they came from Africa; others say from Asia. No-one yet knows why their civilisation suddenly ended about 300 BC. Were they overthrown by people from another culture? Did they suddenly lose access to their trade routes? Until archaeologists find evidence that provides a firm answer to some of these mysteries, historians will continue to have different opinions. 10 SOSE ALIVE 1
MUSICAL/RHYTHMIC Uncovering the past 05 Page 11 Friday, August 2, 2002 4:08 PM Go to worksheet 4 Develop a hypothesis In the study of history, a hypothesis is an opinion about what might have happened, based on available evidence. It is an attempt to explain something for which there are not yet enough facts to say for sure what might have occurred. There are gaps, and possibly contradictions, in what we know. For example, take the huge heads the Olmecs carved. How did they end up in the jungles around the Gulf of Mexico? This is one of 17 basalt heads that have been found. Dating methods suggest they were carved by the Olmec around 3000 years ago. They are between two and four metres tall and the heaviest weighs about 20 tonnes. All have the same features a flat nose, full lips and almond-shaped eyes. Each has a helmet with a different symbol carved into the front. REMEMBER 1 Name the four main Olmec cities. 2 List three items of factual evidence that confirm the Olmec were an advanced people. 3 What is the difference between a fact and an opinion? Illustrate by stating two facts and two opinions about your school. Basalt is not found anywhere near the coastal jungles where the Olmec lived. This is a fact. So, where did the stone come from? In 1960, a basalt quarry was found near the Tuxtla Mountains, some 100 kilometres from the Olmec heartland. It contained the remains of an unfinished Olmec altar. Could the heads have been made here? It is a fact that the Olmec did not have cranes or trucks. So, how might they have moved them from the quarry? What transport routes could they have used? (Check the caption for source A.) How did other ancient societies move heavy things? The ancient Egyptians, for example, moved some of the huge blocks used to build the pyramids by floating them down the Nile River. The Olmec workforce would have to have been large and well organised. Think why this would be so. 11 UNCOVERING THE PAST UNDERSTAND 4 Check a modern atlas to find out which modern Central American country contains the land once occupied by the Olmec. 5 Decide whether the following statements are facts or opinions. The Olmec developed a complex calendar. The Olmec people originally came from Asia. The large stone heads show faces that have flat noses and full lips. There is evidence to suggest that the Olmec practised head binding. PARTICIPATE Develop a hypothesis 6 Based on information provided in this spread, develop a hypothesis, as part of a class discussion, to explain: (a) how the Olmec might have moved the massive basalt heads through the jungle (b) what equipment and structures they might have built to do this (c) what tasks the workforce would have had to do. checklist I can: decide whether statements are facts or opinions use evidence to develop and test a hypothesis explain why the Olmec were a clever and advanced people.