Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology (264 page)

 
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A term developed by Michael Schiffer in the early 1970s to describe the way in which archaeological deposits come about and change through time down to the point where they are excavated. Some understanding of this is critical to being able to understand and explain what is found during archaeological excavations. Schiffer identified two groups of formation processes. N-transforms are caused by non-cultural processes such as wind, water, rodent activity, and chemical action. By contrast C-transforms are cultural transforms which are the links between what people do and what is left in the archaeological record. Both impact on structures, objects, their associated matrix, and their associations in predictable ways as they move from the past (systemic context) into the present (archaeological context).

 
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The third of five general cultural stages proposed by G. Willey and P. Phillips in 1958 as a framework for the study of ancient communities in the Americas, broadly covering the period
c.
2500 bc through to ad 300. The Formative embraced communities with village agriculture and sedentary lifestyles and is therefore mainly confined in its application to southwestern parts of North America, Mesoamerica, and the central and northern west coast of South America. The term is now largely obsolete because regionally specific traditions with better chronological and cultural resolution have been defined in most areas. During the Formative Stage, the foundations are laid for the emergence of a range of complicated social traditions or civilizations and nearly all the main traits that characterize these later civilizations were established: astronomical observations, calendrical systems, monumental architecture, hieroglyphic writing, craft specialization, planned settlements, and elaborate defined ceremonial and religious centres.
The main value of the concept of the Formative Stage is the recognition that no matter when it happened, the same basic pattern of development can be seen: sparsely scattered hamlet-type agricultural settlements increasing in their density in the landscape, coupled with the emergence of larger more important centres. Traditionally, the Formative is followed by the
CLASSIC STAGE
.

 
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South American farming cultures found in the Marajo area of Amazonia and tentatively dated to
c.
ad 700–800. Characterized by their ceramic assemblages which belong to the Polychrome Horizon Style of the Amazon basin.

 
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A military construction that combines accommodation for troops, their transport, and their equipment with a defensible stronghold. In general, the design of a fort will reflect the style of warfare anticipated, and the kind of defence that might be mounted. Amongst the most widespread set of forts known through archaeological investigation are those built by the Roman army. Indeed, these provided models for later armies to copy and adapt. Roman forts were either temporary (also called marching camps), built of earth and wood with tents rather than buildings, or permanent/long-term, in which case they were built in stone and wood with considerable investment in the fortifications, infrastructure, and accommodation. Those used by cavalry units would have an annexe for stabling the horses if there was insufficient room within the main fort. The basic layout of Roman forts followed set patterns and all were built to the so-called ‘playing-card’ shape. Three main sizes can be recognized:
fortlets
of less than 1ha;
forts
of between 1ha and 4ha to accommodate between 500 and 1000 troops; and
fortresses
which generally cover between 17ha and 20ha and were designed to accommodate a whole legion. The Roman term for a fort is
castellum
.

 
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