Micromorphology and context

Context is an important concept in archaeology, although the term tends to have a variety of meanings to different people. In this brief note we illustrate how context can be considered at a microstratigraphic scale using the technique of soil micromorphology. Examples are given from the sites of Geissenklosterle (Germany), Sibudu (South Africa), and Pech de l'Aze IV (France) to show that micromorphology is an indispensible and robust tool for not only documenting the contextual position of archaeological objects and features within the matrix of the site but also for making accurate interpretations of the archaeological record. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved.