# 

## Appendix B

## SOCIETY FOR AMERICAN ARCHAEOLOGY PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS FOR THE DETERMINATION       OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL VALUE, 2003

### Introduction

The Society for American Archaeology (SAA) is an international organization       dedicated to the research, interpretation, and protection of the archaeological       heritage of the Americas. With more than 6,800 members, the society represents       professional, student, and avocational archaeologists working in a variety       of settings including government agencies, colleges and universities, museums,       and the private sector.

The Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979 (ARPA) (Title 16, United       States Code, Sections 470aa-470mm) and the ARPA Uniform Regulations establish       “archaeological value” as one of three measures of the gravity       of any criminal or civil violation of ARPA. In order to assist archaeologists       performing archaeological damage assessments in ARPA cases, the SAA Task       Force on Archaeological Law Enforcement has developed the following professional       standards for the determination of archaeological value. The SAA Board strongly       endorses these standards and encourages their use by professional archaeologists.

The determination of archaeological value is directly analogous to a routine       professional practice that occurs daily in the United States. This is the       process of developing real budgets for actual recovery of archaeological       materials and data in mitigation or research projects that will be implemented       through funding from contracts, grants, donations or other sources. In this       sense, the determination of archaeological value is simply the structured       application of this professional practice in order to provide information       required by federal law.

The professional archaeologist who performs an archaeological value determination       should be qualified to serve as an expert witness (Rule 702, Federal Rules       of Evidence). In addition to meeting general professional standards in archaeology,       required qualifications include regional expertise and experience with resources       similar to the resource(s) involved in the archaeological value determination.       Formal training in the preparation of archaeological value determinations       is recommended.

The specific legal provisions governing the determination of archaeological       value are as follows.

## ARPA Criminal Offenses and Archaeological Value

The “Prohibited Acts and Criminal Penalties” section of ARPA       specifies that “archaeological value” will be considered in       determining whether the archaeological resource violation qualifies as a       felony offense (Title, 16 United State Code, Section 470ee(d)). Trafficking       in archaeological resources also may constitute a violation of ARPA (Title       16, United States Code, Section 470ee(b), (c)). Federal courts are required       to use archaeological value in determining appropriate sentences for defendants       convicted of ARPA violations or other federal offenses involving cultural       heritage resources (United States Sentencing Guidelines, Section 2B1.5).

## ARPA Civil Penalties and Archaeological Value

The “Civil Penalties” section of ARPA specifies that “archaeological       value” will be considered in determining the amount of a civil penalty       for an archaeological resource violation (Title 16, United States Code,       Section 470ff(a)(2)(A)).

## ARPA Prohibited Conduct

The ARPA Statute and ARPA Uniform Regulations specify that under certain       circumstances (e.g., lack of ARPA permit), prohibited conduct includes the       following acts: “excavate, remove, damage, or otherwise alter or deface”       any archaeological resource, “or attempt to (do any such act)”       (Title 16, United States Code, Section 470ee(a); Regulations, section __.4(a)).       This prohibited conduct applies to both ARPA criminal offenses (Title 16,       United States Code, Section 470ee(d)) and ARPA civil penalties (Title 16,       United States Code, Section 470ff(a)(1); Regulations, Section __.15(a)).

## ARPA Definitions

      - Archaeological Resource
      - “The term “archaeological resource” means any material         remains of past human life or activities which are of archaeological interest         � at least 100 years of age” (Title 16, United States Code, Section         470bb(1)).
      - Material Remains
      - ‘“Material remains”                   means physical evidence of human habitation, occupation, use, or activity,         including the site, location, or context in which such evidence is situated”         (Regulations, Section __.3(a)(2)).
      - Archaeological Interest
      - ‘“Of archaeological interest”                   means capable of providing scientific or humanistic understandings of         past human behavior �” (Regulations, Section __.3(a)(1)). Archaeological         Value “ � The archaeological value of any archaeological resource         involved in a violation � shall be the value of the information associated         with the archaeological resource. This value shall be appraised in terms         of the costs of the retrieval of the scientific information which would         have been obtainable prior to the violation. These costs may include,         but need not be limited to, the cost of preparing a research design, conducting         field work, carrying our laboratory analysis, and preparing reports as         would be necessary to realize the information potential (Regulations,         Section __.14(a)).

## Professional Standards for the Determination of Archaeological Value

### Standard 1 - Identification of the Archaeological Resource(s) Involved       in the ARPA Violation

The first step in determining archaeological value is to specifically identify       the archaeological resource(s) involved in the ARPA violation (i.e., the       archaeological resource(s) excavated, removed, damaged, or otherwise altered       or defaced). Identification of the archaeological resource(s) involved in       the violation must be based on:
      - the physical attributes of the archaeological resource(s), including         spatial extent, and the discernable or inferable archaeological context         of the resource(s) (this archaeological context could be an entire site,         groups of features or strata, a single feature or stratum, single artifacts,         or other commonly defined components of the archaeological record);
      - the physical evidence of the prohibited conduct (i.e., excavation, removal,         damage, alteration, or defacement) and its spatial extent; c. knowledge         about similar archaeological resources based on professional experience;         and d. other archaeological, historical, and ethnographic sources, including         information from descendant communities, to the extent that these sources         contribute to scientific knowledge.

### Standard 2 - Scale of Scientific Information Retrieval to be Used in Determining       Archaeological Value

The ARPA Uniform Regulations specify that archaeological value “shall       be appraised in terms of the costs of the retrieval of the scientific information       which would have been obtainable prior to the violation” (Regulations,       Section __.14(a)). Therefore, the appropriate scale of scientific information       retrieval must be selected.

When the context of the archaeological resource(s) involved in the prohibited       conduct **cannot** be ascertained more specifically than a       site or location (e.g. unauthorized excavations in a site with no visible       surface features), the scale of scientific information retrieval used in       determining archaeological value must be based on the standard archaeological       unit(s) that would at least encompass the spatial extent of the prohibited       conduct (e.g., the volume of excavation resulting from the prohibited conduct).       A standard archaeological unit in this case means a metric unit (e.g., a       2 by 2 meter square).

When the context of the archaeological resource(s) involved in the prohibited       conduct **can** be ascertained more specifically than a site       or location (e.g., an archaeological feature at a site), the scale of scientific       information retrieval also must be based on the standard archaeological       unit for that context. A standard archaeological unit in this case means       a cultural unit, such as a pithouse, fire pit, burial feature, or petroglyph       panel (for which metric units would be used as appropriate).

In addition, the scale of scientific information retrieval must be proportional       to the nature and extent of the prohibited conduct. For example, a small,       shallow hole dug into a large pithouse would not warrant an archaeological       value determination based on scientific information retrieval from the entire       structure. If, on the other hand, a backhoe had been used to excavate most       of the pithouse, scientific information retrieval for the entire structure       may well be the appropriate scale. This proportionality concept relates       the scale of scientific information retrieval to the magnitude of harm to       the archaeological resource(s) resulting from the prohibited conduct.

### Standard 3 - Methods of Scientific Information Retrieval

The methods of scientific information retrieval used as the basis for the       archaeological value determination should be appropriate to the scale of       the standard archaeological unit that has been selected. Depending on the       conventions of archaeological practice in the area, examples of appropriate       methods in a particular case involving unauthorized excavation would include       a column sample, an excavation square, an excavation trench, a set of statistically       based sample excavation units, or a block of contiguous excavation units.       There also would be a comparable range of appropriate methods for cases       involving other types of prohibited conduct.

In addition, the scientific information retrieval methods should be proportional       to the nature and extent of the prohibited conduct. For example, the methods       employed for scientific information retrieval from an entire pithouse would       not be proportional contextually or justifiable scientifically relative       to excavation of a small, shallow hole in the pithouse.

### Standard 4 - Scientific Information Retrieval Standards

The methods of scientific information retrieval used as the basis for the       archaeological value determination should meet current and customary professional       standards appropriate to the archaeological resource, the archaeological       context, and the standard archaeological unit in the region. The retrieval       methods also should comply with applicable government agency standards (e.g.,       Secretary of the Interior's Standards and Guidelines) (Society for American       Archaeology 2003).

Technical Briefs|back|next

      -  Foreward 
      -  Introduction 
      -  ARPA Criminal Violation 
      -  ARPA Civil Violation 
      -  Protected Resources 
      -  Field Damage Assessment 
      -  Value & Cost Determination 
      -  Commercial Value 
      -  Archeological Value 
      -  Restoration and Repair Cost 
      -  Damage Assessment Report 
      -  Report Topics 
      -  Basic Stylistic Rules 
      -  Report Preparation 
      -  Summary & Conclusion 
      -  Appendix A: Protected resources 
      -  Appendix B: Professional Standards 
      -  References 
      -  Acknowledgements 
      - print         version  
      -  technical briefs index 

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