Ecofacts and the transition from systemic to archaeological context

Abstract

The ecofacts in the archaeological record of a site were, or were perhaps not deposited by the humans that once lived at the site, from which the ecofacts have been rᵉcovered. This paper will try to contribute to the discussion on formation processes (sensu Schiffer 1987) as concems ecofacts. Two historical/ethnoarchaeological examples will be de-monstrated, both of them from 19^th century Dalarna, Sweden. lnsect and seed remains from a from a charcoal-bumer's hut and a miner's cottage will form the starting points of the discussion. Especially the crucial question of when the ecofacts became a part of the archaeological context in relation to the occupation periods of the sites will be in focus. It is stressed tbat ecofacts that enter the archaeological context after tbat the sites were abandoned from systemic contexts are quite different from that of the occupation period of the sites. This may be due to both cultural and environmental formation processes.