Typology (archaeology)

According to Doran and Hodson, "this superficially straightforward task has proved one of the most time consuming and contentious aspects of archaeological research".

This idea is the basis for most typological constructions particularly of stone artefacts where essential forms are often thought of as "mental templates" or combinations of traits that are favoured by the maker.

Although the principles were not clearly articulated, the application of basic typological techniques can occasionally be found in the work of early modern antiquaries.

[3] In the late 17th century, John Aubrey worked out crude evolutionary sequences based on typological distinctions for medieval architecture, handwriting, shield-shapes and costume, describing his technique as "comparative antiquitie".

[4][5][6] The outline of the development of medieval Gothic architecture was further refined in the 18th century, notably by James Bentham in his 1771 History and Antiquities of Ely Cathedral, and culminated in the clear sequence of styles published by Thomas Rickman in 1817.

In his lecture to the Society of Arts in 1891 [14] Pitt-Rivers says, "When, as in the case of most prehistoric objects.., the date cannot be given, then recourse must be had to the sequence of type, and that is what I term 'Typology.'

Another early example is the typology published in 1899 by Flinders Petrie for the objects (mainly pottery) found in 900 prehistoric Egyptian graves.

Later on William Albright became the leader of dating based on the typology of Levantine pottery for excavations in the Middle East.

Correlation coefficients created by these methods help archaeologists discern between meaningful and useless similarities between artefacts.

Some examples of morphological and descriptive typologies would be categorizing artifacts distinctively on their weight, height, color, material, or whichever class the individual decides upon.

In some cases, the artifacts may not be removed because of the functional purpose they exhibit, and the restoration of the pieces can be more difficult than other types of objects.

[22] For cultures that produced pottery, archaeologists invariably spend a great deal of time defining ceramic "types."