Forensic Geotaphonomic | Archaeological

Introduction

The following bibliography consists of resources that contain information related to the recovery of evidence in outdoor contexts. In practice, archaeology and criminalistics share the goal of systematically documenting, collecting and interpreting physical evidence for the purpose of understanding the factors which affected the depositional history of that evidence. Archaeological method and theory can extend far beyond the recovery of buried remains. The goals of forensic science in general, and archaeology specifically, are similar in many ways. This is evident in their respective definitions. Archaeology may be defined as “the systematic recovery by scientific methods of material evidence remaining from man’s life and culture in past ages, and the detailed study of this evidence” (American Heritage Dictionary, 1978:67). If the temporal references in this definition are removed it becomes interchangeable with broader definitions of “forensic science”. One of the most often addressed areas in forensic science literature is that of homicide victims. Among outdoor crime scenes, an