Publication Date:
2012-02-03
Description:
Archaeoseismic research contributes important
data on past earthquakes. A limitation of the
usefulness of archaeoseismology is due to the lack of
continuous discussion about the methodology. The
methodological issues are particularly important because
archaeoseismological investigations of past
earthquakes make use of a large variety of methods.
Typical in situ investigations include: (1) reconstruction
of the local archaeological stratigraphy aimed at
defining the correct position and chronology of a
destruction layer, presumably related to an earthquake;
(2) analysis of the deformations potentially due to
seismic shaking or secondary earthquake effects,
detectable on walls; (3) analysis of the depositional
characteristics of the collapsed material; (4) investigations
of the local geology and geomorphology to define
possible natural cause(s) of the destruction; (5) investigations
of the local factors affecting the ground
motion amplifications; and (6) estimation of the
dynamic excitation, which affected the site under
investigation. Subsequently, a ‘territorial’ approach
testing evidence of synchronous destruction in a
certain region may delineate the extent of the area
struck by the earthquake. The most reliable results of
an archaeoseismological investigation are obtained by
application of modern geoarchaeological practice
(archaeological stratigraphy plus geological–geomorphological
data), with the addition of a geophysicalengineering
quantitative approach and (if available)
historical information. This gives a basic dataset
necessary to perform quantitative analyses which, in
turn, corroborate the archaeoseismic hypothesis. Since
archaeoseismological investigations can reveal the
possible natural causes of destruction at a site, they
contribute to the wider field of environmental archaeology,
that seeks to define the history of the relationship
between humans and the environment. Finally,
through the improvement of the knowledge on the past
seismicity, these studies can contribute to the regional
estimation of seismic hazard.
Description:
Published
Description:
395-414
Description:
JCR Journal
Description:
reserved
Keywords:
archaeoseismology
;
historical seismology
;
geoarchaeology
;
environmental archaeology
;
natural catastrophes
;
04. Solid Earth::04.04. Geology::04.04.01. Earthquake geology and paleoseismology
;
04. Solid Earth::04.06. Seismology::04.06.05. Historical seismology
Repository Name:
Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV)
Type:
article
