Photographing Dura-Europos, 1928–1937: An Archaeology of the Archive

Abstract

Recent years have seen the emergence of scholarship on the history of archaeology and receptions of the classical past. Neither of these trends has fully engaged with the visual evidence, particularly that of photography, or with the material form of the archive itself. Using archival photographs taken at the site of Dura-Europos from 1928 to 1937, this article explores how the study of archaeological photographs and archaeological archives can contribute to our understanding of the history and epistemology of archaeology.