Michael Brian Schiffer: a Founder of Behavioral Archaeology

Archaeological Theories and Methods

According to Lord George Gordon Byron (1821), “The best prophet of the future is the past.” For as long as humans have existed, we have been curious about our ancestors and their conduct. While historians can provide educated deductions about the past, archaeologists can accurately date and analyze actual objects used by our prehistoric precursors. Numerous archaeological theories have been developed to interpret artifacts and bio-facts. On top of that, archaeologists use various methods to find and inspect relics. Without the complex methods and theories that have been developed over time, the concept of human history would be much foggier. One theory that stands out is behavioral archaeology. When coupled with methods such as LiDAR, behavioral archaeology can be very advantageous. Behavioral archaeology theory and LiDAR are extremely valuable to archaeology.

As defined in Michael Brian Schiffer’s book “Behavioral Archaeology” (1976), behavioral archaeology theory is a thought process molded by focusing on how an item was handled. During this practice, archaeologists ignore any possible motivations or feelings behind the interaction with an artifact. Since it was developed in the 1970s, behavioral archaeology theory is still relatively new (Schiffer, 1976, p. 1). Archaeologists use behavioral archaeology theory when determining how our ancestors engaged with objects. Due to the nature of behavioral archaeology, this approach can provide evidence for scientific fields outside of archaeology (such as sociology or psychology) (Schiffer, 1972). Behavioral archaeology states that all human behavior is an interconnection between people, artifacts, and externs (phenomena independent of people, such as sunlight). Though fixating on the artifact can provide much-needed objectivity, behavioral archaeology may not always be the best choice. There are cases in which context and intent are important when evaluating an artifact or bio-fact. For instance, without understanding how it is used to communicate in diverse ways, a cell phone may not seem meaningful to human nature. However, when one comprehends how substantial phone calls, text messaging and social media are to modern man, the influence is clearer. When Michael Brian Schiffer conceived behavioral archaeology, he opened a door for archaeologists.

Michael Brian Schiffer founded behavioral archaeology. He has a very informative personal website that covers his biography and experience (2015). According to the site, Schiffer grew up on a farm and originally started college as a chemistry major. However, during his sophomore year at the University of California at Los Angeles, Schiffer decided to switch to an anthropology focus. By his junior year, Schiffer knew he wanted to work in archaeology. Over the years, Schiffer developed a love of modern artifacts like stamps, old radios, and calculators. Schiffer went on his first archaeological expedition in 1968 to Vernon, Arizona. Schiffer’s experience with his fellow graduate students and a faculty member largely helped shaped his ideas of behavioral archaeology (2015). Behavioral archaeology presented new notions to the field of archaeology, such as defining every behavior as a human-artifact interaction. While he officially retired in 2014, Schiffer continues to be an expert in archaeology and has developed copious theories in the field. Aside from his input on behavioral archaeology, Schiffer is known for his contributions to cultural resource management studies and technological change. Having an archaeologist who thinks outside of the box is helpful, but methods like LiDAR allow those archaeologists to carry out their plans.

LiDAR stands for light detection and ranging (previously a combination of “light” and “radar”) (Horton, 2016). To simplify it, LiDAR is a pulsed laser that measures the distance from the sky (an airplane or helicopter) to the Earth or a structure. During the 1930s, searchlights and light pulses were invoked to study the structure of the atmosphere (“US Department of Commerce, & National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,” 2012). Once the laser and the global positioning system (GPS) were invented in the late 1980s, the LiDAR system as we know it was established. A LiDAR laser can flash at up to 400,000 pulses per second. Though LiDAR is typically used for shoreline mapping, hydrodynamic mapping or other weather applications, it is relevant to archaeology as well. For example, in 2009, archaeologists Arlen and Diane Chase employed LiDAR to map out miles of uncharted territory in the ancient Mayan city of Caracol (Gugliotta, 2015). Thanks to the topographical map created by LiDAR, the archaeologists discovered features that were not evident in their years of work on foot. Between 2012 and 2015, archaeologist Damian Evans deployed LiDAR attached to a helicopter and was able to pinpoint structures, roadways, canals and quarries around Siem Reap, Cambodia (Horton, 2016). LiDAR is a cost-efficient technique to outline archaeological locations and can help researchers decide where to start a dig site. While LiDAR is fairly accurate, it has its downfalls. LiDAR does not penetrate large vegetation or shrubbery well, so any area with lush foliage can be difficult to examine (Giffard, 2015). That being said, some hard to reach regions cannot be accessed at all without LiDAR. If scientists can overcome the limitations with vegetation, LiDAR will be even more useful. The group effort that contributed to the invention of LiDAR in modern archaeology has been irreplaceable.

Since it involves many inventions working in tandem, LiDAR is the culmination of numerous scientists. Though bats have been using sonar for thousands of years, humans did not start experimenting with radar until the early 1900s. In 1904, Christian Huelsmeyer invented a “Telemobileoscope” that utilized radio pulses to measure the distance between objects (Gregersen, 2016). When the first true laser was built in 1960 by Theodore H. Maiman, LiDAR was one step closer to fruition (Weart, 2013). While it is hard to know who did it first, mounting the laser or sensor system to the bottom of an airplane greatly improved LiDAR technology. The 1969 Apollo 11 landing broke huge ground for the future of LiDAR when a laser rangefinder on Earth was able to hit a mounted target on the moon (Gregersen, 2016). LiDAR became such a household name that it was added to Webster’s Dictionary in 1985 (“A Brief History of LIDAR,” 2017). Despite its commonplace in weather-related science, LiDAR was not implemented in archaeology until 2009. After finding a location that was at least 13 sq. km, archaeologist Chris Fischer sought out a surveying method that would be more efficient than walking along the rough terrain (Hopkins, 2014). With LiDAR, Fischer and his crew were able to map out the entire area in approximately 45 minutes. Since Fischer used LiDAR on Angamuco, many archaeologists have done the same. Archaeology is a fine art of balancing methods and theories to uncover our past.

In many cases, it takes a combination of techniques and suggestions to investigate artifacts and bio-facts. It is entirely possible for behavioral archaeology and LiDAR to act jointly during an excavation. When archaeologists are confronted with harsh wetlands or impassable river beds, LiDAR can accurately create 3-D images of the area. LiDAR was used for this exact purpose in Crow Canyon, Colorado (Gugliotta, 2015). Since the ground was far too difficult to walk along, archaeologists applied lasers and sensors to depict a visual map. Once researchers had a better outline of the land, they were able to locate the best excavation sites. After they dug in Crow Canyon, archaeologists found pottery (Gugliotta, 2015). It is likely that behavioral archaeology came into play as the scientists tried to determine the use of the pottery. When using behavioral archaeology, the researchers would closely examine the artifacts. The archaeologists would have studied the wear on the pottery and how it was disposed of to learn how humans manipulated it.

Although a myriad of methods and theories exist, it can be argued that archaeology would not be the same without behavioral archaeology and LiDAR. As human beings, we should all take some level of interest in our ancestors and their demeanors. When using behavioral archaeology, archaeologists are able to paint a solid picture of what artifacts were used for throughout history. Once a possible archaeological position is found, LiDAR is a powerful tool to get a sense of the structures that are hidden from plain sight. Despite the fact that they were alive long before any of us, archaeology allows us to study humans from the past. It is imperative that we keep the practice of archaeology thriving to precisely depict our history and so future generations can understand modern man.