Introduction to Archaeological Methods and Sources
Introduction to Archaeological Methods and Sources
- Peter MitchellPeter MitchellSchool of Archaeology, University of Oxford; School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand
Summary
Archaeology’s focus on material culture provides it with unparalleled opportunities to investigate the entire span of the human past. For periods for which historical records (verbal as well as textual) exist, this includes its ability to deliver insights into the lives of individuals and communities only partially represented, if at all, in those records. Its remit ranges from individual sites requiring excavation to surface scatters of artifacts, from upstanding monuments to entire landscapes. Interpreting archaeological observations depends upon establishing that they are in valid association with each other and can be accurately dated. In both cases the principles of stratigraphic superimposition, association, and context are key concerns. While analogies derived from ethnographic data sustain many archaeological interpretations, individual finds and assemblages of finds are also investigated using a wide range of scientific and other techniques.
Subjects
- Archaeology
- Historiography and Methods
