Archaeological Field Survey - Research and Planning

Research and Planning

Survey work may be undertaken in response to a specific threat (such as proposed or pending development project) to an area of known or unknown archaeological interest or as part of a program addressing specific research topics. In either case actual fieldwork is most likely to be preceded by a phase of desktop research (reviewing existing data in the form of maps, formal and informal written records, photographs and drawings) or in the modern age internet research using search engines, ancestry and birth or property records online. Consideration should be given to the nature of the landscape (vegetation coverage, existing settlement or industry, soil depth, climate) before a range of techniques is selected to be applied within an appropriate overarching method.