History of Archaeology
Bibliography for the History of Archaeology
A specially constructed bibliography for the History of Archaeology series.
Advances in Archaeology Technology
Advances in Archaeology Technology
History of Archaeology: The Series
The history of archaeology is a long and checkered one. If there is anything archaeology teaches us, it is to look to the past to learn from our mistakes and, if we can find any, our successes. What we today think of as the science of archaeology has its roots in religion and treasure hunting, and born out of centuries of curiosity about the past and where we all came from.
The History of Archaeology, Part 1
The beginning of a long-running series, this time covering the roots (and loot) of archaeology, the Treasure Hunters.
Part II: You Call this Enlightenment?
The first tentative step forward towards archaeology as a science took place during the Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Reason. Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries was a time of great growth in scientific and natural exploration.
Part III: The Tyranny of the Text
Is the bible fact or fiction? This question is at the absolute heart of archaeology, central to the growth and development of archaeology, and it is the one that gets more archaeologists into trouble than any other.
Part IV: The Biologist, the Geologist, and the Museum Director
By the beginning of the 19th century, the museums of Europe were beginning to be inundated with relics from all over the world. Museums all over Europe, were simply becoming overrun with artifacts, from all over the world, completely lacking in order. Something had to be done.
Part V: The Development of Method
The real increases towards the techniques and methodology of what we think of as modern archaeology were primarily the work of three scholars: Heinrich Schliemann, Lane Fox Pitt-Rivers, and William Flinders Petrie.
A Bibliography of the History of Archaeology
Numerous books and articles have been published on the history of archaeology. If you want to dig further, here's a big fat bibliography.
Remarkable Creatures
The novel Remarkable Creatures highlights the social conditions at the time of the birth of paleontology, seen from the vantage point of two women who played an important role.
Bourbon Excavations
In 1738, Charles of Bourbon, King of the Two Sicilies and founder of the House of Bourbon, hired antiquarian Marcello Venuti to work at the sites of Herculaneum and Pompeii.
Three Age System
The so-called Three Age System was developed by the Danish curator of the National Museum of Denmark C.J. Thomsen, at the instigation of his predecessor Rasmus Nyerup, and to resolve display issues.
Enlightenment
The Enlightenment is the name given to the period in European history during the 18th and early 19th centuries, when there was a re-birth of interest in science and nature.
The Rape of the Nile - A Book Review
Brian Fagan's The Rape of the Nile is a resonant description of those days when science and scientific thought was being forged, both awful and awe-inspiring.