Archaeological Theory Research Articles

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Next article FreeOPEN ACCESS ON AJA ONLINE (www.ajaonline.org)Online-Only ContentPDFPDF PLUSFull Text Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmailQR Code SectionsMoreOnline-only content accompanying American Journal of Archaeology Volume 122, Number 3 (July 2018)SUPPLEMENTARY CONTENTImage Gallery: The Functions of Masons' Marks in the Bronze Age Palace at Malia (Crete), by Maud DevolderImage Gallery: A Cultural History of the Cretan Labyrinth: Monument and Memory from Prehistory to the Present, by Antonis KostonasImage Gallery: Urban Images in Glass from the Late Roman Empire: The Souvenir Flasks of Puteoli and Baiae, by Maggie L. PopkinAppendix: Dataset of Minoan Masons' Marks, by Maud DevolderAppendix: Inscriptions and Images That Appear on the Surviving Flasks of the Puteoli-Baiae Group, by Maggie L. PopkinMUSEUM REVIEWPresenting the Warrior? Iron Age Scythian Materials and Gender Identity at the British Museum, by James A. JohnsonREVIEW ARTICLECreating Meaning in Archaeology, by Peter S. AllenBOOK REVIEWSSocial Theory in Archaeology and Ancient History: The Present and Future of Counternarratives, edited by Geoff Emberling. Reviewed by Guy D. MiddletonGendered Labor in Specialized Economies: Archaeological Perspectives on Female and Male Work, edited by Sophia E. Kelly and Traci Ardren. Reviewed by Thomas E. EmersonKataret Es-Samra, Jordan: The 1985 Excavation and Survey, by Albert Leonard, Jr. Reviewed by Alexander AhrensMrs. Naunakhte and Family: The Women of Ramesside Deir al-Medina, by Koenraad Donker van Heel. Reviewed by Margaret Taylor DeaneThe Sunshade Chapel of Meritaten from the House-of-Waenre of Akhenaten, by Josef Wegner. Reviewed by Jacquelyn WilliamsonSummer Farms: Seasonal Exploitation of the Uplands from Prehistory to the Present, edited by John Collis, Mark Pearce, and Franco Nicolis. Reviewed by Emily HoltMaritime Transport Containers in the Bronze-Iron Age Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean, edited by Stella Demesticha and A. Bernard Knapp. Reviewed by Stefano GimatzidisThe Art of Contact: Comparative Approaches to Greek and Phoenician Art, by S. Rebecca Martin. Reviewed by Jeremy TannerA Companion to the Etruscans, edited by Sinclair Bell and Alexandra A. Carpino. Reviewed by Laurel TaylorThe Dancing Lares and the Serpent in the Garden: Religion at the Roman Street Corner, by Harriet I. Flower. Reviewed by David PotterEgypt in Italy: Visions of Egypt in Roman Imperial Culture, by Molly Swetnam-Burland. Reviewed by Arabela BaerVilla Magna: An Imperial Estate and Its Legacies. Excavations 2006–10, edited by Elizabeth Fentress, Caroline Goodson, and Marco Maiuro, with Margaret Andrews and J. Andrew Dufton. Reviewed by Helena FracchiaCaddeddi on the Tellaro: A Late Roman Villa in Sicily and Its Mosaics, by R.J.A. Wilson. Reviewed by Jerrad LancasterVisualizing the Afterlife in the Tombs of Graeco-Roman Egypt, by Marjorie Susan Venit. Reviewed by Christina RiggsThe Mithraeum at Caesarea Maritima: The Joint Expedition to Caesarea Maritima Excavation Reports. Vol. 2, by Robert Jehu Bull, with Jane DeRose Evans, Alexandra L. Ratzlaff, Andrew H. Bobeck, and Robert S. Fritzius. Reviewed by Caroline DowningParadigm and Progeny: Roman Imperial Architecture and Its Legacy. Proceedings of a Conference Held at the American Academy in Rome on 6–7 December, 2011, in Honor of William L. MacDonald, edited by D. Favro, F.K. Yegül, J. Pinto, and G. Métraux. Reviewed by Lynne C. LancasterList of Books Received Next article DetailsFiguresReferencesCited by American Journal of Archaeology Volume 122, Number 3July 2018 The journal of the Archaeological Institute of America Views: 96Total views on this site Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3764/aja.122.3.online Copyright © 2018 by the Archaeological Institute of America. All rights reserved.PDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

Book Review of Social Theory in Archaeology and Ancient History: The Present and Future of Counternarratives, edited by Geoff Emberling

Book Review of Social Theory in Archaeology and Ancient History: The Present and Future of Counternarratives, edited by Geoff Emberling

Bencao archaeology: A novel interdisciplinary field of herbal medicine and archaeology

Traditional Chinese Medicine is a characteristic of ancient China. It is also an important feature of Chinese medicine and archaeology. Traditional Chinese pharmacology is called “ Bencao ”. Therefore, research on archaeologically unearthed drugs or medicine-related sites and relics is called Bencao archaeology. Bencao archaeology is a field of research on medicine-related archaeological sites and relics. The common goals of Bencao archaeology and archaeology in general are to understand the history of ancient human beings and how they prevented and treated diseases. The culture of Traditional Chinese Medicine is extensive and profound, and it has a long history. With the growth and development of archaeology in the twentieth century, many drugs or drug-related ruins (remains) have been unearthed, laying a solid foundation for carrying out Bencao archaeological research. Bencao archaeology applies modern archaeological theories and research methods and explores the relationship between humans and drugs based on unearthed drugs or medicine-related sites and relics. The findings of such research help reconstruct the temporal and spatial framework of the cultural remains and the history of Traditional Chinese Medicine, uncovering the historical process of the development of Chinese medicine. Bencao archaeology reveals the origin and development of drugs, their formation and transformation, and their production process. The main part of Traditional Chinese Medicine is plant medicine. There is a close correspondence between Bencao archaeology and plant archaeology. Both conform with archaeology in general. They discuss ancient human culture, reconstruct ancient human lifestyle, and explain the development and process of human culture. However, there are several differences in research objects, research methods, and problems between the two. Unearthed drugs or medicine-related sites and relics are the research objects of bencao archaeology; for example, health equipment, medicine tools, drug measurement tools, medical documents, herbs, and other medicine-related sites and relics. On the other hand, the research objects of plant archaeology are plant remains unearthed from archaeological sites. With regard to several aspects mentioned in this paper, Bencao archaeology and plant archaeology have an interactive relationship; their characteristics intersect, and they promote and supplement each other. Bencao archaeology is a new field that integrates archaeology with herbalism. Its nature and foundation lie in both herbalism and archaeology. At present, this research field is still in its infancy, but it has broad prospects for development. We need solid archaeological evidence to actively promote the progress and development of this field. This paper expounds the new interdisciplinary field of Bencao archaeology from many aspects, such as its foundation, definition and subject orientation, objects of study, research direction, and relationship with other branches of archaeology, thus providing a novel research path to extensively study herbal medicines.

Against reactionary populism: towards a new public archaeology

From Brazil to the United Kingdom, 2016 was a critical year in global politics. Heritage, ethics and the way that archaeologists relate to the public were and will all be affected, and it is time to reflect critically on the phenomenon of ‘reactionary populism’ and how it affects the practice and theory of archaeology. ‘Reactionary populism’ can be defined as a political form that is anti-liberal in terms of identity politics (e.g. multiculturalism, abortion rights, minority rights, religious freedom), but liberal in economic policies. It is characterised by nationalism, racism and anti-intellectualism, and as Judith Butler states in a recent interview, it wants “to restore an earlier state of society, driven by nostalgia or a perceived loss of privilege” (Soloveitchik 2016). Our intention here is to argue that the liberal, multi-vocal model of the social sciences and the humanities is no longer a viable option. Instead, we ask our colleagues to embrace an archaeology that is ready to intervene in wider public debates not limited to issues of heritage or of local relevance, is not afraid of defending its expert knowledge in the public arena, and is committed to reflective, critical teaching.

Hvad er den store idé? - Intellektuel historie og longue durée

In many realms of historical writing, big is back. In some areas – historical archaeology, comparative sociology or world-systems theory – it never went away. In others, it clearly has disappeared, never to return: the globe-spanning universal histories associated with an Oswald Spengler or an Arnold Toynbee seem unlikely to be imitated again. But across the historical profession, the telescope rather than the microscope is increasingly the preferred instrument of examination. A tight focus has hardly been abandoned, as the continuing popularity of biography and the utilityof microhistory both amply show. However, it is being supplemented by broad panoramas of both space and time displayed under various names: “world history”, “deep history” and “big history”. This return to the longue durée presents challenges and opportunities for all historians, including practitioners of intellectual history.

Wonderful Things? A Consideration of 3D Modelling of Objects in Material Culture Research

Abstract The role of 3D modelling in archaeology is increasing exponentially, from fieldwork to architecture to material culture studies. For the study of archaeological objects the roles of digital and print models for public engagement has been much considered in recent literature. For model makers, focus has typically been placed on exceptional and visually striking objects with inherent appeal. In contrast, this paper explores some of the potential roles for 3D digital models for routine artefact research and publication. Particular emphasis is placed on the challenges this technology raises for archaeological theory and practice. Following a consideration of how 3D models relate to established illustration and photographic traditions, the paper evaluates some of the unique features of 3D models, focussing on both positive and negative aspects of these. This is followed by a discussion of the role of potential research connections between digital and craft models in experimental research. Our overall objective is to emphasise a need to engage with the ways in which this gradual development has begun to change aspects of longestablished workflows. In turn, the increasing use of this technology is argued to have wider ramifications for the development of archaeology, and material culture studies in particular, as a discipline that requires reflection.

EDITORIAL

Both Antiquity and archaeology have changed immeasurably since O.G.S. Crawford penned this journal's first editorial in 1927. The discipline has grown in size and sophistication, and has achieved professional status and public recognition. What was novel at that time, such as aerial photography and the use of ethnographic parallels, both flagged in that first editorial, have now long been integral to archaeological theory and practice. Antiquity has documented—and often driven—these developments, itself evolving along the way. Nine decades after its foundation, Antiquity publishes more content, on more varied periods and places, and authored by an ever-more international cast of contributors. It has also changed in terms of its audience. Part of Crawford's original vision was to communicate archaeology more effectively to the general public, not least with the intention of debunking the misleading, sensationalist and downright incorrect fare peddled in the bestsellers and newspapers of the day. The content of Antiquity today is aimed at a more professional readership, what one previous editor, Martin Carver, called “the extended archaeological family” of academics and field archaeologists, and the many associated specialists in cognate disciplines with whom we work. All these developments notwithstanding, it is striking that many of Crawford's concerns and interests still continue to resonate. The disciplinary imperative to communicate with the public is stronger than ever, finding new opportunities in social media, blogs and TV programmes, and under pressure from funding bodies to demonstrate public benefit or ‘impact’. The analytical, and aesthetic, importance of aerial photography that Crawford worked hard to promote has too taken on a new lease of life through satellite imagery, LiDAR and, most recently, photography using drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (see Frontispiece 1).

Smudged Wares: The Importance of Color and Iridescence as a Long-Lived Decorative Attribute in the Mogollon Highlands

The importance of color and iridescences as decorative attributes is rising in importance in archaeological theory. Following this trend, this study examines smudged vessels dating to the Reserve and Tularosa phases (AD 1000–1250) from central Arizona and New Mexico. Smudging is created by the use of polish and the manipulation of firing atmosphere resulting in a black, iridescent surface. It has long been assumed to be functional, but the decorative aspects of smudging are understudied. I argue that smudging is a decorative method first used in AD 400 that formed the foundation of a long-lived decorative canon lasting until at least AD 1250/1350. To better understand this decorative tradition, a discussion of style (with an emphasis on color and iridescence) and ethnoarchaeological studies on the manipulation of firing atmosphere are reviewed. This is followed by an examination of the distribution of smudged wares in the Southwest, its rising popularity in the Pinelawn/Reserve area through time and a formal analysis of 506 smudged bowls demonstrating its use on bowls used for a variety of functions ranging from miniature vessels to household use to feasting bowls.

Classical Art: A Life History from Antiquity to the Present by Caroline Vout

BOOK REVIEWS/COMPTES RENDUS 195 (commonly temples and stoas) within the confines of sanctuaries, prior to its appearance on the Old Bouleuterion (198) requires some modification. The Doric order does appear on images of fountain houses on Black Figure vases (Hydria of the Priam Painter and the François vase) and the entrance to Peleus’ house on the François vase. Altogether, this volume is an admirable undertaking, which sets the standard for future syntheses of theory and methodology in Mediterranean archaeology during other time periods. As the first synthetic treatment with a unique approach to the subject matter it constitutes a valuable contribution to this area of study. University of New Brunswick Maria Papaioannou Classical Art: A Life History from Antiquity to the Present. By Caroline Vout. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press. 2018. Pp. 376, 80 colour and 132 b/w illustrations. Caroline Vout's latest work represents a refreshingly new approach to the discussion of classical Greek and Roman sculpture, using artworks to provide the insight that “comes from antiquities that carry their dirt with them” (3). She emphasises that only “if we can trace them back to where the ancients left them—better still, to where the ancients used them—can we appreciate what these artifacts meant and did—give them back their agency (sic)” (1). Vout divides her work into nine full chapters covering a multitude of objects, ranging from the antique to the modern. In her first chapter (“Setting the Agenda, or Putting the Art into Heritage”), she opens with the much discussed Tyrannicides, providing a fresh perspective on what could have been treated as an old chestnut by examining how their status and meaning changed over time. In this introductory chapter, Vout also clarifies some key terms, most saliently how “Art” and the ancient term ars correlate. “Context,” by which Vout means display contexts (12), is also highlighted, although it is not until Chapter Nine that the more traditional interpretation of this term is considered in detail. Chapter Two (“Finding the Classical in Hellenistic Greece”) begins with Nero’s theft of sculptures from Delphi. A comprehensive survey of Hellenistic art and its debt to classical precursors follows, ending with a section, entitled “Learning to Look” (39–42), which uses a discussion of the “Hellenistic gaze” to set the scene for the Romans’ utilisation of Greek themes, modified to their own tastes and palettes. Roman culture can be branded as indistinct from and overly reliant on the Greek, but Vout does not take this traditional approach in Chapter Three (“Making Greek Culture Roman Culture”). Instead she poses apt questions pertaining to the absorption of Greek visual culture. With an emphasis on imperial sculpture she concludes that Augustan classicism was inevitable and that Roman conquests could be configured into a Greek idiom. A short discussion of the impact of Greek painting on the Roman domestic environs allows space for a beautifully illustrated section on Roman mosaics and wall paintings. Chapter Four (“Roman Art, the Building Blocks of Empire”) opens up to a more grandiose vista, engaging with Rome and its shift “from repository of culture to tou Ellhnikoœ &Eynouw, t. 2 (Athens 1971) 196–200; W. Waal, “On the ‘Phoenician Letters’: The Case for an Early Transmission of the Greek Alphabet from an Archaeological, Epigraphic and Linguistic Perspective,” Aegean Studies 1 (2018) 83–125. 196 PHOENIX cultural exemplar” (71). One example is the Roman emphasis on collecting (75–80), in Vout’s phrasing, “like Caesar” (75). Appropriation of classical culture continues in pagan and Christian contexts, and Vout’s comments on Christianity’s need and use of pagan art to support and promote a new imperial narrative are astute. The following section on the Middle Ages is sadly brief, but does include an engaging equestrian statuette of a portly Charlemagne or Charles the Bald (91, fig. 4.15). Chapter Five (“Reviving Antiquity in Renaissance Italy”) examines the Renaissance view of classical art and its effect on Europe’s understanding of Greek and Roman culture up to the mid-eighteenth century. Vout considers “variations in practice, and evolving . . . attitudes to collecting, exhibition, and restoration” (97). There is a wealth of expertly managed material here, which Vout enriches...

Theory and Interpretation in Archaeology of Death

The archaeology of death and identity is crucial to our attempts to understand past societies. Through the remains of funerary rituals, archaeologists study not only ancient people’s attitudes and feelings toward death and the afterlife but also about their culture, social system, and world view. This paper provides an overview and synthesis of one of the most revealing fields of research into the past, focusing on the theoretical issues that have encouraged the different approaches over the time.

Archaeological Theory: between practice, representation and politics

Archaeological Theory: between practice, representation and politics

Theory and practice in Russian and Soviet archaeology: retrospect and prospect

Despite the fact that several books and a plethora of articles have been published in recent decades on the archaeology of the USSR and Russia, Soviet-Russian archaeology is still largely ignored in the West (e.g. Fagan 2003, but see Trigger 2006: 230–32, 326–44). For non-Russian scholars, the first acquaintance with it can be nightmarish; for example, Anthony (2007: 164) describes the periodisation of the Aeneolithic Cucuteni-Tripolye culture of Ukraine and Moldova (parts of the USSR before 1991), and Romania: There is a Borges-like dreaminess to the Cucuteni pottery sequence: one phase (Cucuteni C) is not a phase at all but rather a type of pottery probably made outside the Cucuteni-Tripolye culture; another phase (Cucuteni A1) was defined before it was found, and never was found.

The asymmetries of disentanglement

In this dialogue, Hodder and Lucas skilfully manoeuvre the winding trails of archaeological theory during the last decades and critically juxtapose the discussion of symmetry and asymmetry of relations between entities with that of entanglement. Their provocative dialogue compellingly leads to the conclusion that most entanglements are in fact asymmetrical. Whereas I mostly concur with the conclusions of the dialogue, addressing the authors’ closing statements I would like to highlight the need to equally (in some ways, symmetrically) consider disentanglement as the process opposite to entanglement, along with the consequences of such disentanglement. If we are to understand better the contexts and politics of entanglements – concerns that this dialogue brings to the fore – I furthermore suggest that we more closely scrutinize the density (quantity) and joining (quality) of entanglements, as well as pay closer attention to memory, emotion and affect in entanglements.

Stednavne og arkæologi i Danmark

Onamastics and archaeology in DenmarkThere is a long research tradition of coupling place-name studies with archae­ology. In the early 20th century, attention was focussed primarily on the reconstruction of past societies, including tribal migrations and the emergence of nation states. Several of these onamastic studies were characterised by an optimistic view of the value of the sources as evidence and the contemporaneity of the place names – optimism that cannot now be fully maintained, given today’s critical research appro­ach and awareness of the broad dating frames for the place-name types (fig. 1).Another significant area of conflict bet­ween place-name research and archaeology is settlement history. In the 1970s, a project with the title Landsbyens opståen – The origin of the village – was launched on the island of Funen. This challenged traditional settlement history, because the findings suggested that the historical villages – regardless of whether they bore names from the early or the late place-name layer – generally appeared to have been founded around the 11th-12th century. This led to discussions among place-name researchers about the potential usefulness of onamastic evidence in relation to settlement history: A discussion that was though, to a major extent, founded on differing views and understandings of the term continuity.Since the village research project on Funen there has been a massive increase in available archaeological data, and the questions relating to settlement history have been taken up anew. In several instances, the archaeological record now suggests a more varied date for the fixing of the location of historical villages than was previously the case. On Funen, for example, this is now thought to have taken place in the 7th century AD (fig. 2). The question of area continuity in relation to the age of the name types can, given the increased imperical evidence of recent years, now be discussed on a more qualified foundation (fig. 3) and, as a consequence, a new model for name conversion can be presented here (fig. 4).Over time, place names have seen frequent use in archaeology as site indicators – revealing the existence of lost settlements, snekke localities and strongholds and fortresses. The structure of society has also constituted a significant topic of interest in both archaeological and onamastic studies in recent decades. The emergence of a new category of metal-rich locality from the Late Iron Age in the late 1980s led to the formulation of an archaeological theory about central places. This theory fits surprisingly well with the results of some Swedish place-name studies, where repeated, uniform assemblages of characteristic place names – so-called central-place indicating name environments – are thought to be an onomastic expression of a similar phenomenon.Recent studies based on Danish evidence have not led to the identification of uniform central-place indicating name environments in Denmark, even though areas with several possible central-place indicating names have been observed (fig. 5).The landscape-archaeological approach of the 1990s has been of crucial importance for the important position occupied by place-name research in Danish archaeology today. The ongoing digitalisation of archives and records that is currently underway will mean that collating and combining these sources of information will become easier and more precise in the future. This, in turn, will hopefully lead to closer collaboration between the disciplines.Lisbeth Eilersgaard ChristensenOdense

Theory adrift: The matter of archaeological theorizing

At a possible transition towards a ‘flat’, post-human or new-materialist environment, many have suggested that archaeological theory and theorizing is changing course; turning to metaphysics; leaning towards the sciences; or, even is declared dead. Resonating with these concerns, and drawing on our fieldwork on a northern driftwood beach, this article suggests the need to rethink fundamental notions of what theory is – its morphological being – and how it behaves and takes form. Like drift matter on an Arctic shore, theories are adrift. They are not natives of any particular territory, but nomads in a mixed world. While they are themselves of certain weight and figure, it matters what things they bump into, become entangled with, and moved by. Based on this, we argue that theories come unfinished and fragile. Much like things stranding on a beach they don’t simply ‘add up’ but can become detached, fragmented, turned and transfigured. Rather than seeing this drift as rendering them redundant and out of place, it is this nomadism and ‘weakness’ that sustains them and keeps them alive.

Assembling the archaeology of the global Middle Ages

ABSTRACTResponding to recent developments in archaeological theory and growing interest in the ‘global Middle Ages’, an approach to exploring relations between local and global processes in the medieval world is proposed. The World-systems approach, applied by some historians to these kinds of macro-paradigms and questions, can expose significant challenges regarding social and economic development at a global scale. However, here it is suggested that the ‘assemblage thought’ of Deleuze and Guattari, developed by DeLanda, might offer a more productive approach for assessing the multi-scalar interactions that defined the lives of communities in the Middle Ages. Here consideration is given to the character of the Middle Ages and its relation to modernity; the implications of the multi-scalar approach are also exemplified using a brief discussion of the Anglo-Italian wool trade in the Late Middle Ages.

Bridging the Gap: Classification, Theory and Practice in Public Archaeology

Models and classifications have been a part of thinking about public archaeology since at least the early 2000s, but how are these ideas translated into practice? By looking into the development of such classifications and models and by examining archaeologists’ attitudes to an archaeological education outreach project for schoolchildren in Oslo, Norway, this paper looks at the relationship between classification, theory, and practice in public archaeology.

Soil and slaughter: a geoarchaeological record of the ancient Maya from Cancuén, Guatemala

Excavation of a small valley-fill sequence at the East Port of the ancient Maya site of Cancuén, Guatemala has revealed a sedimentary record spanning the last c. 1300years of the Common Era (CE). Our study location within the centre of a pre-Columbian Maya city has allowed tandem records of archaeological and palaeoenvironmental history to be preserved in the sediments, offering the opportunity to reconstruct how the Maya and their environment co-evolved during the Late Classic period (600–c. 800CE). The sedimentary record from Cancuén's East Port has preserved clear evidence of the city's rise and abandonment; we have used these chronostratigraphic markers to estimate rates of aggradation and erosion over the two centuries of human occupation. Evidence of fire and major social upheaval features prominently in the sedimentary archive as thick deposits of charcoal, artefacts, and a human mass-burial that date from the final years of Cancuén. After Cancuén was rapidly abandoned at the start of the 9th century CE, changes in the East Port sequence (mainly variations in sediment provenance and accumulation rate) record the sharp decline in aggradation, and also evidence of substantial hydroclimatic variability. This research provides a new dataset capable of testing and refining archaeological theories from Cancuén, while also offering new insights into the impact of the ancient Maya on their environment in the lowland region of Central America in recent millennia.

Fate and scientific path of the archaeologist Vladimir Ivanovich Timofeyev (14.06.1947-08.08.2004)

Born in the Murmansk Oblast, Vladimir Ivanovich Timofeyev lived a short but bright and creative life full of scientific research and achievements. As far as studying at the department of Archaeology of Leningrad State University, he chose the Holocene Stone Age as the topic for his research, to which he remained faithful up to the end of life. Working his way up from a laboratory assistant to the head of the Paleolithic Department of Leningrad Institute of Archaeology within the Academy of Science USSR-Institute for the Material Culture History of Russian Academy of Sciences, he proved himself as a purposeful, highly educated specialist who had extensive knowledge in field research, scientific methods and archaeological theory. Excellent memory, analytical abilities and diligence of Vladimir Ivanovich were noted by all colleagues and friends, both Russian and foreign ones, during expeditions and at conferences. The deserved recognition of Vladimir Ivanovich as the greatest expert of the Neolithic Age is unquestionable and it was about to be developed in doctoral thesis. Full sections of this work were discussed many times at the meetings of the Paleolithic Department and the Academic Council of Institute for the Material Culture and always received the highest appreciation. Unfortunately, a tragic accident cut short the life path of a first-class archaeologist and Vladimir Ivanovich Timofeevs extensive final research devoted to a wide range of Neolithic problems was never completed. Almost 13 years have elapsed since the untimely passing of this talented scientist but the bitterness of loss does not become weaker.

We’re All Cultural Historians Now: Revolutions In Understanding Archaeological Theory And Scientific Dating

ABSTRACTRadiocarbon dating has had profound implications for archaeological understanding. These have been identified as various “revolutions,” with the latest—Bayesian chronological statistical analyses of large datasets—hailed as a “revolution in understanding.” This paper argues that the full implications of radiocarbon (14C) data and interpretation on archaeological theory have yet to be recognized, and it suggests that responses in Britain to earlier revolutions in archaeological understanding offer salutary lessons for contemporary archaeological practice. This paper draws on the work of David Clarke and Colin Renfrew to emphasize the importance of critical considerations of the relationships between archaeological theory and scientific method, and to emphasize that seemingly neutral aspects of archaeological thought are highly laden interpretatively, and have significant implications for the kinds of archaeology that we write.