01
Written response
1 point
What archaeological term describes a surface that marks a boundary or change in the sequence?
Free Practice Quiz Question List
1 Stratigraphy and Depositional Sequences Online Quiz Questions
Use this free practice quiz with 20 questions to review 1 Stratigraphy and Depositional Sequences, test your knowledge, and prepare for your next test or exam.
20 questions
02
Fill in the blank
1 point
A cut made by digging a pit is an , not a deposit.
03
True or false
1 point
True or false: A Harris matrix should record every physical contact between units, even when that contact does not establish their stratigraphic order.
- A
True
- B
False
04
Choose one
1 point
Which statement correctly distinguishes the information a plan and a section provide during excavation?
- A
A plan shows vertical relationships; a section shows horizontal extent.
- B
A plan shows horizontal extent; a section shows vertical relationships.
- C
Both plans and sections show only the location of finds.
- D
A section shows horizontal extent; a plan records only the order of events.
05
Written response
1 point
What term describes a deposit that accumulated where its material was originally used or produced?
06
Choose all
1 point
Select all interpretations that are supported by the described deposit evidence.
- A
A thin ash layer on a floor may suggest burning in place.
- B
A thin ash layer proves that burning occurred in place.
- C
Mixed rubble and soil filling a cut may suggest deliberate backfilling.
- D
The appearance of a deposit makes its boundaries and relationships unnecessary to examine.
07
True or false
1 point
True or false: Loose deposits always form perfectly horizontal layers.
- A
True
- B
False
08
Fill in the blank
1 point
In a Harris matrix, earlier units are placed later units.
09
Choose one
1 point
Two units occur at similar depths, but neither overlies, underlies, abuts, nor cuts the other. How should they be represented in a Harris matrix?
- A
Connect them because units at similar depths must be contemporary.
- B
Place them in sequence according to which one contains older artifacts.
- C
Leave them unconnected unless a direct stratigraphic relationship is established.
- D
Connect them because every unit in an excavation must be part of one sequence.
10
Choose all
1 point
Select all practices that support a careful, evidence-based record of a stratigraphic unit.
- A
Record observable characteristics, boundaries, location, and extent.
- B
Assign a relationship whenever one seems likely, even if the exposed evidence cannot establish it.
- C
Record direct relationships to other units.
- D
Use the matrix instead of retaining field observations.
11
Choose one
1 point
A deposit ends abruptly in an excavated section. Which conclusion is most consistent with the evidence?
- A
The deposit must have ended at that point when it formed.
- B
The deposit may continue beyond the excavated area or may have been removed by a later cut or erosion.
- C
The deposit is necessarily the oldest unit in the sequence.
- D
The deposit's original extent can be determined from its color alone.
12
Choose one
1 point
A pit cut truncates an earlier soil, and material is later placed in the pit. Which sequence orders these three units from earliest to latest?
- A
The soil is later than the pit cut, and the fill is earlier than the cut.
- B
The fill is earlier than the cut, which is earlier than the soil.
- C
The soil is earlier than the cut, which is earlier than the fill.
- D
The soil, cut, and fill must be simultaneous because they are part of one feature.
13
Open ended
1 point
An excavation reveals an old soil, a pit cut into that soil, fill in the pit, and a floor laid across the filled pit. A separate nearby layer has no direct relationship with any of these units. Explain the relative sequence of the soil, cut, fill, and floor, and state whether stratigraphy alone can place the separate layer in that sequence.
14
Written response
1 point
A deposit accumulated where its material was originally used or produced. What is the classification term for this kind of deposit?
15
Written response
1 point
What is the stratigraphic term for a surface that marks a boundary or change in the sequence?
16
True or false
1 point
In an undisturbed sequence, an overlying deposit is later than the deposit beneath it.
- A
True
- B
False
17
Choose one
1 point
Two distinct deposits have very similar color and texture. How should they be identified in the site record?
- A
Give them the same identifier because their descriptions are similar.
- B
Give each unit a unique identifier according to the project’s recording system.
- C
Identify only the unit that contains artifacts.
- D
Leave both units unidentified until their calendar dates are known.
18
Choose one
1 point
An archaeologist needs to document both the horizontal extent of a deposit and its vertical relationship to another unit. Which recording approach best matches those needs?
- A
A plan shows vertical relationships, while a section shows horizontal extent.
- B
Both plans and sections show only calendar dates.
- C
A plan shows horizontal extent, while a section shows vertical relationships.
- D
A plan records unit descriptions, while a section replaces the need for written records.
19
Choose one
1 point
A thin ash layer lies directly on a floor. Which interpretation is most appropriately supported by this observation?
- A
It proves that the ash was moved from another location and dumped there.
- B
It proves that the floor was built after the ash was deposited.
- C
It may indicate burning in place, an interpretation to test against boundaries and relationships.
- D
It establishes the calendar date of the burning without other evidence.
20
Choose one
1 point
A deposit contains artifacts that were moved there from an earlier location. What can an archaeologist conclude about the artifacts’ ages relative to the deposit?
- A
The deposit must be older than every artifact it contains.
- B
The artifacts may predate the deposit because they were moved from an earlier location.
- C
The artifacts establish the exact date when the deposit formed.
- D
The deposit cannot be placed in a relative sequence.
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