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Surface Surveys
When archaeological and textual data are not available for an
area, surface surveys can provide a limited amount of
information. Surface surveys do not allow a detailed history of
the period to be written, but can allow a rough outline of the
population density and settlement patterns to be sketched.
How is a surface survey carried out? A team of archaeologists
does a surface survey. The procedure is relatively simple. They
walk across the surface of an area in a methodical fashion,
making notes of any sites they find. The sites can come in many
forms:
-
ruins visible above the surface
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a few wall lines indicative of buildings
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a modern settlement with ancient pottery
lying on the surface
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sherd scatters in an area with no visible
architecture
 When the surveyors find a site, they make
notes about its location and draw a plan of the site and the
surrounding area. They also sherd the site. Sherding is a
process by which the surveyors pick up any pieces of pottery
that are visible on the surface. This pottery can be quite
plentiful. Archaeologists then use this pottery to indicate
the time periods during which the site was occupied in the
past. People in different time periods produced different
styles of pottery using varying techniques, and pottery
specialists use these differences to determine the date of the
pottery.
How are surface surveys used to determine settlement patterns?
Once the surface survey data has been collected, archaeologists
can use this data to determine settlement patterns. The first
step is to classify the sites that have been surveyed according
to the features visible on the surface of the ground. Various
categories are used:
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ruins
-
modern settlements
-
single buildings
-
tombs
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sherd scatters
Three of these types of sites can be seen
in the photographs below.
 Once this classification has been made,
the next step is to select those sites that were inhabited
during the period under consideration. For the present study,
for instance, all of the sites that contained Late Bronze Age
pottery would be listed. Those sites would then be plotted on a
map of the area. The map would then be studied to see if any
patterns were evidence that would give the archaeologist insight
into the history of that period. A surface survey will also
indicate to archaeologists which sites might be candidates for
major archaeological excavations in the future.
The information from a surface survey can be mapped through
several methods. The first, and most common, is to plot the
sites on existing maps. A second method, which is becoming more
common, is to digitize the sites using a Geographic Information
System (GIS), a computer program that allows data about sites to
be stored along with other map related information.
Surface Surveys of the Karak Plateau
Although archaeological and textual data are lacking for the
Karak Plateau, several major surface surveys have been carried
out. Among these are the “Archaeological Survey of the Kerak
Plateau” under the direction of J. Maxwell Miller, the survey of
the northwest Karak Plateau by Udo Worschech, and the on-going
survey work by the Karak Resources Project. Several other
smaller surveys have also contributed to our knowledge of sites
in this region.
The volute capitals of Mudaybi<sup>c</sup>
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