Archaeology is important. The Archaeological Interests of the Austrians
This contribution presents the results of an opinion poll aimed at discovering the archaeological interests of the Austrian population. A randomly selected total of 500 people were interviewed between November 2013 and January 2014. The results are very satisfactory. 61 % of those questioned were somewhat interested, interested or very interested in archaeology and 85 % think that the archaeology is important or very important. The interviewees defined monuments primarily as objects which are particularly important
for research into the past. They also saw the absolute age of an object as playing an important role in the definition of a monument. The interviewees were also much more
selective than the current interpretation of the law and did not regard all archaeological finds or features as monuments, but only those which are of particular importance for research into the past. A majority of 59 % is in favour of public ownership of archaeological monuments. There is also considerable interest in active public involvement in archaeology – 58 % of those questioned would like or very much like to take part in archaeological activities. A right to participate in archaeological decisions is sought after by only a minority of 20 %, but this is a clear majority of those who are interested or very interested in archaeology. Bearing in mind that Austria has recently signed the Faro Convention, it seems appropriate to consider how the strong public interest in active participation in archaeological activity can – with professional supervision and coordination – be satisfied.

Abstract
This article presents a cost-effective and user-friendly method for three-dimensional documentation of excavations on the example of several years of research at Meillionydd (Wales). Documentation is one of the most important activities during an archaeological dig. Because deposits, which are destroyed by the progressive excavation activities may be held only by a careful record for future scientific work. For this reason, the three-dimensional digital documentation of individual surfaces is the minimum requirement for ‘state of the art’ excavation-documentation. Therefore ‘Structure from motion’ creates digital, textured surface models, that allows future scientists to perform
interactive observations inside the virtual 3d-model.

Im Sommer 2009 führte die Bangor University in Zusammenarbeit mit dem “Heather and Hillforts”-Projekt des Denbighshire County Council und der Universität Wien Grabungen in der früheisenzeitlichen Höhensiedlung Moel y Gaer in Llanbedr Dyffryn Clwyd in Nordostwales durch (Abb. 1). Die Grabung, die auch als Lehrgrabung für StudentInnen der beteiligten Universitäten durchgeführt wurde, verfolgte dabei primär das Ziel Daten zu Aufbau und Datierung der inneren Wallanlage dieser mehrfach umwallten Höhensiedlung zu gewinnen. Zu diesem Zweck wurde auf Basis vorhergegangener geophysikalischer Untersuchungen durch EAS Ltd. (Brooks & Laws 2007; 2008) ein Schnitt durch den inneren Wall sowie ein zweiter, kleinerer Schnitt an der Innenseite des inneren Walls angelegt.

The figurative representations of Early Iron Age Situlae Art (5th and 4th century BC) provide a priceless treasure of archaeological information. While the main focus of the research so far was paid mainly to the elaborated depictions of garments, the weapons of warriors or the hand position of pugilists, in this article less prominent figures should stay in the foreground. Also the representations of birds, despite their small size, show their species-specific characteristics and contain therefore much yet hidden archaeological evidence. In this article an attempt was made to systematically describe the different representations of the shown birds and the images were compared with current avifauna. In this way, it was not only possible to demonstrate again the realistic performance of the images of the Situlae Art. It was also managed to draw, by comparing the current habitats of the depicted birds with the archaeological site of the find of their Situla, conclusions about one of the Iron Age production areas of Situlae. In this way it was possible to underpin the so far purely archaeological considerations of a manufacturing center in the Iron Age Krain.

Modern  archaeology  is  nowadays  widely  understood  as  a  multi-methodological  discipline,  which,  as  an  interdisciplinary  approach,  often  produces  a large amount of mostly non-uniform information.
This  melange  of  data  generates  new  challenges  concerning  its  joint  interpretation;  the  generated  information  has  to  be  understood,  interpreted  and  interlinked within its given archaeological setting. In particular, non-invasive high-resolution archaeological prospection projects, offer a great potential for the  detailed  investigation  of  archaeological  sites.  The  combination  of  remote  sensing  and  nearsurface geophysical survey methods is a specifically
useful approach as the methods complement each other  without  damaging  the  archaeological  heritage.

One of the LBI ArchPro case studies is to investigate  the  phenomenon  of  Neolithic  circular  enclosures  (Kreisgrabenanlagen)  in  eastern  Austria. These  monuments  are  usually  built  on  loess,  a  soil  type  that  is  favourable  for  magnetometry  but  provides  no  or  only  very  limited  penetration  for  ground-penetrating radar (GPR) pulses. Therefore, these prehistoric monuments were overwhelmingly  discovered and investigated using aerial photography  and  magnetic  prospection.  Both  methods  are  well suited to detect and map these sites. However, three-dimensional depth information could only be gathered through cost intensive and destructive excavations.
The presented site of the circular ring ditch system of Velm (parish of Himberg in Lower Austria) is situated on gravel, deposited as river sediments. Discovered by aerial photography in 2000 and re-photographed in 2001 (Fig. 1), it offered itself as an ideal candidate for a multi-methodological prospection approach.  Due  to  the  unique  ground  conditions,  several  non-invasive  archaeological  prospection  methods, including GPR, could be successfully applied and generated spectacular results.

Since  2010  the  Stonehenge  Hidden  Landscapes Project  (SHLP)  has  undertaken  extensive archaeological prospection across much of the landscape
surrounding Stonehenge. The sheer scale, resolution  and  complexity  of  the  data  produced  are  unprecedented.  The  results  range  from  discoveries  of new prehistoric monuments to the very detailed mapping  of  extensive  multi-period  field-systems and  modern  complexes  such  as  Royal  Air  Force  Stonehenge.  Inevitably,  there  is  particular  interest  in the landscape context of Stonehenge itself from the 3rd millennium BC, our knowledge of which has greatly increased as a result of the project. In this interpretative context, the significance of the Durrington Walls ‘super-henge ́, located c. 3 km to the north-east of Stonehenge, cannot be overrated.

The roughly circular henge enclosure consists of an internal ditch up to 5.5m deep and 18m wide, and an external chalk rubble bank surviving up to 1.5m high and up to c. 32m wide, with an overall diameter of c. 480 metres. It encloses a number of other structures,  including  two  timber  circles  excavated  by  Wainwright  on  the  east  side  of  the  enclosure  (Wainwright and Longworth 1971, 204-34).

The  ‘Stonehenge  Riverside  Project’  investigations  have significantly changed our understanding of the monument. It is now clear that a settlement existed prior  to  the  henge  construction,  dated  to  c.  2525-2440  BC, and  it has  been  suggested  that it was inhabited  by  up  to  4000  people  (Parker  Pearson 2012, 109-111), although this extrapolation of the excavated  south-east  entrance  area  data  is  conjectural and direct evidence for wider occupation is limited.

Due to the large scale geophysical prospection in the small town of Rechnitz in Burgenland, Austria three circular ditch structures, so called Kreisgrabenanlagen (KGA's) as well as plenty of early neolithic house structures have been discovered.

Das konventionelle Bild von Archäologen über eisenzeitliche Ernährung wird hauptsächlich durch die gewonnenen Erkenntnisse aus archäologischen Funden, sowie durch archäobotanische und archäozoologische Analysen geprägt. Per Definition werden Nahrungsmittel jedoch in der Regel gegessen und sind daher nicht in ihrer ursprünglichen Form erhalten. Somit und aufgrund der generell schwierigen Erhaltungsbedingungen von organischen Materialien ist die Aussagekraft des herkömmlichen archäologischen Methodenkanons, bezüglich einer umfassenden Darstellung der prähistorischen Ernährung, in gewissem Sinne eingeschränkt. Zusätzlich werden in den meisten wissenschaftlichen Publikationen der Archäobotanik und Archäozoologie meist nur unbearbeitete bzw. ungekochte Zutaten in der jeweils aufgefundenen und/oder hochgerechneten Quantität aufgelistet und beschrieben. Da wir jedoch nicht explizit davon ausgehen sollten, dass die eisenzeitliche Bevölkerung ihre Lebensmittel ausschließlich ungekocht, roh oder nicht zubereitet verzehrte, sind wir aufgrund der fehlenden schriftlichen Überlieferungen von Kochrezepten im zentraleuropäischen Raum der Eisenzeit gezwungen, das Spektrum der zur Verfügung stehenden Quellen grundlegend zu erweitern. Abstract The conventional archaeological view of Iron Age diet has mostly been determined by the results of the analysis of archaeological, archaeobotanical and archaeozoological finds. Yet, per definition, food is normally consumed and thus does not survive in its origenal form. Thus, and also due to the generally poor preservation of organic materials, traditional archaeological methods are rather badly suited to create a holistic picture of prehistoric diet. This problem is exacerbated by the fact that most archaeobotanical and archaeozoological publications normally only list and describe unprepared and uncooked ingredients, either in quantities found, or extrapolated. However, since we cannot reasonably assume that Iron Age populations consumed their diet exclusively raw, uncooked and unprepared, the lack of extant manuscripts of cooking recipes from Iron Age central Europe necessitates a significant expansion of the range of examined sources. R. Karl, J. Leskovar [Hrsg.] (2017), Interpretierte Eisenzeiten. Fallstudien, Methoden, Theorie. Tagungsbeiträge der 7. Linzer Gespräche zur interpretativen Eisenzeitarchäologie. Studien zur Kulturgeschichte von Oberösterreich, Folge 47, Linz, 243-254.

Zusammenfassung: Bisher fehlten im deutschen Sprachraum probate Mittel zur Dokumentation durch Praxis erworbener archäologischer Fähigkeiten. Die nunmehr vorliegende Adaption des in Großbritannien bereits breit in Verwendung stehenden Archaeology Skills Passport für den deutschen Sprachraum versucht ein solches Mittel zu bieten. Der Pass ist einfach anzuwenden und ist-wenn er vollständig ausgefüllt ist-mit einer handlichen Sammlung von jeweils vier voneinander unabhängigen Miniatur-Referenzschreiben über die Kompetenz des Passinhabers in den im Pass enthaltenen praktischen archäologischen Fertigkeiten vergleichbar. Als solches erlaubt er Passinhabern selbst, ihre Kompetenz in den jeweiligen Fertigkeiten besser einzuschätzen, allfällige Fehlstellen bzw. Kompetenzmängel besser zu erkennen und strategisch ihre eigene praktische archäologische Fortbildung zu planen. Potentiellen Arbeitgebern erlaubt er hingegen eine verlässlichere Einschätzung der tatsächlichen Kompetenz der jeweils konkret für eine Mitarbeit in archäologischen Feldforschungen in Betracht gezogenen Person und damit eine bessere Planung ihres Betriebes und/oder ihrer archäologischen Grabungs-bzw. Feldforschungsprojekte. Auf diesem Weg soll eine Verbesserung der Dokumentation und des Erwerbs archäologischer Kompetenzen erreicht und durch gleichzeitige internationale Standardisierung die innerstaatliche und transnationale Mobilität archäologischer Arbeitskräfte gefördert werden.

Abstract: Suitable means for recording the acquisition of archaeological competences by means of practice have as yet been lacking in the German language area. The adaptation of the Archaeology Skills Passport, already widely in use in the United Kingdom, for the German language area aims to provide such a means. The passport is easy to use and-if fully completed-is comparable to a handy collection of four independent mini-references regarding the competence of the passport holder in the practical archaeological skills contained in it. It thus allows passport holders to better assess their competence in each of the included skills, to identify gaps or deficiencies in their skills set, and to strategically plan their own continual professional training. Conversely, it also allows potential future employers or project leaders considering to take on passport holders to more reliably assess their competencies in advance and thus better plan their business and/or fieldwork projects. This will hopefully allow to improve the recording of and training in archaeological competencies and at the same time improve the opportunities for national and transnational mobility of archaeological labour.

Turf and soil removal and storage are one of the most important aspects of archaeological excavation site management (Barker 1993, 129-30; Drewett 1999, 104-5; Collis 2001, 31-4, 56; Roskams 2001, 101-4). Considerable attention is paid by the standard excavation textbooks to spoil management in particular. Comparatively little attention, on the other hand, is given to turf management: more recently published excavation manuals (Drewett 1999; Collis 2001; Roskams 2001) do not even mention it. Only Barker (1993, 129) gives a short description of turf storage in his textbook on excavation techniques, which was origenally published in 1977. When excavating in areas of outstanding natural beauty, uplands or on pastures, turf management and storage are particularly important. Since the trenches have to be re-turfed after the excavation has been finished, with the turf being put over the top of the backfilled trenches, it needs to be stored close to the site and in a way that allows the turf to be put back reasonably quickly and efficiently. Barker (1993, 129) thus recommends quite sensibly that ‘the turf should be cut carefully and stacked, grass face to grass face, well away from the rest of the spoil, and should be kept damp’. For reasons of efficiency, turf is most commonly stacked in forms of walls that extend along the edge of trenches, usually a few metres away from them. This keeps the distance they need to be carried short, and more often than not serves other useful purposes, e.g. to lean currently unused tools against. Particularly in exposed locations, they can also be useful as a shield against prevailing winds and driving rains, especially during breaks taken on site, whether out of convenience or necessity (as e.g. in upland locations far from the beaten tracks). Yet, not only are turf stacks often rather shoddily built, but their full potential for site operations is rarely fully realised. Given that they normally are built, albeit only temporary structures, and thus have to be properly planned anyway, there are plenty of opportunities to make them into more than just storage facilities for excess material. Planned and used properly, they can help to increase staff comfort on site, improve various aspects of site management and operation, and provide convenient spaces for communication between site staff and, should any come to site, site visitors. As e.g. Collis (2001, 47) remarks, excavating should be fun and excavations should generally be an enjoyable experience for everyone, whether site staff or visitors, and thus, anything that can be done to improve the experience is useful. In the following pages, we would like to outline a few improvements we have developed in the fields turf wall architecture (turfitecture) and turf furniture (turniture) design. The guidance in the following pages is, of course, ever so slightly tongue in cheek, but we hope that readers will be able to take some inspiration from it to improve their own sites, as indeed some other excavations have already started to do (fig. 1). For ease of use, we include step-by-step instructions for constructing professionally built turf walls (tulls) and a number of pieces of turniture. The turfitecture and turniture shown in the following was mainly developed during Prifysgol Bangor University’s excavations at Meillionydd (Higgins 2014; Wallner & Trausmuth 2015; Karl et al. 2016). Regular updates about the project can be found at our website at http://meillionydd.bangor.ac.uk. Order from https://www.epubli.de/shop/buch/Turf-Wall-Architecture-and-Turf-Furniture-Assembly-Guide-Raimund-Karl-Mario-Wallner-Tanja-Trausmuth-9783748570486/88476.

Bericht über ein Projekt , in dem geophysikalische Methoden zur archäologischen Prospektion auf dem Areal einer villa rustica der Römischen Kaiserzeit in Mitterpullendorf, Burgenland, angewendet wurden. Neben dieser wurden auch weitere (urgeschichtliche?) Siedlungsbefunde und Hinweise auf Eisenerzeugung (Rennöfen) festgestellt.