It is the stated goal of preventive archaeology in the Rhineland to explore archaeological monuments by using the least destructive methods and means of analysis available, to gather information on their extent, preservation, and dating,...
moreIt is the stated goal of preventive archaeology in the
Rhineland to explore archaeological monuments by using
the least destructive methods and means of analysis
available, to gather information on their extent, preservation,
and dating, their spatial and chronological context,
and ultimately to protect such sites. In the past few decades, the prospection of extensive
areas for development purposes and regional landscape
studies has led to a standardized array of methods which
is known in Rhenish archaeology as ‘qualified prospection’.
Intensive surveys with artefact accurate recording
have played an important role in the discovery and interpretation
of a large number of archaeological sites which
would not have been detected by conventional field
walking activities. However, even these detailed field
walking surveys need to be checked by trial excavations
to establish the full reliability and validity of their results.