Introduction

Background

Anthracological analysis of samples from archaeological sites and natural deposits has been ongoing in The Netherlands and Belgium since the middle of the last century. In the last few decades, the number of projects has significantly increased, mainly within development-led archaeology.

The current anthracological dataset consists of hundreds of reports from diverse contexts and is growing rapidly. While positive, this development makes it difficult to keep track of previously generated data.

WOODAN: charcoal

In reaction to the increase in generated data, charcoal and database specialists from the WOODAN Foundation, BIAX and Cambium Botany have started work on an anthracological version of the existing WOODAN: wooden artefacts-database (https://woodan.org/).

WOODAN: wooden artefacts is an open resource developed for documentation of archaeological wooden objects. It is used as a tool for several larger scale syntheses of wood-working traditions and for published catalogues of wood finds.

WOODAN uses modern technology. It can be opened via various devices and systems. A MySQL database runs behind the website, and PHP and JSON is used to unlock the data.

The main advantage of developing a new charcoal database with WOODAN: wooden artefacts as a starting point is that much of the fundamental work needed for a functional database has already been done. This includes, amongst others, the development of systems for documenting site and context data, the potential accommodation of national variations in archaeological documentation, the ability to keep data under embargo while projects are being completed/prepared for publication, the possibility for bulk-uploading of data via standardised excel-tables, the ability for exporting one’s datasets (for back-up or work on local servers), and the ability to create alternative language versions of the database.

A gathering of charcoal specialists in June 2023

To assure that WOODAN: charcoal becomes a useful tool for charcoal research, the organisers decided to invite specialists who generate or utilise anthracological data in their work. Colleagues active in The Netherlands and Belgium gathered at this June 2023 event, which was kindly hosted by the Dutch Cultural Heritage Agency. During the gathering the group summarised the state of anthracological research in The Netherlands and Belgium, defined the nature of the charcoal data being generated, and outlined possibilities and challenges facing the development of WOODAN: charcoal.

Possibilities

Anthracological data from The Netherlands and Belgium has frequently been utilised a source material for reconstructing past vegetations. The use of charcoal as an ecological proxy is hence well-established. Over the last decades charcoal data has also been utilised in studies of processes such as charcoal production, cremation, and tar extraction. The use of anthracological data as a technological proxy is therefore on the rise. Moreover, there has been a steady increase of studies of various details of charcoal, such as traces of wood-degradation prior to carbonisation, post-depositional wear, etc. These studies contribute to the interpretation of archaeological features and sites and demonstrate the “forensic” potential of charcoal.

Challenges

The challenge of building a database for anthracological data is rooted in the intricate nature of the source material and the varied workflows that researchers employ to document it. The preservation and fragmentation of charcoal can be highly variable. In certain assemblages, a more comprehensive description of details such as the diameter of the used wood or the extent of pre-carbonization degradation is possible. Other charcoal may be extensively fragmented, rendering it suitable only for taxonomic determination. Furthermore, not all woody taxa are similarly well-researched. The capacity to document anatomical and other features differs between species. Anthracological approaches for documenting details of charcoal also differ between researchers. Methodologies are constantly evolving, with novel insights and observations being continuously published, discussed, and refined. Increasingly, anatomical observation of charcoal is also complemented with other analyses (chemical, physical, SEM-microscopy). To make WOODAN: charcoal a useful tool for anthracological research, the database thus needs to achieve standardization while simultaneously recognising the intricate and multifaceted nature of the source material. A suitable database structure can only be achieved through discourse with colleagues, with the objective of arriving at a broad consensus.

The future

We intend to organise follow-up meetings and workshops op how to best structure WOODAN: charcoal in a way that corresponds to the needs of its users. Follow-up events will be organised in 2024.

WOODAN

WOODAN is a freely accessible, public web database on archaeological wooden artefacts. Anyone can use the system in order to quickly and easily search for archaeological information.

The system was initiated in 2015 as part of a project funded by the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands (RCE). The goal of this project was to conduct a synthetic study of all wooden artifacts in all Malta publications from 1997. Various companies and wood specialists worked on this, and in 2017, it resulted in the publication 'Uit het Juiste Hout Gesneden'.

In recent years, WOODAN has focused on inventorying artifacts from Belgium, for which a publication is expected to be released at the end of 2023. The latest version of WOODAN, including the Belgian finds, can be accessed via woodan.org. The Dutch finds are still in the process of being transferred there and can be accessed via org.woodan.nl.