The determination, recording and documentation of the original findspot and three‑dimensional spatial context of artifacts, ecofacts and features within an excavation or surveyed context, including coordinates, depth, stratigraphic association and plan relationships that allow reconstruction of spatial patterning and associations.

Principle

Provenience establishes contextual relationships by fixing the position of an item in space (and, where relevant, stratigraphic sequence); spatially precise provenience is necessary to assess association, contemporaneity and activity areas.

Demonstration

Illustrative scenario → Before removal, a decorated sherd is photographed in plan, its 3‑D coordinates and depth are recorded, and its stratigraphic unit is noted. Recognition → These records link the sherd to a hearth feature and a specific occupation horizon. Action → Analyst uses provenience to test whether the sherd's style co‑occurs with other artifacts in the same horizontal and vertical context. Consequence → The assemblage can be analyzed for contemporaneity and spatial patterning with confidence.

Misapplication

Using vague or post‑hoc location notes (e.g., 'from spoil heap' or bag‑level provenience) as if they provide the same evidentiary weight as secure in‑situ provenience. The error treats approximate or secondary locations as equivalent to primary spatial context.

Consequence

High‑resolution provenience preserves contextual information needed for intra‑site analysis, refitting studies, spatial statistics and reliable association of materials; poor or missing provenience reduces interpretive power and may preclude certain analyses.

Reversal

When working with legacy, looted or surface collections lacking precise provenience, analysts may reconstruct spatial context from field notes, archival material or statistical methods, but reconstructed provenience is probabilistic and weaker than original recorded provenience.

Boundary

Clearly within: in‑situ finds with recorded three‑dimensional coordinates and stratigraphic associations. Boundary case: bag‑level provenience where only locus or square is known. Clearly outside: artifacts without any recorded spatial information or with provenance described only by general region.

Semantic Tension

Provenience ↔ Provenance: provenience concerns spatial findspot and context within an excavation; provenance concerns geographic origin or source of material—both inform interpretation but serve different evidentiary roles.

Synthesis

Provenience is the foundational spatial datum that turns isolated objects into interpretable evidence: without precise provenience, associational and spatial arguments lose primary support and become inferentially weaker.