Archaeological Theory
Who Sets the Agenda?
Norman Yoffee editor Andrew Sherratt editor
Format:Paperback
Publisher:Cambridge University Press
Published:22nd Jul '93
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
This paperback is available in another edition too:
- Hardback£35.00(9780521440141)
This volume assesses current archaeological theories and considers how they relate to our understanding of the past.
This volume assesses the real achievements of archaeology in increasing an understanding of the past. Without rejecting the insights either of traditional or more recent approaches, it considers the issues raised in current claims and controversies about what is appropriate theory for archaeology. The first section looks at the process of theory building and at the sources of the ideas employed. The following studies examine questions such as the interplay between expectation and evidence in ideas of human origins, social role and material practice in the formation of the archaeological record, and how the rise of states should be conceptualised; further papers cover issues of ethnoarchaeology, visual symbols, and conflicting claims to ownership of the past. The conclusion is that archaeologists need to be equally wary of naive positivism in the guise of scientific procedure, and of speculation about the unrecorded intentions of prehistoric actors.
'I recommend this provocative volume, in which I found much to think about, not least Sherratt's plea that archaeologists - not the media, tour managers or politicians - should be the ones who set the agenda.' Nick Saunders, New Scientist
ISBN: 9780521449588
Dimensions: 246mm x 189mm x 12mm
Weight: 380g
152 pages