Page 48 - Studia Universitatis Hereditati, vol. 5(2) (2017)
P. 48
ed in a certain area, but also, using the phys-studia universitatis her editati, letnik 5 (2017), številk a 2 48Material and methods
ical traces of past societies, reconstructs events, The archaeological site Josipovac – Verušed is
examines what people did in a particular area,hereditati situated southwest of Josipovac (AN 15) in Slavo-
how did they think, and lived. All this can be nia region, Croatia. In the past, it was a village,
read from an archaeological site; it is important and today it is a suburb of the town of Osijek in
to leave findings in situ, to record them, to doc- Osijek – Baranja County. Rescue excavations
ument all the small pieces that later, put togeth- were performed on this site from 2007 to 2008,
er, will give much more data. Similar to piecing on the route of the highway Beli Manastir – Osi-
together evidence in forensics. The archaeologi- jek. The excavated area occupied 171 000 m2 (Fig
cal field methods became a part of the forensic 1). During the excavation of this large prehistor-
investigation tools before archaeologists did. Ac- ic and medieval settlement, a grave of a soldier
cording to the definition, the forensic archaeol- from World War II was discovered. This finding
ogy is an application of the archaeological par- was unexpected for an archaeological site, so all
adigms, methods and goals to the questions of standard procedures that precede an excavation
medico-legal significance.1 had already been made. Following the sequenc-
es of archaeological layers, contours of a possible
But a possible problem for an archaeologist burial pit emerged as a darker layer of earth (Fig
involved in forensics, the medico-legal investi- 2). Analysis of its relations to other geological
gation, are not different methods or new tech- and cultural layers showed that it was not an old
nologies in the field work. Huglund explains it cultural layer from the Prehistoric, Roman or
well: “Archaeological context in a forensic case Medieval period. Immediately a doubt emerged,
includes the rules of evidence, the chain of cus- it was possible that the finding was a recent bur-
tody, the potential that a court testimony may ial (in archaeological terminology recent burials
be required, and the fact that the activities and are about 50-60 years old, up to a maximum of
work of archaeologists may be subjected to le- 100 years old). The appearance pattern of burial
gal scrutiny.“2 Archaeologists got involved and pits from past wars (World War II and the Cro-
became more frequent members of forensic atian War of Independence) is well known in
teams during the 1990s, often united with phy- that part of Slavonia, from previous archaeolog-
sicians, odontologists, radiologists and criminal- ical excavations. It is a consequence of taphono-
ists in the investigations of human rights’ viola- my – decomposition of the body and other nat-
tions, or revealing the evidence of mass murders ural processes.
as in Rwanda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia.
With a strong contribution in developing recov- Deposits of earth were removed by machine
ery techniques at crime scenes and knowledge to and lately by hand. It is important to mention
elaborate techniques for the excavation of sites, that in the stratigraphic sequences, after expo-
forensic archaeology has a possibility to become sition of human remains in double graves, trace
a sub-discipline. Today, the unwritten criteria boundaries between each skeleton or anatomi-
for a forensic archaeologist is to spend at least cal element were set. The excavation of the spe-
three full years of fieldwork on sites encompass- cific burial pit was carried out using tradition-
ing open sites, structural sites, burial sites, caves, al archaeological methodology, removing layer
and well or latrine sites.3 after layer and documenting each stage of work
with photographs and drawings. From the pho-
1 Melissa Connor and Douglas D. Scott, “Paradigms and Perpetra- tographs it is evident that the excavation and the
tors,” Historical Archaeology 35, no. 1 (2001): 1-6. exhumation did not just blindly follow the stra-
tigraphy, but also the body extension, which was
2 William D. Haglund, “Archaeology and Forensic Death Investiga- later of a great help to the anthropologist, pro-
tions,” Historical Archaeology 35, no. 1 (2001): 26-34. viding an opportunity to obtain additional data
3 Douglas D. Scott and Melissa Connor, “The Role and Future of
Archaeology in Forensic Science,” Historical Archaeology 35, no. 1
(2001): 101-104.
ical traces of past societies, reconstructs events, The archaeological site Josipovac – Verušed is
examines what people did in a particular area,hereditati situated southwest of Josipovac (AN 15) in Slavo-
how did they think, and lived. All this can be nia region, Croatia. In the past, it was a village,
read from an archaeological site; it is important and today it is a suburb of the town of Osijek in
to leave findings in situ, to record them, to doc- Osijek – Baranja County. Rescue excavations
ument all the small pieces that later, put togeth- were performed on this site from 2007 to 2008,
er, will give much more data. Similar to piecing on the route of the highway Beli Manastir – Osi-
together evidence in forensics. The archaeologi- jek. The excavated area occupied 171 000 m2 (Fig
cal field methods became a part of the forensic 1). During the excavation of this large prehistor-
investigation tools before archaeologists did. Ac- ic and medieval settlement, a grave of a soldier
cording to the definition, the forensic archaeol- from World War II was discovered. This finding
ogy is an application of the archaeological par- was unexpected for an archaeological site, so all
adigms, methods and goals to the questions of standard procedures that precede an excavation
medico-legal significance.1 had already been made. Following the sequenc-
es of archaeological layers, contours of a possible
But a possible problem for an archaeologist burial pit emerged as a darker layer of earth (Fig
involved in forensics, the medico-legal investi- 2). Analysis of its relations to other geological
gation, are not different methods or new tech- and cultural layers showed that it was not an old
nologies in the field work. Huglund explains it cultural layer from the Prehistoric, Roman or
well: “Archaeological context in a forensic case Medieval period. Immediately a doubt emerged,
includes the rules of evidence, the chain of cus- it was possible that the finding was a recent bur-
tody, the potential that a court testimony may ial (in archaeological terminology recent burials
be required, and the fact that the activities and are about 50-60 years old, up to a maximum of
work of archaeologists may be subjected to le- 100 years old). The appearance pattern of burial
gal scrutiny.“2 Archaeologists got involved and pits from past wars (World War II and the Cro-
became more frequent members of forensic atian War of Independence) is well known in
teams during the 1990s, often united with phy- that part of Slavonia, from previous archaeolog-
sicians, odontologists, radiologists and criminal- ical excavations. It is a consequence of taphono-
ists in the investigations of human rights’ viola- my – decomposition of the body and other nat-
tions, or revealing the evidence of mass murders ural processes.
as in Rwanda, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia.
With a strong contribution in developing recov- Deposits of earth were removed by machine
ery techniques at crime scenes and knowledge to and lately by hand. It is important to mention
elaborate techniques for the excavation of sites, that in the stratigraphic sequences, after expo-
forensic archaeology has a possibility to become sition of human remains in double graves, trace
a sub-discipline. Today, the unwritten criteria boundaries between each skeleton or anatomi-
for a forensic archaeologist is to spend at least cal element were set. The excavation of the spe-
three full years of fieldwork on sites encompass- cific burial pit was carried out using tradition-
ing open sites, structural sites, burial sites, caves, al archaeological methodology, removing layer
and well or latrine sites.3 after layer and documenting each stage of work
with photographs and drawings. From the pho-
1 Melissa Connor and Douglas D. Scott, “Paradigms and Perpetra- tographs it is evident that the excavation and the
tors,” Historical Archaeology 35, no. 1 (2001): 1-6. exhumation did not just blindly follow the stra-
tigraphy, but also the body extension, which was
2 William D. Haglund, “Archaeology and Forensic Death Investiga- later of a great help to the anthropologist, pro-
tions,” Historical Archaeology 35, no. 1 (2001): 26-34. viding an opportunity to obtain additional data
3 Douglas D. Scott and Melissa Connor, “The Role and Future of
Archaeology in Forensic Science,” Historical Archaeology 35, no. 1
(2001): 101-104.
