Recent trends in the practice of archaeology have seen the emergence of the active involvement of stakeholders in the research process. This is an important development, given that the relationship between archaeologists and the communities that they work with has been tenuous, particularly when archaeological findings contest ethnic identities. As a case in point, the findings of the Ifugao Archaeological Project (Philippines) question the bases of Ifugao identity. Ifugao identity is centered on wet-rice production and resistance to colonialism. Previously, the dating of the inception of the Ifugao rice terraces was placed at 2,000 years ago. The findings of the Ifugao Archaeological Project (IAP), however, suggest that the construction of the terraces coincided with the arrival of the Spanish in the northern Philippines. Initially, this finding did not sit well the larger Ifugao descendant communities, but, as our article narrates, the pursuit to actively involve stakeholders in the research process resolved this issue. Our experience in Ifugao has shown that the inclusion of the voices of stakeholders in the interpretation of the past is inadequate because it suggests that indigenous stakeholders are simply contributors to, and not co-investigators of, research projects. As our work in Ifugao demonstrates, primary stakeholders are now co-investigators (exemplified by this coauthored article).

The discipline of archaeology has been tolerating, at best, a “curation crisis” for decades that is unsustainable. The many issues related to long-term collections care continue to worsen. To counter this trend, we advocate that planning for collections be integrated into project administration from inception such that the management of archaeological collections begins before fieldwork and continues well after recovered collections reach the repository. To conceptualize this process, we identify the Collection Management Cycle as a framework for the many stakeholders involved in archaeological projects. We also provide a checklist that identifies the responsibilities stakeholders have to the collections they generate, fund, care for, manage, and/or study. Concerted use of the checklist and other proposed solutions will lead to a new era of a more sustainable archaeological practice.

Archaeological sites are often dated through seriation analysis of artifacts found on the site's surface. This relative dating method remains common despite the widespread availability of absolute dating methods because it is fast and cost-effective compared to scientific dating methods such as radiocarbon dating. Surface seriation is especially important for regional survey studies that involve a large number of sites and little to no excavation. In this context it is important to ask: are surface assemblages as reliable an indicator of the age of a site as determined through excavation? This unique study addresses this question using data from seven sites in the Virú Valley on the north coast of Peru. Surface assemblages are compared with excavated ones using the G-test statistic. It is found that surface assemblages do not closely resemble excavated ones in a statistically significant sense. Nevertheless, the relative date of surface assemblages typically resembles the relative date of excavated assemblages. Caution is urged when dating surface assemblages purely through seriation because the surface may not actually be representative of excavated assemblages.

The excavation of the site of Kom W in the Fayum region of Egypt during the 1920s by Caton-Thompson and Gardner resulted in the loss of the original surface topography. Detailed section drawings recorded the surface and bottom of excavation, but it was previously difficult to interpret the published images. This article reports on the use of these images to create a three-dimensional representation of the site as it was before and after excavation in the 1920s. This visualization aids the interpretation of the formation processes that shaped Kom W in ways that were previously unachievable due to limitations in the original data. Archaeological sites are under increasing threat of destruction, especially in the Near East. This method could be applied to legacy data in order to reconstruct a site with the data available.

The accurate and precise collection of three-dimensional (3D) context and provenience data is of critical importance for archaeologists. Traditional square-hole methods are being augmented by new digital techniques to increase the accuracy and precision with which 3D data are collected. Structure from Motion (SfM) photogrammetry is an emerging digital technique that is becoming more widespread for collecting 3D data of archaeological sites and features. We are using handheld digital cameras and ground-based SfM to record accurate and precise 3D context and provenience data at the scale of the excavation unit and profile during rockshelter excavations in the Lower Pecos Canyonlands of Texas. By combining SfM with traditional excavation methods, we collect 3D data on excavation units, layers, features, and profiles without excavating in grid-bound square units. SfM provides a straightforward and flexible method to excavate based on the stratigraphy and logistical pragmatics, which further aids in assigning precise context and provenience to recovered artifacts and samples. This article describes how ground-based SfM serves as a basic recording tool during excavation and shows that, by applying ground-based SfM methods to excavation, archaeologists can collect more, and more accurate, data than with traditional square-hole methods.

Microartifact analysis, the study of the density and distribution of tiny (yet visible) fragments of ceramics, bone, worked stone, and other microartifacts, offers a promising solution to the challenges of determining the location and nature of activity areas at archaeological sites. In spite of the fact that microartifact analysis has been successfully applied at sites in North America and the Middle East, archaeologists have yet to recognize the utility of this methodology in most of the rest of the world. The purpose of this article is, therefore, to test whether this methodology can be profitably applied in the southern Andes. To do so, we describe the results of microartifact sampling, processing, and analytical techniques that we applied to two phases of occupation at the site of Tumilaca la Chimba in southern Peru. The results of the research outlined in this article suggest that microartifact analysis is an effective analytical technique that can contribute greatly to archaeological praxis.

We describe the curation and use of clay samples as part of the ceramic ecology program at the Florida Museum of Natural History's Ceramic Technology Laboratory (FLMNH-CTL). We outline the history of the comparative clay sample collection at the FLMNH-CTL and detail the standard operating procedure by which samples are processed, analyzed, and curated. We also provide examples of how the clay samples have been used in research projects as well as some of the challenges inherent to studies using such samples. Our collection of processed clays and associated thin sections, which is curated in perpetuity, represents a valuable resource for ongoing and future lab endeavors and is available to other researchers focusing on Florida and adjacent regions.

This review assesses the capabilities of the technology of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) as tools for increasing the presence of archaeology in our digital society. Instead of focusing on the academic value of the content of these courses, I explore their usefulness as promoters of rigorous archaeological practices and ethics, as well as the protection and preservation of cultural heritage. After enrolling as a student in six MOOCs, I have analyzed whether these courses successfully provided students with an informed and critical understanding of the field, as well as creating networks of advocates that can share this knowledge across their communities.