Experimental Archaeology

Archaeological excavations unveil traces of the past. These very rarely result in a complete picture that is immediately comprehensible. Much can often only be discovered indirectly, particularly with regard to normal aspects of life in ancient times. If archaeologists find an object during an excavation, for instance, where its function or importance is unknown to them, then very often experimental archaeology can help: the device is reworked in the same materials and then tried out to see what it can be best used for. Even when the remains of a building are found, we usually do not know how high the material costs were, how much time or suchlike was required for the erection of such a building 2000 years ago. It can help to simply try out what historians or archaeologists hypothetically assume that people did in those days, to see whether this could also function with the means that were available in ancient times.

In Carnuntum experimental archaeology is used, for instance, in the reconstruction of a Roman residential building. Materials and tools are used here that accord with ancient specimens because they have been re-created following original Roman artefacts that are to be found in the Museum Carnuntinum. Of course, building walls is not a piece of cake even today. During the construction of the Roman house, for instance, we realized what backbreaking work this actually is, especially without the use of modern aids. The reconstruction of a Roman brick-kiln and the manufacture of bricks attempt to answer questions that the finds from the excavation are unable to: what was the temperature in the kiln when bricks were fired, how long did this process take?

Experimental archaeology in the field of ancient building technology and Roman craftsmanship has given us valuable information about the construction and versatility of ordinary buildings in particular and regarding the construction time of ancient buildings.

This special branch of archaeology is an indirect method of gaining knowledge. Whatever works today with resources from ancient times, could also have worked in ancient times. That does not mean, however, that it was actually used in this way. The closer it was to everyday life, the more likely it was actually used in this way, and the farther removed from everyday life, the more improbable. But very often dealing practically with ancient methods makes one more aware of the traces that they have left behind in archaeological remains, and this leads to new, enhanced possibilities of interpretation. Experimental archaeology thus becomes an important aid to the historical sciences.