Archaeology Underwater: The NAS Guide to Principles and Practice

54 ARCHAEOLOGICALRECORDING

set of ideas and experience against which things are
judged. This may lead archaeologists to make assumptions
about an object very different from the ideas of the soci-
ety that used or created it in the past. It is vital, therefore,
for everything to be recorded in a way that best avoids
prejudices or influences that may affect archaeological
interpretation.

RECORDING SYSTEMS

The choice of an appropriate recording system should be
made in the early stages of project planning. A descrip-
tion of the system and the reasons behind its choice
should be included in the project design (see chapter 5).
The recording system must be capable of recording
information relating to aspects as diverse as the location,
identification and interpretation of all the evidence from
a site. A recording system should be constructed in a way
that stores and manages the recorded clues in a manner
that is simple to understand. The system should make
it easy for the user to cross-reference information that
exists in a variety of forms (e.g. individual observations,
photographs, drawings, etc.).
The following list gives an indication of the diverse
and extensive range of evidence types that the recording
system will need to incorporate:

• the results of desk-based research (see chapter 5) and
  historical information (see chapter 9);


• geographical information;


• environmental information;


• survey data;


• relationships between artefacts and the site (i.e.
  Harris Matrix – see below);


• drawings (artefacts and site);


• photographic records (artefacts and site);


• artefacts and samples (finds);


• conservation records (see chapter 16);


• interpretations (artefacts and site);


• resources for further investigation (a bibliography
  of reference material, specialists, museums, etc.).

A recording system must allow for:

• obtaining consistent, reliable and accurate informa-
  tion (usually from many different people);


• storing the information in an appropriate format (in
  terms of accessibility and long-term survival);


• cross-referencing between different categories of
  archaeological material;


• efficient and effective interrogation of all the infor-
  mation held, during the project and long after it has
  reached completion.

When deciding on an appropriate recording system

for a project it is best to consult existing examples and

texts to identify common pitfalls and best practice. It

is important, however, to remember that each existing

system has been designed for that organization and pro-

ject’s particular approach and recording task. It may also

have been designed for use in conjunction with a specific

recording manual (Spence, 1994). Do not faithfully adopt

any existing system without understanding how and why

it was designed.

PLANNING THE RECORDING: WHAT TO

RECORD

Familiarization with all aspects and categories of infor-

mation likely to be encountered on any given site is

essential. Does the system only have to record boats,

pilings and harbours, or other types of structure as

well? Compile a list of information that it is necessary

to record on each site. It is important to remember to

record both observations (what is seen) and interpreta-

tions (possible meanings) as fully as possible, but not to

confuse them.

It is very important when thinking about what to

record to consult the specialists who require the infor-

mation. For example, if the work involves recording

cannons (see appendix 2), consult the current authorities

and documentation to determine exactly what should

be recorded in addition to the normal level of artefact

recording.

Recording should begin as soon as any category of evid-

ence is found. At the earliest possible stage, all archae-

ological material should be given some form of unique

identifying number (e.g. artefact number – see below).

Recording Information On Site

The following section will summarize some of the

important points to consider when recording and storing

information from an underwater or foreshore archae-

ological site.

Site notebook: Traditionally, the director only entered

details of a site into a single (or several) site notebook(s).

This has the advantage of being easy to set up, portable

and the format can be flexible. The disadvantage of

this method is that it is difficult to record all aspects of

archaeological material consistently and objectively. On

longer projects, the range and quantity of information can

become overwhelming and impossible to organize. It is

also harder to extract the information when the time

comes to analysing it.