N.M. Code R. § 4.10.15.15 - LIMITED TESTS DURING SURVEY
A.
Purpose. Limited tests of
archaeological sites during survey are strongly discouraged. Total surface
disturbance resulting from the tests shall not exceed five one-hundredths
percent (.05%) of the total site area. The supervisory archaeologist should
consider the following when making a decision on whether to conduct limited
tests.
(1) Do not conduct limited tests if a
site can be avoided by the undertaking.
(2) Do not conduct limited tests to assess
potential for subsurface deposits if a recommendation of eligibility can be
made from visible evidence such as cultural deposits exposed in road beds or
arroyo cuts.
(3) Conduct limited
tests only when the tests are likely to produce sufficient information to make
a definitive recommendation on whether the site should or should not be listed
on the state register or determined eligible for the national register. Often
limited tests are too restricted in scale to demonstrate the absence of
subsurface cultural deposits. Test excavations (see 4.10.16 NMAC) are
recommended in these situations and produce more reliable information about the
site.
(4) Limited tests are
prohibited if no adequate screen is available during survey.
B.
Limited test
equipment. Use hand tools such as trowels, shovels, hand corers and
non-mechanical bucket augers. The use of mechanized equipment is
prohibited.
C.
Standards.
(1) Design limited tests to
gather the appropriate information and to minimize damaging or diminishing the
integrity of the archaeological site and features within the site. Make
systematic tests to maximize interpretation of results. All shovel tests,
augers, probes, small excavation units and test pits shall be given a unique
field designation and shall be point-provenienced or excavated on a grid.
(a) Shovel tests shall be approximately 30 cm
in diameter.
(b) Small test
excavation units shall be 50-by-50 cm in size.
(c) Do not conduct trowel tests.
(2) With the exception of soil
samples, sediments removed from all limited test units shall be passed through
a screen of no greater than one-quarter inch (6.35mm). Consider using a smaller
screen size.
(3) The bottom of the
tests shall be lined with landscape cloth or marked in some other fashion to
indicate depth of disturbance.
(4)
Excavation of features is prohibited during limited tests.
(5) Collection of artifacts recovered from
limited tests is discouraged and in-field artifact analysis is recommended.
(a) In-field analysis. Record recovered
artifacts to professional standards in the region for the class of artifact. At
a minimum, required information includes class of artifact, make, type or
series and other attributes that relate to interpretation of chronology, form
and function. Illustrations or photographs of diagnostic artifacts are
encouraged. Attach copies of the in-field analysis forms, narrative
descriptions and illustrations to the LA archaeological site record.
(b) Collections. If collections are made,
note the provenience or collection unit and depth from which the artifact was
retrieved. Analyze collected artifacts in a laboratory and in accordance with
current professional standards for the class of artifacts in the region.
Include results of the analyses in the survey report and indicate disposition
of artifacts on the LA archaeological site record form. Collections shall be
curated at an acceptable repository pursuant to 4.10.8 NMAC.
D.
Documentation
of limited test activities. At a minimum, the following information
shall be included:
(1) explain the purpose of
the limited tests on the archaeological site record and discuss in the survey
report;
(2) location of test units.
Plot the location of all test units on the site plan map relative to a
permanent datum. List the point provenience or grid coordinate of each limited
test unit relative to the site datum. Label limited test units according to
their provenience on the site plan map, or attach a list of proveniences to the
LA archaeological site record; and
(3) description of deposits. Describe the
nature of the subsurface deposits encountered in each test unit and the depth
of the unit. Use standard scientific terminology; color descriptions shall be
made in Munsell terminology. Prepare profile drawings and photographs of at
least one wall of each small excavation unit or test pit and features. Append
the deposit descriptions to the LA archaeological site record and discuss in
the survey report. Deposit descriptions include but are not limited to sediment
color, texture, moisture content, nature of inclusions, organic content and an
inventory of cultural materials, if any.
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