Articles by José Antonio Esquivel

Common ceramics constitute a very abundant material in the archaeological record. This study focuses on analyzing and statistically interpreting, from the perspective of archaeological material culture, the features of Roman coarse-ware ceramics from the Isturgi deposits (Andújar, Andalusia). The main goal of this research was to study ceramics from an archaeological perspective with reference to quantitative and qualitative aspects. The fragments of pottery belong to three essential types - kitchenware, tableware, and pottery for storage and transportation - and have different characteristics. The data set consists of 3,626 fragments of ceramics of Roman origin, divided in three clearly differentiated groups: 1) common calcareous ceramics, b) oxidized kitchen ceramics, and 3) reduced kitchen ceramics, having a very different quantity of fragments (1,635; 1,714; and 277, respectively) distributed in 16 excavation zones. The analysis of the information has been carried out on the basis of univariate methods, analysis of correlation and regression, analysis of the variance (ANOVA) and multivariate factorial analysis (Factorial Analysis with Varimax Rotation mainly). In this form it is possible to characterize ceramics on the basis of whether they were fired in an oxidizing or a reducing atmosphere.

Architectural design constitutes an important source of information for the study of prehistoric societies. In the protohistoric period, an architectural evolution took place in western Andalusia (Spain): the change from rounded to rectangular huts, and a new evolution to more complex houses formed by rectilinear thick walls and others less thick to shape small rooms. This paper analyses the metric and geometric features of the Acinipo protohistoric settlement (Ronda, Málaga, Andalusia) to determine the main architectural pattern in each construction phase. These analyses emphasize the evolution in the design from rounded huts to rectangular ones, but this type of construction returns to its origins with the more recent circular and elliptical huts. The comparison between these features reflects the similarities and differences arising over time in the settlement. Geometrically, regular shapes such as circles, ellipses and rectangles, as well as the orthogonality and parallelism concepts, were applied to the design and building of dwellings. Therefore, the individual huts were aligned to form a regular structure of the town, maintaining the surface area through time. The results provide evidence that geometry constitutes one of the most important multicultural symbols in the world of the architecture and its evolution shows the evolution of society.

The most recent computer technologies of 3D geometrical modelling provide a great array of tools for archaeological investigation. This paper presents an application of the 3D laser scanner to study the metric and morphometric parameters of a Chalcolithic pottery vessel based on a 3D meshed triangular model. This model is referenced geometrically by high-precision fitting to the real object, enabling the study of some of the most important archaeological characteristics with great accuracy (texture, damage, profiles, etc.) as well as a reconstruction of those damaged parts. The computerized model has been used to study the metric and geometric parameters of the vessel, applying different statistical tests to analyse the width of vessel and the variability of some constructive parameters. These analyses allow us to compute any measurement, such as the surface area of vessel, the center of masses, the volume, and the regularly spaced contour levels of the interior and exterior. The results indicate the skill of the potters of the Copper Age and their knowledge of some elementary mathematical concepts of geometry and metric.

The study of dental morphological traits in prehistoric populations is a new method of analysis and allows us to determine important characteristics of different human populations. In this paper we study the dental feature traits proposed by the ASU System (developed by Turner et al. in Arizona State University) by means of an alphanumeric and graphic database recording the dental morphological characteristics and the possible dental diseases (caries, dental wear, etc.). These traits are easily observed, and persist many years in dentally harsh life styles, evolving very slowly and without sex dimorphism. The multivariate data set obtained using the ASU System is defined by means of multistate qualitative variables, and the methodology of statistical analysis is the following: - The MMD test (Mean Measures of Divergence) was developed by Sjovold (1977) to observe the differences between two or more previously established and defined groups by means of multistate qualitative variables. It is also possible to test if existing differences among populations are ethnic, cultural, etc. - A Cluster Analysis algorithm developed by one of the authors (Esquivel1988) that enables us to build a grouping using qualitative multistate variables by means of specific developments in Information Theory established by Claude Shannon. Therefore, it is possible to determine the similarities of dental morphological traits between human groups, and compare these results with other previous information from archaeological data. This methodology has been applied to analyse human genetic diversity using exclusively dental morphological characteristics to determine the diffusion of the culture of the Argar, a prehistoric culture which existed in 1300-1500 BC The analysis has been applied to the teeth of 116 subjects belonging to the Argaric culture in the neighbouring settlements of Castellón Alto and Fuente Amarga (Granada, Spain), and the teeth of 58 subjects belonging to the non-Argaric settlement of La Navilla, also 1300-1500 BC, about 150 Kms. Distant. The results show a biological continuity, endogamy phenomena and genetic drifts. Finally, the study of the maxillar pathology like cavities and dental wear tells us about dental health, food and food preparation.

Geophysical techniques applied to archaeological exploration involve specific problems of data interpretation, due to the spatial characteristics that they possess and to the particularities of material remains in archaeological sites. This work shows an application of statistical spatial analysis to the study of data in 2D coordinates together with the value of a variable z, that quantifies a spatial soil characteristic (in the magnetometric survey these values correspond to the magnetic intensity or gradient values). The analysis includes exploratory statistical non-spatial methods and other methods extracted from the statistical spatial analysis, and performs thematic maps by means of a new algorithm that finds the greater contrasts in the z values. This methodology and the algorithm have been applied to the microspatial study of magnetometric data in a Roman settlement in Las Gabias (Granada, Spain) and verified with the excavation carried out on this site.

In this work we use an archaeological information system to record and manage data coming from an excavation. The system includes the excavation methodology, the geographical reference of archaeological elements, the settlements and elements denomination, the directories and files structure and the computer organisation. The authors develop a computer software based on PARADOX to record the archaeological information, including textual documentation, CAD maps and images.

The data from an anthracological study of vegetal carbon from six archaeological sites in the Guadix-Bàza district (Betic province, Guadiciano-Bastetano), dating from 2500 to 1400 BC, have been submitted to Correspondence Analyses in order to define relationships between taxa, to associate taxa with the sites, and to identify patterns of species appearance. The vegetation identified by anthraco-analysis for the Copper Age is the kermesoak grove (Quercus coccifera association), probably includable in the present-day Rhamno lycioidis-Quercetum cocciferae association, with Aleppo-pine groves (Pinus halepensis community) occupying the most marginal zones. This pine grove gradually replaced the oak grove during the Bronze Age, for a variety of causes, principally anthropic, such as the cultivation of new lands, farming and the cutting of trees. Human knowledge of plants is reflected in the uses of certain species for specific functions: construction materials for huts, firewood for the hearth and for metal working, and raw materials for making utensils. The use of materials depended on species availability and the socio-economic organization of the human communities inhabiting the southeastern Iberian Peninsula during the Copper and Bronze Ages.