During the excavation of a prehistoric site, archaeologists determine the age of an art ob… — AP Art History

During the excavation of a prehistoric site, archaeologists determine the age of an art object, such as the Ambum Stone, by analyzing its position within the sequential layers of soil. Which of the following terms refers to this relative dating method?

Stratigraphic analysisAnswer
B
Radiocarbon ( $C^{14}$ ) dating
C
Shamanistic iconographic interpretation
D
Post-and-lintel structural calculation

Answer

Stratigraphic analysis

Stratigraphic analysis is a relative dating method based on the law of superposition. In archaeology, this principle states that in an undisturbed sequence of soil layers (strata), the oldest layers are at the bottom and the youngest are at the top. Finding the Ambum Stone within a specific layer allows archaeologists to place it chronologically relative to other layers and artifacts found at the same site.

Step-by-Step Solution

Identify the key dating clue in the scenario.

The age of the artifact is determined by analyzing its position within the sequential layers of soil (strata).

Understanding the method used to establish the age is necessary to distinguish between dating techniques.

Differentiate between relative and absolute dating methods.

Dating based on soil layers provides a sequence relative to other artifacts and layers, which is relative dating.

This helps rule out absolute dating techniques like radiocarbon dating.

Select the specific term that corresponds to layer-based relative dating.

Stratigraphic analysis (stratigraphy) is the correct term for relative dating based on soil layers.

Stratigraphy directly maps to analyzing soil layers (strata).

Key Concept

Relative dating of prehistoric art through stratigraphy

Question

Answer

Step-by-Step Solution

Key Concept

Common Mistakes

Topics

More questions from this topic