Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction

Front Cover
OUP Oxford, Aug 30, 2012 - Social Science - 136 pages
This entertaining Very Short Introduction reflects the enduring popularity of archaeology - a subject which appeals as a pastime, career, and academic discipline, encompasses the whole globe, and surveys 2.5 million years. 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. In this new edition, Paul Bahn brings the text up to date, including information about new discoveries and interpretations in the field, and highlighting the impact of developments such as the potential use of DNA and stable isotopes in teeth, as well the effect technology and science are having on archaeological exploration. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
 

Contents

Introduction
1
1 The origins and development of archaeology
8
2 Making a date
17
3 Technology
24
4 How did people live?
31
5 How did people think?
44
6 Settlement and society
58
7 How and why did things change?
69
8 Minorities and sororities
80
9 Presenting the past to the public
93
10 The future of the past
104
Further reading
113
Index
115
Copyright

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About the author (2012)

Paul Bahn is a freelance writer, translator, and broadcaster in archaeology. He is a Fellow of the Society of ntiquaries, a corresponding member of the Archaeological Institute of America, a contributing editor of Archaeology magazine (New York), and vice-president (UK) of the Easter Island Foundation. He instigated and led the project which discovered Britain's only known Ice Age cave art in 2003.

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