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Taylor & Francis

Prepare your manuscript for Journal of Field Archaeology.

Review the checklist, choose your article type, and turn your draft into a cleaner submission package.

Checked 2026-08-01
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Article types

Review
Editorial
Clinical Trial
Protocol
Letter
Systematic Review
Lectio

Readiness requirements

Review the key details below, or download the complete checklist with every stored source-backed requirement.

Abstract length

  • Provide an author-written abstract of no more than 150 words.
  • Use a structured abstract.
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  • A non-structured abstract of no more than 150 words.

Keywords

  • Include or confirm the keywords required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Reference style

  • Articlo formats your supplied references in Harvard style and checks that citations match the reference list; source validity is not verified.
  • A paper for this journal should be no shorter than 8000 words, and no longer than 12,000, inclusive of references, captions, and tables.
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  • Please use this reference guide when preparing your paper, which follows the 17th edition of the Chicago Manual of Style Author-Date citation.
  • Do not cite in the text and list in the bibliography unpublished works such as conference papers or manuscripts in preparation (and not accepted by a publisher).
  • Every figure must be referred to in the narrative, and initial references to them must be in numerical sequence in the text.
  • Readers should be able to interpret the table without reference to the text.
  • References The bibliography must contain an entry for each work cited in the text (figure and table captions included) and only works cited in the text are to appear in the bibliography.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: Confirmation the authors take full responsibility for the integrity of the whole content, including accuracy of references.

Figure and table rules

  • Keep every figure and table numbered, captioned, and cited in the manuscript.
  • The manuscript should also have no more than 12 figures (photographs and line art including artifact drawings, maps, charts, and graphs), and three tables.
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  • Figure 1 should be a map locating the site or study area within its wider geographical context; a simple graphic scale and north arrow should appear in the image area.
  • Images should be prepared in an Adobe program (e.g., Illustrator, Photoshop, etc.) and should include high resolution (300 dpi or greater) raster elements suitable for printing; the final reproduction quality is dependent on the quality of the original illustration.
  • Figures should be saved separately from the text.
  • The figure caption should credit the copyright holder (as above).
  • When two rows of objects or images exist in a single figure, they should be labeled in a clockwise direction beginning with the object or image in the top left corner.
  • Any manipulation or modification to enhance, obscure, or remove individual features must be acknowledged in the caption.
  • The flat image should conform to our standard requirements for figures.
  • Tables should present new information rather than duplicating what is in the text.
  • Once the manuscript is accepted, composite images prepared in ArcGIS will require the submission of two figure versions: one complete version and one without added content (e.g., text, scale, north arrow, etc.).
  • All files other than those labelled “Title Page” and “Author Biography” are sent to reviewers; therefore, please do not submit any manuscript files, figures, or supplemental files that contain identifying information.
  • When a single figure includes more than one image and each image is referred to separately within the text, they need to be labeled A, B, C, within the figure.

Funding statement

  • You should declare only the acquired funds and grants that are directly relevant to the work reported in your article; for example, This work was supported by the [Funding Agency #1] under Grant [number xxxx]; [Funding Agency #2] under Grant [number xxxx]; and [Funding Agency #3] under Grant [number xxxx].

Competing interests

  • Further guidance on what is a conflict of interest and how to disclose it. (e.g. no more than 100 words).

Ethics statement

  • Include or confirm the ethics statement required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Blinded manuscript

  • Remove author names, affiliations, acknowledgements, and other direct identifiers from the blinded manuscript file.
  • Review: Please be aware that because the JFA uses a double-blind review process, all files that go to authors must be fully anonymized both in terms of their contents and their file names (as file names are visible to reviewers).

Cover letter

  • Using third-party material in your paper You must obtain the necessary permission to reuse third-party material in your article.
  • An author is required to obtain from the copyright holder written permission to reproduce images (in all formats including digital, in perpetuity, and in all geographical regions worldwide) in the manuscript and is liable for any fee(s) charged for image use.
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  • Review: The use of short extracts of text and some other types of material is usually permitted, on a limited basis, for the purposes of criticism and review without securing formal permission.
  • If you wish to include any material in your paper for which you do not hold copyright, and which is not covered by this informal agreement, you will need to obtain written permission from the copyright owner prior to submission.
  • Authors should bear this in mind when preparing the format of the images for submission and when obtaining permission to use material from third parties. http://authorservices.taylorandfrancis.com/sharing-your-work/.

Title page and author information

  • Provide the author, affiliation, and correspondence details for the separate title page; Articlo creates the editable companion file.
  • All authors of a manuscript should include their full name and affiliation on the cover page of the manuscript.
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  • One author will need to be identified as the corresponding author, with their email address normally displayed in the article PDF (depending on the journal) and the online article.

Article structure and word limits

  • Typically, fonts should be 6 points or higher to assure legibility in the final product.
  • Drawings at the appropriate resolution (800 dpi or 1200 dpi) at 7 inches wide should provide the JFA with optimal choices for sizing for printing.
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  • Exceptionally wide drawings that might be reproduced across two facing pages should be scanned at no less than 800 or 1200 dpi at 15 inches wide.
  • You may include a maximum of three 3D models per manuscript.
  • It should be a maximum width of 525 pixels.
  • Prior to submission, authors should print out, at roughly the size required for publication, and examine all images supplied electronically so that they may assess the hard copy image for contrast, legibility of type, etc.; what might be clear and legible on a computer screen may not be so when printed at a width between approximately 3.3 and 7 inches.
  • Digital photographs (from a digital camera or from scanning prints or transparencies) should be at 300 dpi for full color, 350–400 dpi for black-and-white halftones, and 600 dpi for transparencies, all at 7 inches wide.
  • Lettering on line art should be in Myriad Pro at a size that allows for reasonable reduction; the JFA reproduces letters no smaller than 1.5 mm in reduction, no smaller than a 6 pt font when reproduced.
  • Review: These instructions will ensure we have everything required so your paper can move through peer review, production and publication smoothly.
  • Your research funder or your institution may require you to publish your article open access.
  • Use our APC finder to view the APC for this journal.
  • Formatting Papers must be submitted in Microsoft Word format.
  • Do not use any footnoting or end-noting programs in your software, as this text becomes irretrievably lost at the typesetting stage.
  • Do not use see, ibid., op. cit., loc. cit., or idem.
  • Authors should consider the use of color images carefully to ensure that meaning is not lost if produced in grayscale in the print journal.
  • Extraneous geographical or topological details should be avoided.
  • Field reports should include at least one photograph that depicts the terrain and environment of the site or study area.
  • The file format should be TIFF in either grayscale or CMYK (avoid RGB).
  • Hand-drawn (pen and ink) line art should be prepared to professional standards and may be sent to the JFA office as originals for scanning there.
  • Owing to unpredictable translation, authors should exercise caution when using fonts and symbols from ESRI applications.
  • Queries Should you have any queries, please visit our Author Services website or contact us here.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: Originality and accuracy of content has been confirmed by the authors.
  • Authors must provide full methodological details and adhere to relevant reporting guidelines where applicable.
  • Authors must retain the original and revised versions which must be shared upon request.
  • The PLSP guidelines for authors must be followed at all times.
  • If you submit a paper to a participating journal, you will then receive an email upon submission with: Details of the badges offered by the journal.
  • If you submit a paper to a participating journal, you will then receive an email upon submission with: Links to additional information.
  • If you submit a paper to a participating journal, you will then receive an email upon submission with: An open practices disclosure form.
  • If you submit a paper to a participating journal, you will then receive an email upon submission with: The journal editor’s email address.
  • Composite images, with annotations or illustrative features over photographs, should be prepared as separate layers and submitted as an AI (.ai), PSD (.psd), PDF (.pdf), or TIF (.tif) file format where the layers are editable.
  • Line art that is created digitally should be prepared with a vector application, Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop (using the pen tool); other applications will be accepted at the discretion of the Art Editor.
  • Please use SI units (non-italicized).
  • Such as: The standards on Data, Materials, and Analytical Code Transparency speak to the items generated over the course of the study and how you should preserve or share them.
  • Please do not embed it in the manuscript file but save it as a separate file, labelled GraphicalAbstract1.
  • If you haven't submitted a paper to this journal before, you will need to create an account in the submission centre.
  • Image descriptions are typically used by systems such as pronouncing screen readers to make images accessible to people that cannot read or see the object due to a visual disability.
  • COS currently offers three badges in its program: The Open Materials badge is earned by making publicly available the components of the research methodology needed to reproduce the reported procedure and analysis.

Reporting guidelines

  • Include or confirm the reporting guidelines required by the journal. Articlo checks this item and flags anything that still needs author input.

Preprints and prior publication

  • If you have shared an earlier version of your Author’s Original Manuscript on a preprint server, please be aware that anonymity cannot be guaranteed.

Artificial intelligence disclosure

  • Add or confirm the author-written Artificial intelligence statement; Articlo flags it if author input is still needed.
  • Please include a statement disclosing whether and how generative AI has been used in the research and manuscript preparation process.
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  • Use of AI tools as part of ethical research studies is permitted.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: The name and version number of the AI tool used.
  • Systematic Review: Use of AI tools as part of ethically conducted literature reviews, systematic reviews, meta-analysis and bibliometrics studies is permitted.
  • Use of AI tool assisted plain language summaries (PLS) of authors own work is permitted.
  • Please read our guidance on using AI tools in your research and manuscript preparation to understand scenarios where their use may be permissible, and the required information that must be disclosed.
  • A declaration must be included within the submission stating: Confirmation the authors have checked terms of use for the specific AI tool used, and therefore confirm suitability for publication.

Language and text style

  • Please use American spelling style consistently throughout your manuscript.
  • Use double quotation marks, except where "a quotation is 'within' a quotation".

Manuscript structure

  • Endnote numbers must be manually added and numbered consecutively throughout the paper.
  • Authors must retain full records of the methods undertaken, including full descriptions and records of the prompts used, which must be shared with the journal upon request.

Study reporting guidelines

  • Authors must provide full methodological details and adhere to relevant reporting guidelines where applicable (e.g. CONSORT-AI, STARD-AI, GAMER, TRIPOD-AI, etc).

Data and open-science statements

  • Articles need to meet the Open Science Badges criteria in order to earn a badge.
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What your package checks

Abstract: 150 words
Paper: 8,000 words
References: Harvard
Title page: separate file
Declarations: Artificial intelligence

Source transparency

This preparation guide uses published journal-specific author requirements. Journal instructions can change, so authors should complete a final review before submission.

Open official guideline source