1. Artifact Tag Terminology Key
By: Tucker Lutter
Updated November 30, 2015
1. Site No. Designates the archaeological site that the artifacts come from. For example,
Fort Steuben is designated as 33Je54. The 33 stands for the state of Ohio, Je
represents Jefferson County, and 54 means it is the 54th
recorded site in the
county. Other examples include 33Je53, 46Br31 (West Virginia in Brooke
Co), 46Br58.
2. FS # The FS# or field specimen number is assigned to artifacts and/or soil samples
collected from an archaeological site as a kind of shorthand abbreviation for
provenience data. Usually there will be one number assigned to each brown
bag. An FS# can only correspond to a single location (that includes both a
horizontal and vertical component) at a site. That is, the same FS# cannot be
assigned to artifacts from two or more different locations or proveniences at a
single site. Note that more than one FS#/bag can come from a single location.
This number is typically assigned at the time when artifacts are being
cataloged.
An example from Ft. Steuben (33Je54) bags would be the FS# 76CC. The 76
means that is the 76th
bag to be cataloged. The “CC” stands for the particular
year it was excavated.
3. Cat # The cat # or catalog number is assigned to each artifact in a particular brown
bag (for which you just assigned an FS#). The first artifact in each bag gets the
number 1. If you start to catalog a bag and are making a tag to put into a small
plastic bag with 5 pieces of blue glass, what you would write down as the Cat
#’s would be 1-5. After that, let’s say you have 3 pieces of slate. They would
get Cat #’s 6-8. You start back at the number 1 when you begin to catalog a
new brown bag with a separate FS#.
1. Site No. _______________________________ 12. Absolute Provenience:
2. FS # __________________________________ 12a. E-W Coor. _______________
3. Cat. # _________________________________ 12b. N-S Coor. ________________
4. Class__________________________________ 13. Depth:
__________________________________ 13a. ______ Below Datum ______
5. Square ________________________________ 14. Commts. _________________
________________________________ ____________________________
6. Feature ________________________________ ____________________________
7. Stratum _______________________________ ____________________________
8. Level _________________________________ ____________________________
9. Date Ex. _______________________________ Initials ______________________
10. Date Proc. ____________________________ Initials ______________________
11. Date Anal. ____________________________ Initials ______________________

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4. Class Denotes the type of artifact. For example: slag, green glass, brick, etc. See lists
of artifact types in the back. If you do not know what an artifact is, see the
type collection (boxes of labeled artifacts in the lab).
5. Square This designation can be found on the brown bag and corresponds to a square or
excavation unit at the site. For example, the designation on a bag from Ft.
Steuben (33Je54) would be something like 1.23N 2E.
6, 7. Feature &
Stratum
Feature and stratum are designated in a manner that makes them look similar,
but there are differences in their definitions and how they are written on a bag.
Feature: a non-portable, human-made archaeological phenomenon such as a
wall, fire hearth, refuse pit, or living floor.
Stratum: a natural or artificial soil horizon that was encountered during
excavation across all or part of a site.
Any “F” with a number after it is either a feature or stratum. The difference is
that a feature is almost always designated as being “in” a stratum (example A).
If you only see one “F” with a number after it and no “in” designation, it is
probably just a stratum (example B). Common stratum designations for the
Fort Steuben Site (33Je54) are F3/56/12, F59, and F9.
F32 in F59 F59
Feature Stratum Stratum
8. Level This is an arbitrary measurement of depth not based on soil strata. Examples
would be 10-20 cm, 20-40 cm, etc.
9. Date Ex. This is the date the artifacts were excavated. This is usually the oldest date on
the bag. Add the initials found next to it on the bag.
10. Date Proc. This is the date on which the artifacts were washed/processed. Usually the
second oldest date on the bag. Add the initials found next to it on the bag.
11. Date Anal. This is the date on which you are making out these tags. This is when the
artifacts are identified, weighed, etc. and put into the catalog. Add your initials
to the tag and add the date/your initials to the brown bag with a marker.
12. Absolute
provenience
This information shows where an artifact is located at the site more precisely
than just stating what square it is in. Artifacts that have an exact measurement
taken are called “piece-plotted.” Numbers 12a-13a on this list refer to piece-
plotted artifacts with absolute provenience.
12a. E-W Coor. This coordinate refers to one of two exact measurements of horizontal
provenience ascertained on piece-plotted artifacts. An example of how to
designate this is: 18.26 m line E or W. (E = east, W = west).
B)A)

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12b. N-S Coor. This refers to the other exact measure of horizontal provenience ascertained on
piece-plotted artifacts. An example of how to designate this is:
10.59 m line N or S. (N = north, S = south).
13. Depth This refers to an exact measurement of vertical provenience ascertained on
piece-plotted artifacts. This will appear as a depth reading in number of
centimeters, for example 13 cm or 25 cm. (see 13a below)
13a. _____Below
Datum _____
This refers to the cm below a certain datum at the site, or the depth of a piece-
plotted artifact (see #13). A datum is a nail or marker of some kind that has an
exact elevation and horizontal provenience from which the site measurements
are taken off of. For example, an artifact could be 19 cm Below Datum A.
14. Comments You can include here the weight (in grams), color, shape, and any other
information pertinent to the artifact here.
Professor Jack R. Boyd Prehistoric & Historic Archaeology Laboratory
Department of Anthropology
Franciscan University of Steubenville, OH