WHAT IS THE ANTLER SLEEVE ?

ANTLER SLEEVE: a section of deer antler carved into a cavity or hole at one end to hold a stone axhead. The piece was either set into a socket in a haft or perforated to attach to the haft. This material was used for its resilience and shock-absorbing value in toolmaking. Roughly trimmed antler picks have been used in construction and flint mining.

WHAT IS THE ANTLER ?

ANTLER: lowest, forward branch of the horn of a deer – bonelike material that is grown and shed annually. Antlers indicate the sex of the species, for example only male red deer, fallow deer, and elk (moose) have antlers. They may also indicate whether a site is occupied seasonally as they are naturally shed in the winter, except for female reindeer that shed their antlers in spring. Antlers were a valuable material for making many tools.

WHAT IS THE ANTIMONY ?

ANTIMONY: A brittle metallic substance that has been used in the preparation of yellow pigments for enamel and porcelain painting. It forms a fourth constituent in alloys, along with nitrogen, phosphorus, arsenic, bismuth, and some others in forming triads and pentads.

WHAT IS THE ANTHROPOMORPH ?

ANTHROPOMORPH: A representation of the human form in art, such as those found on ancient pottery; figure, object, or rock art with or using a human shape. The term also refers to the attribution of human features and behaviors to animals, inanimate objects, or natural phenomena [anthropomorphic figure; anthropomorphism (n.); anthropomorphous (adj.)]

WHAT IS THE ANTHROPOID ?

ANTHROPOID: Of human form; manlike. Taken from the Greek term for man-shaped, it is used to describe sarcophagi and coffins and other artifacts of human shape. The term is also used to describe a being that is only human in form or an anthropoid ape (gibbons, orangs, chimpanzees, gorillas). [anthropomorphous]

WHAT IS THE ANTEFIX ?

ANTEFIX: Ornamental tiles fixed to the eaves and cornices of ancient Greek and Roman buildings to decoratively conceal the ends of the rain tiles. The term also refers to vertical ornamental heads of animals, etc. that were the spouts from the gutters. [antefixal (adj.)]

WHAT IS THE ANSA LUNATA ?

ANSA LUNATA: A handle or handles on a vessel or vase going in two opposite directions or in two diverging projects. The term describes Terramara pottery of the Apennine culture and vessels of central Europe of the Middle to Late Bronze Age.

WHAT IS THE ANNEALING ?

ANNEALING: the treating of a metal or alloy with heat and then cold – or the repeated process of heating and hammering to produce the desired shape. After casting metal, it may be necessary to further process it by cold working, hammering, and drawing the metal – either to produce hard cutting edges or to produce beaten sheet metal. Hammering makes the metal harder, though more brittle and subject to cracking, because it destroys its crystalline structure. Annealing, the reheating of the metal gently to a dull red heat and allowing it to cool, produces a new crystalline structure which can be hammered again. The process may be repeated as often as is necessary. The final edge on a weapon may be left unannealed as it will be harder and last longer.

WHAT IS THE ANKH ?

ANKH: Egyptian hieroglyphic sign for life, consisting of a T-shape surmounted by a loop. It represents a sandal strap or the handle of a mirror. The ankh is commonly shown being carried by deities and pharaohs and was widely used as an amulet. Temple reliefs frequently included scenes in which a king was offered the ankh by the gods, thus symbolizing the divine conferral of eternal life. It was used in some personal names, such as Tutankhamen. It was adapted by Coptic Christians as their cross.

WHAT IS THE ANIMAL STYLE ?

ANIMAL STYLE: A term describing a type of gold production whose themes were animals and which arose from the Scythians, a seminomadic people from the Eurasian steppes who moved from southern Russia into the territory between the Don and the Danube and then into Mesopotamia. During the 5th to 4th centuries bc, this style appeared on shaped, pierced plaques made of gold and silver, which showed running or fighting animals (reindeer, lions, tigers, horses) alone or in pairs facing each other. The animal style had a strong influence in western Asia during the 7th century bc. Ornaments such as necklaces, bracelets, pectorals, diadems, and earrings making up the Ziwiye treasure (found in Iran near the border of Azerbaijan) show evidence of highly expressive animal forms. This Central Asian Scythian–Iranian style passed by way of Phoenician trading in the 8th century bc into the Mediterranean and into Western jewelry. The most popular themes are antlered stags, ibexes, felines, birds of prey and, above all, the animal-combat motif, which shows a predator, usually bird or feline, attacking a herbivore. The joining of different animals and the use of tiny animal figures to decorate the body of an animal are also characteristic. Animal bodies were also contorted – animals curved into circles and quadrupeds with hindquarters inverted. The term is shorthand for this complex of motifs and treatments, which for long periods represented the art of the vast steppe zone of Europe and Asia. The transformations they underwent in the course of their long history on the steppes often leave the sources and affiliations of particular versions obscure.

WHAT IS THE ANGLIAN ?

ANGLIAN: Quaternary glacial deposits found in East Anglia, England. Other possibly related and isolated patches exist elsewhere in Britain, but they are older than the extreme range of radiocarbon dating and paleomagnetism shows them to be younger than 700,000 bp. This period sometimes equates with the Elster glacial maximum and dates to c. 400,000–300,000 years ago. During the Anglian-Elsterian glaciation in Europe a large ice-dammed lake formed in the North Sea, and large

overflows from it initiated the cutting of the Dover Straits. In East Anglia, the deposits are stratified below Hoxnian and above Cromerian interglacial deposits, and Acheulian and Clactonian artifacts are found in the sediments. Most of the evidence of human activity in Britain and Europe is later than this time. Anglian is more often used to describe the group of deposits or the one glaciation (antepenultimate) of that time.

WHAT IS THE ANDEAN CHRONOLOGY ?

ANDEAN CHRONOLOGY: chronological systems of the Central Andes area with two main stages, Preceramic and Ceramic. The Ceramic is broken down into: Initial Period, 1900–1200 bc, Early Horizon 1200–300 bc, Early Intermediate Period 300 bc to ad 700, Middle Horizon 700–1100, Late Intermediate Period 1100–1438/1478, and Late Horizon 1438–1532. These Horizon periods are times of widespread unity in cultural traits. Intermediate periods are times of cultural diversification.

WHAT IS THE ANCESTOR BUST ?

ANCESTOR BUST: Small, painted, apelike busts that were the focus of ancestor worship in Egypt’s New Kingdom. Many were of limestone or sandstone, with some smaller examples made of wood and clay.

Limestone Ancestor Bust

WHAT IS THE ANAGLYPH ?

ANAGLYPH: a term describing any work of art that is carved, chased, embossed, or sculptured – such as bas-reliefs, cameos, or other raised working of a material. Materials which are incised or sunken are called intaglios or diaglyphs. The Egyptians also used the term anaglyphs for a kind of secret writing.

WHAT IS THE ANACHRONISTIC ?

ANACHRONISTIC: pertaining to the representation of something as existing or occurring at other than in its proper time, particularly earlier, and involving or containing anything out of its proper time.

WHAT IS THE AMYGDALOID ?

AMYGDALOID: almond-shaped; a term used to describe elongated ovate or cordiform biface tools.

WHAT IS THE AMULET ?

AMULET: small good-luck charms, often in the form of gods, hieroglyphs, and sacred animals and made of precious stones or faience. They were especially popular with Egyptians and other Eastern peoples, worn in life and placed in burials or within mummy wrappings. Amulets were supposed to afford protection and may have been thought to imbue the wearer with particular qualities. Some superstitiously thought amulets could heal diseases or help the wearer avoid them. [meket, nehet, periapta, sa, wedja]

A Roman Silver Tri-penis Amulet

WHAT IS THE AMPULLA ?

AMPULLA: A small Greek or Roman globular flask or bottle with two handles and a short narrow neck. It was used for holding oil for bathers (called ampulla oleria) or wine, oil, vinegar, and other beverages for table use (then called ampulla potaria). These small containers were usually the form of a globe or bladder, though sometimes shaped like a lentil with rounded sides. [ampullae (pl.)]

WHAT IS THE AMPHORA ?

AMPHORA: A large Greek or Roman earthenware storage jar, with a narrowneck and mouth and two handles (“two-eared,” each called an anem) at the top. The body of the jar is usually oval and long, with a pointed bottom. It was used for holding or transporting liquids, especially wine or oil, and other substances such as resin. Its shape made it easy to handle and ideal for tying onto a mule’s or donkey’s back. They were often placed side by side in upright positions in a sandfloored cellar; sinking them into the sand or ground kept the contents cool. Amphorae were also made of glass, onyx, gold, stone, and brass and some had conventional jar bottoms with a flat surface. The container

would be sealed when full, and the handle usually carried an amphora stamp, impressed before firing, giving details such as the source, the potter’s name, the date, and the capacity. Amphorae were probably not normally reused. [amphorae (pl.)]

WHAT IS THE AMBER ?

AMBER: Fossilized pine resin, a transparent yellow, orange, or reddishbrownmaterial from coniferous trees. It is amorphous, having a specific gravity of 1.05–1.10 and a hardness of 2–2.5 on the Mohs scale, and has two varieties – gray and yellow. Amber was appreciated and popular in antiquity for its beauty and its supposed magical properties. The southeast coast of the Baltic Sea is its major source in Europe, with lesser sources near the North Sea and in the Mediterranean. Amber is washed up by the sea. There is evidence of a strong trade in amber up the Elbe, Vistula, Danube, and into the Adriatic Sea area. The trade began in the Early Bronze Age and expanded greatly with the Mycenaeans and again with the Iron Age peoples of Italy. The Phoenicians were also specialist traders in amber. The soft material was sometimes carved for beads and necklaces.

WHAT IS THE AMARNA PERIOD ?

AMARNA PERIOD: phase in the late 18th dynasty, including the reigns of Akhenaten, Smenkhkare, Tutankhamen, and Ay (1379–1352 bc), when important religious and artistic changes took place. The name is derived from the site of Akhenaten’s capital at Tell el-Amarna.

WHAT IS THE ALTITHERMAL ?

ALTITHERMAL: A warm, dry postglacial period in the western United States c. 5600–2500 bc. Coined by Ernst Antev in 1948, the term describes a time during which temperatures were warmer than at present. Other terms, like “long drought,” are also used.

WHAT IS THE ALL-PURPOSE TOOL ?

ALL-PURPOSE TOOL: a rare stone artifact that could be used for perforating, cutting, and scraping normally larger than a thumb scraper or a drill but smaller than a large knife or scraper. It always has one end worked to a point for perforation with the opposite end worked in the form of an end scraper. One side is worked rather delicately for use as a knife. It is almost always oblong in shape.

WHAT IS THE ALLOY ?

ALLOY: any of a number of substances which are a mixture of two or more metals, such as bronze (copper and tin), brass (copper and zinc), or tumbaga (copper and gold). An alloy has properties superior to those of the individual metals. They are not simple mixtures, but complex crystalline structures that may differ considerably from any of their constituents. Slight alterations of the proportions of the metals can bring significant changes in the properties of the alloy. Alloys containing only two major metals are known as binary alloys and those with three as ternary alloys. Gold is alloyed with various metals; when mixed with mercury it is called an amalgam, and with silver, it is called native gold. Bronze was the most important alloy in antiquity. The term is also used to describe the technique of mixing the metals.

WHAT IS THE ALLEROD OSCILLATION ?

ALLEROD OSCILLATION: An interstadial (transient) period of glacial retreat at the close of the Würm glacial stage in Europe, dated to c. 12,000– 11,000 years ago. This temporary increase in warmth allowed forests to establish themselves for a time in the ice-free zones. Radiocarbon dates show similar conditions prevailed in North America at about the same time. It was followed by another cold, glacial advance.

WHAT IS THE ALEXANDIRINUM ?

ALEXANDIRINUM: a type of mosaic used especially for Roman rooms, notably in the 9th century. It used tiny, geometrically shaped pieces of colored stone and glass paste that were arranged in intricate geometric patterns dotted with large disks of semiprecious stones. It often was of only two colors, red and black, on a white ground.

WHAT IS THE ALBARIUM ?

ALBARIUM: A white lime coating or type of stucco used in Roman times, used to cover brick walls after cement was applied. The mixture contained chalk, plaster, and white marble.

WHAT IS THE ALBARELLO ?

ALBARELLO: a late medieval (15th to 18th centuries) Near East, Spanish, and Italian apothecary pottery jar. It was made in the form known as majolica or with a fine tin glaze over typically blue designs imitating the forms of Arabic script. Its basic shape was cylindrical but incurvedand wide-mouthed for holding, using, and shelving. They average 18 cm (7 inches) high and are free of handles, lips, and spouts. A piece of paper or parchment was tied around the rim as a cover for the jar. Drug jars from Persia, Syria, and Egypt were introduced into Italy bythe 15th century, and luster-decorated pots influenced by the Moors in Spain entered through Sicily. Spanish and Islamic influence is apparent in the colors used in the decoration of early 15th-century Italian albarelli, which are often blue on white. A conventional oakleaf and floral design, combining handsomely with heraldic shields or with scrollwork and an inscribed label, frequently occurs. Geometric patterns are also common. By the end of the 18th century, albarelli had yielded to other containers. Albarelli have occasionally been found in Britain and the Netherlands. [albarelli ]

WHAT IS THE ALABASTRON ?

ALABASTRON: a Greek container made of alabaster, but sometimes clay, used for unguents. [alabastrum]

WHAT IS THE ALABASTER ?

ALABASTER: A term used by Egyptologists for a type of white, semitransparent or translucent stone used in statuary, vases, sarcophagi, and architecture. It is a form of limestone (calcium carbonate), sometimes described as travertine. It was used increasingly from the Early Dynastic period for funerary vessels as well as for statuary and altars. Alabaster is found in Middle Egypt, a main source being Hatnub, southeast of el-Amarna. The sarcophagi of Seti I (British Museum) is a fine example. An alabaster (also alabastron or alabastrum) is also the name of a small vase or jar for precious perfumes or oils made of this material. It was often globular with a narrow mouth and often without handles.

WHAT IS THE AEOLIPILAE ?

AEOLIPILEA: Name of a Greek metal vase with a narrow opening. It was filled with water and placed on a fire to make the chimney draw better or to indicate the wind’s direction. [aeolipylae, eolipyle]

WHAT IS THE AEGIS ?

AEGIS: a shield or defensive armor in ancient mythology, from the Greek word for shield; also used to describe the representation of a necklace on the head of a deity.

WHAT IS THE AEGINETAN MARBLES ?

AEGINETAN MARBLES: archaic Greek sculpture discovered in the temple of Pallas-Athene at Aegina, an island in the Saronic group of Greece. They are in the Glyptothek at Munich, Germany. Aegina’s period of glory was the 5th century bc, which left a legacy of sculpture.

WHAT IS THE ADZE ?

ADZE: A cutting tool, similar to an ax, in which the blade is set at right angles to the handle or haft. One of the earliest tools, it was widely distributed in Stone Age cultures in the form of a handheld stone chipped to form a blade. By Egyptian times, it was made ofstone, metal, or shell and had acquired the handle. It is distinguished from the ax (working edge parallel with the haft) by its asymmetrical cross-section. This carpenter’s tool was used for rough dressing of timber and possibly for tree felling and for hollowing out a dugout canoe. The adze also was used in the ritual ceremony

“opening of the mouth” in Egypt; touching it to the mouth of the mummy or statue of the deceased was thought to restore the senses. [adz, adze blade]

WHAT IS THE ADOBE ?

ADOBE: Spanish term for sun-dried mud brick; also the name for a structure built out of this material. These claylike buff or brown mud bricks were not fired, but hardened and dried in the sun. The material was also used as mortar, plaster, and amorphous building material for walls. Adobe structures are found in the southwestern US and Mexico where there is heavy-textured clay soil and a sunny climate. These structures were often houses, temples, and large solid platforms in the shape of

truncated pyramids.

WHAT IS THE ADENA ROSSVIILLE POINT ?

ADENA ROSSVILLE POINT: Contracting stemmed point with a narrower section at the base than the main part of the arrowhead point.

WHAT IS THE ADENA, ADENA POINT ?

ADENA: a widespread Native American culture of the Early Woodland period in the Ohio Valley and named after the Adena Mounds of Ross County. It is known for its ceremonial and complex burial practices involving the construction of mounds and by a high level of craftwork and pottery. It is dated from as early as c. 1250 bc and flourished between c. 700 and 200 bc. It is ancestral to the Hopewell culture in that region. It was also remarkable for long-distance trading and the beginnings of agriculture. The mounds (e.g., Grave Creek Mound) are usually conical and they became most common around 500 bc. There was also cremation. Artifacts include birdstones, blocked-end smoking pipes, boatstones, cord-marked pottery, engraved stone tablets, and hammerstones. Artifacts distinctive of Adena include a tubular pipe style, mica cutouts, copper bracelets and cutouts, incised tablets, stemmed projectile points, oval bifaces, concave and reel-shaped gorgets, and thick ceramic vessels decorated with incised geometric designs. [Adena point]

WHAT IS THE ADDITIVE AND ADDITIVE TECHNOLOGY ?

ADDITIVE: An organic or mineral material mixed with clay by the potter to modify its properties in forming, drying, and firing.

ADDITIVE TECHNOLOGY: manufacturing processes in which material is added to an original mass to form an artifact. Ceramic production and basketmaking are additive technologies. 

WHAT IS THE AD ?

AD: used as a prefix to a date, it indicates years after the birth of Christ or the beginning of the Christian calendar. Anno Domini (Latin) means “In the year of our Lord.” The lower case “ad” represents uncalibrated radiocarbon years and ad denotes a calibrated radiocarbon date or a historic date that does not need calibration. There is no year 0; 1 bc is followed by ad 1.

WHAT IS THE ACTIVITY AREA ?

ACTIVITY AREA: 1. A place where a specific ancient activity was located or carried out, such as food preparation or stone toolmaking. The place usually corresponded to one or more features and associated artifacts and ecofacts. In American archaeology, the term describes the smallest observable component of a settlement site. 2. A patterning of artifacts in a site indicating that a specific activity, such as stone toolmaking, took place.

WHAT IS THE ACROTERION ?

ACROTERION:  A sculptured figure, tripod, disk, or urn, made of bronze, marble, or terra cotta, placed on the apex of the pediment of a Greek temple or other substantial building.

WHAT IS THE ACROLITH ?

ACROLITH: a Greek statue, of which the head and extremities were of stone or marble and the trunk crafted of wood which was either gilt or draped. The acrolith period was the infancy of Greek plastic art. 

WHAT IS THE ACRATOPHORUM ?

ACRATOPHORUM: a Greek and Roman table vessel for holding pure wine, as opposed to the crater which held wine mixed with water. This vessel was often made of earthenware and metal, though some were gold or silver.

WHAT IS THE ACQUISITION ?

AQUISITION: First stage of the behavioral processes (followed by manufacture, use, and deposition), in which raw materials are procured. 

WHAT IS THE ACOUSTIC VASE ?

ACOUSTIC VASE: large earthenware or bronze vases that were used to strengthen actors’ voices and were placed in bell towers to help boost the sound of church bells. A church in Westphalia contains fine 9thcentury Badorf wares, and larger relief-band amphorae were used in 10th- and 11th-century churches. [acoustic vessel] 

WHAT IS THE ACLIS ?

ACLIS: A small javelin or harpoon, consisting of a thick short pole set with spikes. This massive weapon resembles a trident or angon. [aclys, aclyx]

WHAT IS THE ACISCULUS ?

ACISCULUS: A small pick used by stone-cutters and masons in early Roman times.

WHAT IS THE ACINACES ?

ACINACES: A short sword or scimitar, often very short and worn suspended from a belt around the waist, and used by Eastern nations of antiquity, especially the Medes, Persians, and Scythians.

WHAT IS THE ACHZIB WARE ?

ACHZIB WARE: A Phoenician, Iron Age II, red-slip pottery type consisting primarily of jugs with a trefoil mouth of “mushroom” rims, red slipped, and highly burnished.

WHAT IS THE ACHEULLEAN ?

ACHEULIAN: A European culture of the Lower Paleolithic period namedfor Saint-Acheul, a town in northern France, the site of numerous stone artifacts from the period. The conventional borderline between Abbevillian and Acheulian is marked by a technological innovation in the working of stone implements, the use of a flaking tool of soft material (wood, bone, antler) in place of a hammerstone. This culture is noted for its hefty multipurpose, pointed (or almond-shaped) hand axes, flat-edged cleaving tools, and other bifacial stone tools with multiple cutting edges. The Acheulian flourished in Africa, western Europe, and southern Asia from over a million years ago until less than 100,000 years ago and is commonly associated with Homo erectus. This progressive tool industry was the first to use regular bifacial flaking. The term Epoque de St Acheul was introduced by Gabriel de Mortillet in 1872 and is still used occasionally, but after 1925 the idea of epochs began to be supplanted by that of cultures and traditions and it is in this sense that the term Acheulian is more often used today. The earliest assemblages are often rather similar to the Oldowan at such sites as Olduvai Gorge. Subsequent hand-ax assemblages are found over most of Africa, southern Asia, and western and southern Europe. The earliest appearance of hand axes in Europe is still refereed to by some workers as Abbevillian, denoting a stage when hand axes were still made with crude, irregular devices. The type site, near Amiens in the Somme Valley, contained large hand-ax assemblages from around the time of the penultimate interglacial and the succeeding glacial period (Riss), perhaps some 200,000–300,000 years ago. Acheulian hand axes are still found around the time of the last interglacial period, and hand axes are common in one part of the succeeding Mousterian period (the Mousterian of Acheulian tradition) down to as recently as 40,000 years ago. Acheulian is also used to describe the

period when this culture existed. In African terminology, the entire series of hand-ax industries is called Acheulian, and the earlier phases of the African Acheulian equate with the Abbevillian of Europe. [Acheulean, Acheulian industry] 

WHAT IS THE ACERAMIC AND ACERAMIC NEOLITHIC ?

ACERAMIC: Without pottery or not using pottery; a term applied to periods and societies in which pottery is not used, especially in contrast to other periods of ceramic use and with neighboring ceramic cultures. Aceramic societies may use bark, basketry, gourds, leather, etc. for containers.

ACERAMIC NEOLITHIC: early part of the Neolithic period in western Asia before the widespread use of pottery (c. 8500–6000 bc) in an economy based on the cultivation of crops or the rearing of animals or both. Aceramic Neolithic groups were in the Levant (Pre-Pottery Neolithic A and B), Zagros area (Karim Shahir, Jarmoan), and Anatolia (Hacilar Aceramic Neolithic). Aceramic Neolithic groups are rarer outside western Asia.

WHAT IS THE ACCESSION ?

ACCESSION: An object acquired by a museum or collector as a part of a permanent collection; also, the act of processing and recording an addition to a permanent collection.

ACCESSION CATALOG: An accounting system used in the lab after artifactsand ecofacts are initially processed and providing the numbers withwhich artifacts and ecofacts are marked for storage. Its records describe and record what was found during an archaeological investigation and it is the primary record for all materials after excavation.

ACCESSION NUMBER: A number assigned to an archaeological collection that identifies its origin; part of the catalog number.

WHAT IS THE ACANTHUS ?

ACANTHUS: conventionalized representation of the leaf of the Acanthus spinosus plant, found on the lower parts of Corinthian and Composite capitals, and also used for enrichment of various elements in Classical architecture.

WHAT IS THE ABYDOS WARE ?

ABYDOS WARE: Pottery of Canaanite (Syro-Palestinian) origin found in the royal tombs of the 1st and 2nd dynasties (the Old Kingdom) at Abydos, Saqqara, Abusir el-Melek, and other sites in Upper Egypt, dating to the Early Bronze Age II (3300–2700 bc). The pottery, often red-rose slipped and burnished or painted with geometric motifs, includes jugs, bottles, and jars. Most common are the red-slipped jugs, some of a hard-baked “metallic” quality, with handles attached to the rim and a typical stamped base. This pottery class took its name from Abydos, the first site at which it was found, in Upper Egypt.

WHAT IS THE ABYDOS, TABLETS OF ?

ABYDOS, TABLETS OF: Two hieroglyphic inscriptions containing the names of Egyptian kings that were found on the walls in a small temple at Abydos, Egypt. The first tablet has the names of the kings of the 12th and 18th dynasties and it is now in the British Museum. The second tablet begins with Menes, one of the first kings of Egypt, and has a complete list of the first two dynasties as well as a number of names from the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 9th, 10th, and 11th dynasties. It was discovered in 1864 by Auguste Mariette, who published the book Abydos in 1869.

WHAT IS THE ABSORPTION ?

ABSORPTION: Process by which a liquid is drawn into and fills the pores of a permeable, porous body.

WHAT IS THE ABSOLUTE DATING ?

ABSOLUTE DATING: determination of age with reference to a specific time scale, such as a fixed calendrical system or in years before present (bp), based on measurable physical and chemical qualities or historical associations such as coins and written records. The date on a coin is an

absolute date, as are ad 1492 and 501 bc. [see relative dating]

WHAT IS THE ABSOLUTE AGE ?

ABSOLUTE AGE: Amount of time elapsed, with reference to a specific time scale, since an object was made or used.

WHAT IS THE ABRADER ?

ABRADER: A stone tool with abrasive qualities, such as pumice or sandstone, used in grinding, smoothing, sharpening, or shaping tools or other objects. [abrading stone]

Stone Abrader

WHAT IS THE ABINGDON WARE ?

ABINGDON WARE: A Neolithic pottery c. 3900–3200 bc, found in a causewayed camp about 15 km south of Oxford, England. The pottery is fairly heavy and formed into round-bottomed bowls with frequentstroke decoration and some having handles. 

WHAT IS THE ABEJAS PHASE ?

ABEJAS PHASE: First important agricultural phase in the Tehuacan Valley of Mexico, dated 3500–1500 bc, after the introduction of maize.

WHAT IS THE ABBEVILLIAN ?

ABBEVILLIAN: Name for the period of the earliest hand-ax industries of Europe, taken from Abbeville, the type site near the mouth of the River Somme in northern France. The site is a gravel pit in which crudely chipped oval or pear-shaped hand axes were discovered, probably dating to the Mindel glaciation. This was one of the key places which showed that man was of great antiquity. In 1939, Abbé Breuil proposed the name Abbevillian for both the hand ax and the industry, which preceded the Acheulian in Europe.

Abbevillian biface flake from the Douro river region near Valladolid, Spain

WHAT IS THE ABACUS ?

ABACUS : A calculating table or frame, specifically one in which balls slide upon wires, used for the mechanical solution of arithmetical problems.