I confess that I read the edited collection of articles in Ideologies and Archaeology from Reinhold Bernbeck and Randall H. McGuire, published last year by the University of Arizona Press, at least six weeks ago. It took me that long to process it completely. Or at least to be able to write about it.
Ideologies in Archaeology. Cover image courtesy University of Arizona Press.
The book is a collection of articles considering the turbulent nature of the philosophy of archaeology these days. How does our own political viewpoint of the world impact what we study and write about: and how did the political control of state governments impact the past.
It's an important book to read, if you're an archaeologist, or if you crave to understand the philosophical rumblings among archaeologists today, as we attempt to discover and reposition our role in the greater world. I suspect that it will change my own philosophy, but I'm just not sure how. Yet.
Read the review: Ideologies in Archaeology
Comments
It is interesting that the Khmer Empire collapsed at the same time as other civilizations around the world collapsed. These events at the beginning of the 14th century seem to be related to the mini ice age that happened at that time.
Has there been any cause found for the world wide climate change that happened around the beginning of the 14th century?