13 Excavation of Burials

K. P. Rao

1. Introduction:

Since very early period, humans have attached high importance to the disposal of the dead. Humans have a strong basic instinct of attachment towards the family and the society. Separation by death and fear of death resulted in forming various views and beliefs about the death by different communities. Based on various factors like the geography, the culture and the beliefs, different communities have developed different disposable methods.Over a period of time, the burial practices also have undergone several changes. Like in all other cultural material, we also see evolutionary changes in the burial practices of different communities. Excavation of the burials is very important, as they reveal lot of information about the philosophical ideas of the community, the structure of the society, the beliefs, the ethnicity, the gender, the reason for the death, the health and physique of the deceased, the food habits, the profession of the individual, etc. Further, the burials sometimes contain various funerary objects along with the skeletal remains. This material is known as Funerary Assemblage. This funerary material, which is deliberately placed in the burials, in most cases, is well preserved material, compared to the habitational material, which consists mostly of refuse material. Many a time, due to the durable nature of the burial architecture, the burial contents are well preserved, like in the case of Egyptian Pyramids. In fact, most of Egyptian history was reconstructed from the evidence gathered from the burials. Hence, excavation of burials assume great importance. Apart from excavating the burials with great care, an excavator also should try to link up the burial evidence with the evidence from the habitation, so that the evidence is synchronized well.

Since, the burials contain skeletal remains, which are very fragile material, we have to conduct the excavation very carefully. Due to this fact, the excavation of the burials is relatively very slow process and calls for special handling and procedures in the excavation. Burials are, mostly, made below the existing level of the surface in those days. Usually, a pit is dug to make the burial. Hence, most of the time the burials are at a lower level than the level of the habitation. Hence, tracing of the burial evidence starts from the point a burial pit or its covering material is noticed. Some of the burials may have a protective covering of stones or rubble packing. In the context of Indus burials, we also come across brick lined pits. Whenever, a covering of rubble or cairn packing is noticed, the excavation of the burial starts from that level. We have to take care not to disturb any of the covering material before complete recording. It is also necessary that, sufficient portion of the covering material is preserved in the sections, so that we can understand the different layers of the covering material and also for study of the stratigraphy within the burial area. The photographs also should show these sections along with the skeletal remains and the funerary assemblage.

Whenever, the burial pit is devoid of any protective covering, the detection of the pit poses problems. When the excavation is in progress, we only see small change in the colour, some times, very faint discolouration, is seen. Whenever, any such colour change is noticed, we should try to detect the pit by using various techniques. We have to carefully observe, whether there is any difference in colour, compactness or content in the material between the surrounding soil and the discoloured soil. It also advisable to conduct sound wave survey in the form of tapping the ground with the wooden handle of the pick-axe or such instrument. Usually pits containing loose soil emit hollow sound compared to the compact surrounding soil. After tracing the shape of the pit, we have to draw a line delineating the outline of the pit. Once, the shape of the burial pit is marked, usually, the area is divided into two halves, and excavation is taken up first in one half. We have to take care to see that the burial area always maintains stratigraphic connection with the habitational layers, when the burials are found within the habitational area as happens, usually, in Neolithic and Chalcolithic sites. The skeletal remains have to be carefully exposed, without disturbing the funerary assemblage (offerings found with the skeletal remains). We also have to trace the different layers of filling within the burial pit. Since only half of the burial area is excavated initially, the section in the unexcavated part shows clearly the sequence of filling in the layers. These layers should be recorded meticulously before taking up excavation in the other half of the burial. Effort also should be made to trace any post-burial disturbance to the burial area.

While excavating a burial, all the related material like the pottery, metal objects, ornaments, stone objects, etc. should be left in situ, i.e., at the original place. Only the surrounding deposits should be cleaned to expose these materials for study and recording. When the funerary assemblage is found at different level, to the possible extent, we have to see that all the material in preserved in the same context, till the end of the excavation. For this, at times, we may have to maintain appropriate support in the form of ‘platform’ to hold the material in place till the end. We also have to preserve separately, the pot sherds and other material that comes from the burial deposit, as some times, we may find later that they have some contextual relation with the burial. The orientation of the pit, skeleton and the position of different objects should be recorded systematically.

2. Exposing Skeletal Remains

Exposing the skeletal remains requires great care and patience. In most cases the bones we are dealing are more than a millennia or several millennia old. Hence, they tend to be very fragile and delicate. One of the first steps to take while excavating the burials is to prevent exposure of the burial area to direct sunlight, especially in the mid day. Every care should be taken to preserve the moisture in the burial area, so that the bones do not wilt and removing the deposits around the bones is not that difficult. It is advisable to cover the burial area with tarpaulin or plastic sheet to prevent quick drying. Care also should be taken to protect the burial area from rain and wild animals. When the burial excavation is in progress, if heavy rain is anticipated, it is advisable to cover the area with rain protective plastic sheet. If heavy winds are anticipated, it is better to cover the area with plastic sheet weighed down by a layer of sand. While doing this we have to take care to protect the burial area with wooden planks, so that the burial is not disturbed. In all such eventualities, we have to see that only the area where work is being taken up is accessible, and the remaining area should be well protected.

Special instruments are required for exposing the skeletal remains. Small instruments like the forceps, needle, scalpel, blower-brush, small brushes, etc. are needed to execute delicate work. If the earth sticking on the bones is hard, it can be softened by few drops of diluted surgical spirit (80% distilled water 20% spirit), applied using a dropper. We should desist from this, in case we plan to send these bones for Carbon dating, as spirit contains organic material. If the bones are too fragile and breaking, it is advisable to coat the bones with 5% solution of Poly Vinyl Acetate (PVA) to strengthen the sustainability, when they are ultimately lifted. While exposing the bones, they should not be completely separated from the deposit. The soil supporting below the bones should be left, so that the bones have sufficient ground support from below. It advisable to leave an elevated platform of soil around the area containing the skeletal remains, while exposing the other funerary assemblage.

3. Recording the Burials

Systematic recording of the excavation of the burials goes hand in hand with the excavation. Descriptive, illustrative and photographic recording should be carried out continuously, while the excavation is going on. A descriptive record of all the material and their context should be maintained meticulously. The drawings and photographs should show clearly the relationship of different components of the burial along with their stratigraphical relationship. The drawings and photograph should include the name of the site, trench number, the pit number, the burial number, north point, the scale, the layer numbers, apart from clearly delineating the pit outline. It is also advisable to include IFRAO (International Federation of Rock Art Organisations) scale for colour calibration. While, taking photographs of the excavated area, it is advisable to fix the camera to a stand. This apart from avoiding the movement inherent in any human body, also helps in positioning appropriately, the identifiers, scale, layer numbers and north point. For example the scale has to be parallel to one of the edges of the photograph. Similarly, the tags containing the layer numbers should look vertical in the photograph. Before photographing the burial area, the whole area going to be covered should be thoroughly cleaned. All the edges and corners of the trench, section and pit should be trimmed. The pit outline and the separation line of the layers should be deepened to appear clearly in the photograph. Further, if root activity is there is in sections, all the roots and hair roots, that hang from the section should be removed with cutters. It is also necessary to brush the whole area using floor brushes to remove foot prints, and to maintain neat appearance of the excavation area. All the tools used for the excavation should be removed from view of the camera. If the photograph is covering a large area, then it is also customary to include ‘human scale’ in the form of a worker included in the frame in an unobtrusive manner. The person engaged such, should be made to involve in some activity like brushing.

4. Collection of the Bones

Collection of skeletal remains from the burials require special care. If the bones have enough strength to withstand normal packing, then they can be collected in cloth bags. The bones meant for dating and other analysis should not be collected in cloth bags. It is advisable to collect such material in aluminum foil. Bones should be sufficiently dried in shade before packing them, especially if we are using polythin bags. Details like the site name, trench name, field season, layer number, depth, pit number, burial number etc. should be written on the tag which is attached to each of the bag. One such tag also should be placed inside the bag. If the bones are very fragile and require special handling, then it is advisable to set them in straw board boxes set with surgical cotton at the bottom and lined by aluminum foil which provides appropriate contour for the bones to sit properly. The bones required for dating, DNA and other analysis should be packed separately in aluminum foil. Small bones of the hands and legs should be packed separately using separate bags for right and left parts. The carpals, metacarpals and phalanges of the right and left hand should be packed separately in bags. Similarly the tarsals, metatarsals and phalanges of the right and left legs should also be packed separately in bags.

5. Excavation of the Megalithic Burials

Megaliths have their own unique architecture. As the term megalith indicate, the monuments are constructed using huge stones. Though, there are different varieties of megalithic monuments, the stone circles and cairn burials are usually, circular structures. Megalithic burials are usually found away from the habitational deposits. Hence, they do not form part of the general excavation layout of a habitational site. Usually, the burials are scattered in otherwise sterile areas. So there is no purpose in excavating the area in a grid pattern. Since, the area containing the individual burials

are enclosed, usually, by a stone circle, it is advisable to confine the excavation only to the area enclosed by the stone circles, or at the most little beyond the circle area. Hence, we have to adopt different strategy for excavating megalithic burials. As stated, most of the megalithic burials are round structures, and each burial is a separate entity. Usually, two methods are adopted for excavating the megalithic circles, as discussed below.

6. Quadrant Method

In Quadrant method, the burial area is usually divided into four quadrants, following cardinal directions. For this, first, four peg marks or stakes are fixed on four cardinal directions about two meters outside the stone circle area. Each of the stake is marked with the corresponding direction in which it is fixed. Thus the stakes will have E, W, N, S as per the direction in which they are fixed. Then the trenching thread is fixed to the 5” (five inch) nails fixed at the bottom of each stake. Thus the trenching thread divides the burial area into four quadrants of approximate equal size. Each of these quadrants are known accordingly as North-West Quadrant, North-East Quadrant, South-East Quadrant and South-West Quadrant. First excavation is taken up in two diagonally opposite quadrants. It is not necessary to leave baulk in the first two quadrants while excavating. Similarly, about 10 cm of platform also should be left unexcavated around the circle stones. The other procedure of excavating the burial pit, skeletal remains and the funerary assemblage is same as described above. After completing excavation in the first two quadrants, excavation is taken up in the rest of the two quadrants, leaving the burial contents in the first quadrants intact. For this, first, a 50 cm. baulk is marked along the thread in the identified quadrants. Leaving this baulk, excavation is taken up in the rest of the quadrant areas. Care also should be taken to include about one meter of area outside the stone circle, as there are instances, where material has been found beyond the circle area. After completing excavation in all the four quadrants, and after proper recording of the strata and burial contents, the baulk is also removed to expose the complete burial area. The advantage with this method is that we will have proper stratigraphic context of the total burial area. But, still some times it has been observed that, the quadrant method has some disadvantages. It has been observed that, sometimes, the same stone circle is used for multiple burials made at different periods. If a particular burial is confined within the excavated area of a quadrant, then the stratigraphic context of that particular burial with the other burials is difficult to establish. To overcome this difficulty, the following strip method is recommended.

7. Strip Method

In strip method of excavation, the entire area of the stone circle is divided into strips of equal dimensions (about 1 mt), following preferably north – south orientation. Then, first, excavation is taken up in alternate strips. After exposing the burials and their contents, and after studying the stratigraphic correlation of the different burials, excavation of the remaining strips is taken up.

8. Excavation of Cist Burials

Cist burials are the chambers constructed using stone slabs. There are various kinds of cist burials like the oblong cists, swastika cist, transepted cist, etc. Cists consist of the vertical slabs on the sides, which are known as the orthostats. Oblong cists usually have rectangular plan. The slabs on the longer axis are separated by the smaller slabs inserted between them near the extremes of the longer slabs. Usually, the smaller slabs are taller than the slabs on the longer axis. Thus, when the cap-stones are placed on the longer slabs, they sit in-between the smaller slabs, which project beyond the height of the longer slabs. Quite often, we notice bottom or floor slab embedded between the orthostats. When we notice the pit of the cist, we have to divide the area into two halves and excavate first in one half till the bottom of the cist, without disturbing any of the cist stones, including the covering slabs. After studying and recording the shape and profile of the pit, excavation is taken up in the cist itself. The cap-stone has to be removed to have access to the contents in the cist chambers. Sometimes, the cists may be very narrow and small. In such cases, to facilitate proper excavation of the contents, we may have to remove one of the orthostats, usually on the longer axis, by clearing deposit on one external side of the cist. While excavating the cists we have to see that sufficient support is provided to the orthostats by leaving some deposit intact. Otherwise, the orthostats may collapse on the burial contents. After removing one of the orthostats, we have to observe and record the stratigraphy within the cist area. Only after, complete recording of the stratigraphy, we have to start clearing the deposit in thin sections of about 5 cm at a time. As usual, if any antiquities or skeletal remains are encountered, they have to be left in situ. Quite often, the assemblage is found at different levels in the cist burials. In such cases, we have to leave sufficient support for the objects while clearing the deposit.

9. Summary

Excavation of the burials is very important as they yield very important evidence about the people, their culture, practices and the society. Since the burials contain very fragile skeletal remains, the excavation has to be conducted very carefully. We need to use special tools for conducting the burial excavation. We have to maintain continuous recording of the excavation process. We have to use different methods of recording like the descriptive, illustrative and photographic methods while the excavation is in the process. Packing of the skeletal remains need special care. The skeletal remains, both, human as well as the animal remains are usually subjected to post-excavation analysis like DNA extraction, species identification, dating, nutrition etc. Excavation of the megaliths is carried out using Quadrant and Strip methods, while cist burials have to be excavated following specific procedure. Thus excavation of the burials call for special procedures as the evidence is very important in understanding the society, practices and beliefs.

Web links

• Jacqueline I McKinley and Charlotte Roberts, A Field Guide to the Excavation of Inhumated Human Remains,
  http://www.bajr.org/BAJRGuides/14.%20Field%20Guide%20to%20the%20Excavation%20of%20Huma
  n%20Inhumated%20Remains/FieldGuidetotheExcavationofHumanInhumatedRemains.pdf
• Guidelines for Documentation of Human Remains,
  http://www.statemuseum.arizona.edu/media/statemuseum/_file/asm_guidelines_human_remains_docume
  ntation.pdf
• http://groma.unibo.it/ferreri_human_remains_in_archaeology

Bibliography

• Jim Grant, Sam Gorin and Neil Fleming, The Archaeology Course book: An Introduction to Study Skills,
  Topics and Methods. Routledge, 2005.
• Megan Brickley and Jacqueline I McKinley (Ed.) Guidelines to the Standards for Recording Human Remains, Department of Archaeology, University of Southampton, 2004.
• Rajan. K, Archaeology: Principles and Methods, ManooPathipaakam, Thanjavur, 2002.
• Srivastava, K.M., New Era of Indian Archaeology, Cosmo Publications, 1987