3.2 Assumptions about site assemblages

In fact, we should conclude that we do not possess a reliable reflection of the artefact composition of an early settlement. There are strong filters (3.1) resulting in the registration of an 'unbalanced' composition. The data of surface sites are too strongly distorted even for a site-typological analysis. Yet we want to continue.

We have to accept the assumptions below as the only way for the extensive data files of the Meuse Valley Project to be used for a site-typological analysis, and therefore for the reconstruction of settlement systems and economy:

• the qualitative composition of the artefacts left on a site is, despite the site formation processes, an indicative reflection of the activities performed there.
• the qualitative composition of the artefacts left in the soil on a site is, despite the post-depositional distortions, an indicative reflection of the artefacts left there.
• the qualitative composition of the artefacts found in a field survey is, despite the research factors, an indicative reflection of the artefacts present in the soil.

But simply accepting these assumptions is not enough ­ that would be too easy.

Awareness of the limitations of the data files should guide the selection of the analytical techniques used. How the data are processed in the search for various types of sites should match the limited quality of the sources. This has already been taken into account in the macro region, when collecting the data. Only the presence or absence of different artefact types has been recorded. This makes research into various types of sites less feasible, but there is a good match between the data collected and the quality. At the level of the core and micro regions the number of artefacts have been recorded for each type. This allows for a detailed typological analysis, but it is not certain that those quantitative data are reliable enough for this analysis. A systematic approach to the problems that may occur in the data analysis is certainly appropriate here.