Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction

Why is archaeology so popular? What do archaeologists do? How does archaeology do its detective work, and what purpose does it serve? From deserts to jungles, from deep caves to mountain-tops, from pebble tools to satellite photographs, from excavation to abstract theory, archaeology interacts with nearly every other discipline in its attempts to reconstruct the past. Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction gives entertaining insight into the main concerns of archaeology today, outlining the origins and development of archaeology from an individual treasure hunt to today's massive multidisciplinary projects.

An acclaimed authority and popularizer of the subject, Paul Bahn surveys the immense technological developments, and looks at the way in which archaeology can be used, for example, to help Third World countries develop traditional agricultural methods. The growing interest in archaeology is explained by the fascinating questions which the book addresses: "How did people live?", "How did people think?", and "Why did things change?". Later chapters consider current concerns, such as the responsibilities involved in presenting the past to the public, the possibility of "loving archaeology to death," and the belief that many sites would be safest left deep beneath the earth. This very short introduction reflects the enduring popularity of archaeology, a subject which appeals as a pastime, a career and academic discipline, encompasses the whole globe, and surveys 2.5 million years.