The aim of this book is to give the reader an overview of study and practice in the field of public archaeology. It offers a series of snapshots of important ideas and areas of work brought together as an introduction, albeit an inevitably brief and incomplete one, to one of the most challenging and rewarding parts of the wider archaeological discipline. Read the book from cover to cover and you will have a good working understanding of public archaeology as a complicated, rich and diverse field, as well as knowledge of some of the most significant and iconic examples of...

Community archaeology, like public archaeology, is a diverse and ever growing field of study and practice that aims to connect archaeology with the wider world. Around the world community archaeologists engage with many different populations or sectors of society, employing a wide variety of methods, means, and conceptual frameworks. In this chapter it is impossible to cover community archaeology in its entirety: instead, my aim is to explore some of the definitional challenges of pinning down what community archaeology is, and then discuss examples of types of engagement from three different countries that fall under this broad church.

The concept...

Economics plays a significant role in the public’s relationship with archaeology. It has been described as one of the chief reasons that archaeology has relevance for governments or individuals today, and is often used to justify why archaeology should be done, or given resources to be carried out (Flatman 2012; Selvakumar 2010). Despite this, ‘economics’ and ‘economic value’ often sit uneasily within the archaeological discipline, reflecting a general sense that issues of ‘culture’ and ‘economics’ are separate and indeed often opposed. This chapter explores what is meant by economics in public archaeology, how archaeologists can think about and measure economic...

Why should archaeologists involve themselves in education? Education here means the formal education system through schools, colleges and universities. To do so is to reach out beyond our own discipline to young people and adults who are not necessarily intending to become archaeologists. In this chapter I examine some of the main themes in archaeology and education, focusing primarily on the UK. These themes include the value of archaeology in education, different theoretical approaches to learning, and the place of archaeology within formal learning. Three short case studies present examples of archaeological education in different forums.

The Council for British...

The twenty years following the mid-1990s witnessed a step change in the communication landscape, which can be summarised under the label of new digital media. In this period, the popularity of the Internet and mobile technologies has become more widespread, and previously distinct media forms have been progressively converging into fewer and ‘newer’ ones (Casey et al. 2008: 57–8; Castells 2010; Castells and Cardoso 2005; Lister et al. 2009: 420; Livingstone and Das 2009). An additional development since the early 2000s has been the shift from a straightforwardly informative World Wide Web to a more dramatically interactive Web 2.0...

The presentation of archaeological sites to the public, broadly considered, encompasses a vast and bewildering array of encounters between a cacophony of audiences, each with their very different needs, and an equally cacophonous variety of archaeological contexts, each of which presents its own problems and challenges. Two short examples will underline this point.

On the south-eastern tip on the island of Malta, the remains of a megalithic structure dating from the Neolithic, and excavated a century ago, stand perched on an eroding cliff-edge, and are gradually but inexorably falling into the sea. The occasional visitor that is persistent enough to...

Human rights intertwine with archaeology around the work that is done, the material on which the work is done, the material that the work produces, the labourers who do the work and the communities amongst whom the work is done; equally, they intersect over the work that is not done, the material that is neglected, the narratives that are untold and the people who are marginalised.

Insofar as it generates scientific data, cultural material and social understanding, archaeology produces, conserves, develops and diffuses objects of human rights – science and culture – and contributes to community life. Since they are acts of...

This chapter describes the solution adopted in England and Wales to the universal problem of how to deal with objects of archaeological, historical or cultural importance found in the soil by members of the public (portable antiquities): the Treasure Act 1996 and the Portable Antiquities Scheme. All countries have legal frameworks and other systems intended to protect such objects found by members of the public in their territory either by chance or as a result of deliberate searching. While these approaches vary widely, in most countries there is a legal requirement to report all objects of archaeological importance and normally...

You might have seen books on the ‘archaeology’ shelves in bookstores with brightly printed covers with pyramids, standing stones and crystal skulls. More likely you will have seen television shows where enthusiastic explorers find traces of ghosts, aliens or mythical monsters at archaeological sites around the world. Welcome to the world of alternative archaeology where up is down, old is new, and nothing is what it seems – except for the surprisingly large pay cheques. In this chapter I want to explore the world of alternative archaeologies (sometimes called fringe, bad or pseudo-archaeology), looking at their different themes and characteristics, at...

Commercial archaeology in the UK involves the contracting of professional archaeological services primarily to the construction industry. Since 1990, the sector has operated within the framework of an evolving UK government planning policy that has adhered to broad principles of sustainable development set out in EU directives and international conventions. The relationship between the commercial sector and planning is predicated on the notion that archaeology serves the public interest by providing key benefits. The sector supports the construction industry in discharging its regulatory duties as it responds to public demand for new housing and infrastructure (Aitchison 2012), and mitigates the...

On the occasion of his retirement in 1981, the distinguished archaeologist Glyn Daniel was presented with a Festschrift entitledAntiquity and Man, with papers ranging across the subjects that had occupied his career. These recognised his contributions to the study of megaliths and the history of archaeology, but also his work as a television presenter, popular writer and author of murder mysteries featuring an archaeologist-detective. One paper by Latin American archaeologist Warwick Bray reflected on humour in archaeology, and the idea that

there are two kinds of archaeology: archaeology as perceived by archaeologists, and archaeology as perceived by the man...

Archaeology is closely related to the state both organisationally and ideologically. It needs state funds for excavations, teaching and research institutions; in return, it can provide tangible remains from the past. However, the relation between the artefacts uncovered and any type of group identity of their makers is far from straightforward. In this chapter I am going to analyse the development of origin myths and the way archaeology became entangled in origin narratives.

One of the ways to naturalise a nation state is by comparing it to a human body which has an origin (birth), a family and ancestors, a...

Archaeological material, sometimes described as ‘antiquities’, surfaces on the market through different sources: auction houses and specialised galleries, as well as through the Internet. A study of the market needs to consider how materials move from closed archaeological contexts to their final resting place in public and private collections. It also seeks to explain the impact of collecting on the extant archaeological record, and to explore the ethics of collecting. Yet anyone working in this area needs to be sensitive to the names of famous collections and collectors. They need to be aware of the potential for modern creations to...