Archaeology: The Science of the Human Past

by Mark Q. Sutton

Overview

This new entry into the introductory archaeology market conveys the excitement of archaeological discovery while it explains how archaeologists think as they scientifically find, analyze, and interpret evidence.This books covers archaeological history, theory, and method comprehensively-at a reasonable level of detail-in language accessible to the reader, it presents a balanced treatment of scientific archaeology and postprocessual concerns about the interpretation of gender, ethnicity, and individuality in the archaeological record.For anyone interested in archeology!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781032755588
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	01/22/2025
Edition description:	7th ed.
Pages:	420
Product dimensions:	8.00(w) x 10.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Mark Q. Sutton is an emeritus professor of anthropology at California State University, Bakersfield, USA.

Table of Contents

A “Chapter Summary”concludes each chapter.

PART I. WHAT IS ARCHAEOLOGY?

1. The Science of Archaeology.
What Is Archaeology?
Branches of Archaeology.
Key Concepts in Archaeology.
Archaeology as Science.
The Importance of Archaeology.

2. Backgrounds of Archaeology.
The Antiquarians.
The Discovery of a Prehistory.
The Classical Civilizations.
The Emergence of Professional Archaeology.
Developing the Outline of World Prehistory.
Political Influences in the History of Archaeology.

3. The Development of Contemporary Archaeology.
Archaeology After World War II.
Processualism and Scientific Archaeology.
Cultural Materialism and Human Ecology.
Postprocessualism and Archaeology as Narrative.
Archaeological Frontiers.
Careers in Archaeology.

PART II. OBTAINING INFORMATION ABOUT THE PAST.

4. The Archaeological Record.
Archaeological Sites.
Archaeological Evidence.
Site Formation and Transformation.
Preservation.
Recognizing and Recovering Evidence.
Ongoing Impacts on the Archaeological Record.

5. Conducting Fieldwork.
Finding Sites.
Types and Uses of Remote Sensing.
Excavating Sites.
The Practical Aspects of Fieldwork.
Ethics in Archaeological Fieldwork.

6. Classification and Analysis of Artifacts.
Classification.
Laboratory Processing.
Artifacts.

7. Determining Time.
What Is So Important About Time?
Older or Younger? Relative Dating.
Real Time? Absolute Dating.

8. Bioarchaeology: Human Remains.
PreservedBodies.
Skeletal Remains.
Analytical Approaches.

PART III. INTERPRETING THE PAST.

9. Environment and Adaptation.
The Environment.
Environmental Archaeology.
Human Adaptation to the Environment.
The Agricultural Revolution.

10. Understanding Past Settlement and Subsistence.
Where Did People Live? Past Settlement Systems.
How Did People Make a Living? Subsistence.
Interpretation of Settlement and Subsistence Evidence.

11. Understanding Past Social and Cultural Systems.
Interpreting Political Structure and Social Organization.
Interpreting Social Stratification.
Interpreting Religious Beliefs and Values.
Interpreting Cultural Symbols.
The Archaeology of Ethnicity.
Cognitive Archaeology.

12. Understanding Culture Change.
Archaeology of Change.
Interpreting Evidence of Change.
Migration and Diasporas.
Culture Contact and Cultural Conflict.
A Final Comment on Interpretation.

PART IV. APPLIED ARCHAEOLOGY.

13. Public Archaeology.
Archaeology and Progress.
Rediscovering and Preserving Cultural Heritages.
Archaeology and Ethics.

14. Archaeology in the Real World.
Archaeology and Politics.
Applying Archaeology to Contemporary Problems.
Archaeology, Mass Media, and Ecotourism.
Archaeology and the Internet.

Glossary.

References.

Name and Subject Index.