Type site

In archaeology, a type site (or type-site, or typesite) is a site that is typical of a particular archaeological culture. A type site contains artifacts which are typical of that culture. Type sites are often the first or foundational site discovered about the culture they represent.

For example, the type site of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A culture is Jericho, in the West Bank. The type site of the pre-celtic/Celtic Bronze Age Hallstatt culture is the lakeside village of Hallstatt, Austria.

In geology the term is used similarly for a site considered to be typical of a particular rock formation, etc. The use of this term is similar to that of the type specimen in biology.