Archaeology: A Brief Introduction

by Fagan, Brian M.

• ISBN13: 9780321047052
• ISBN10: 0321047052
• Edition: 7th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-08-01
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Summary

For introductory level courses in Archaeology and as a supplement for Physical Anthropology courses where the instructor integrates archaeology. This introduction to the fundamental principles of method and theory in Archaeology is the only book that also exposes students to archaeology as a career. The book begins with Archaeology's goals then considers the basic concepts of culture, time, space, and the finding and excavation of archaeological sites.

Table of Contents

Preface	xi
Author's Note	xiv
The Birth of a Science	1	(20)
Early Speculations and Excavations	2	(3)
The Three Ages and the Antiquity of Humankind	5	(2)
Early Civilizations: Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia	7	(3)
Troy and Mycenae	10	(1)
Early American Archaeology	11	(3)
Explaining the Past	14	(2)
The Development of Modern Scientific Archaeology	16	(4)
Summary	20	(1)
The World of Scientific Archaeology	21	(16)
Who Needs the Past?	25	(2)
Archaeology and Anthropology	27	(1)
The Diversity of Archaeologists	28	(3)
World Prehistory	31	(5)
Summary	36	(1)
Culture	37	(18)
Human Culture	39	(1)
Cultural Systems	40	(5)
Cultural Process	45	(1)
The Goals of Archaeology	46	(2)
Theory in Archaeology	48	(1)
Archaeological Evidence	49	(3)
Context	52	(1)
Summary	53	(2)
The Present and the Past	55	(21)
The Archaeological Record	57	(3)
Preservation	60	(3)
Favorable Preservation Conditions	63	(5)
Middle-Range Theory and the Archaeological Record	68	(1)
The Living Past	68	(7)
Summary	75	(1)
Time and Space	76	(22)
Linear and Cyclical Time	78	(1)
Relative Chronology	78	(4)
Absolute (Chronometric) Chronology	82	(10)
Space	92	(3)
Assemblages and Subassemblages	95	(2)
Summary	97	(1)
Ancient Climate and Environment	98	(19)
Long-and Short-Term Climate Change	99	(1)
Geoarchaeology	100	(1)
Long-Term Climatic Change: The Great Ice Age	100	(6)
Pollen Analysis	106	(3)
Short-Term Climate Change: The Holocene	109	(7)
Summary	116	(1)
Finding and Assessing Archaeological Sites	117	(20)
The Process of Archaeological Research	118	(3)
Finding Archaeological Sites	121	(3)
Archaeological Survey	124	(2)
Sampling and Archaeological Survey	126	(1)
Remote Sensing	127	(3)
Geographic Information Systems	130	(2)
Assessing Archaeological Sites	132	(2)
Summary	134	(3)
Excavation	137	(23)
Planned Excavation: Research Design	138	(2)
Types of Excavation	140	(6)
Digging, Tools, and People	146	(1)
Recording	147	(1)
Stratigraphic Observation	147	(3)
Excavation Problems	150	(7)
Reburial and Repatriation	157	(1)
Summary	158	(2)
Analyzing the Past: Technology	160	(24)
Back from the Field	161	(1)
Classification, Taxonomy, and Systematics	161	(1)
The Objectives of Classification	162	(1)
Typology	163	(1)
Archaeological Classification	163	(2)
Archaeological Types	165	(6)
What Do Assemblages and Artifact Patternings Mean?	171	(3)
Units of Ordering	174	(3)
Ancient Technologies	177	(5)
Summary	182	(2)
Subsistence	184	(17)
Evidence for Subsistence	185	(1)
Ancient Diet	186	(1)
Animal Bones	187	(7)
Plant Remains	194	(4)
Rock Art	198	(1)
Summary	199	(2)
Settlement and Trade	201	(20)
Settlement Patterns	202	(10)
Population	212	(2)
Trade and Exchange	214	(6)
Summary	220	(1)
The Archaeology of Society	221	(20)
Individuals	222	(2)
Groups	224	(6)
Gender	230	(3)
Wider Society: Prestate and State Societies	233	(2)
Religious Beliefs	235	(5)
Summary	240	(1)
Explaining the Past	241	(16)
Interpretation of Culture History	242	(4)
Processual Archaeology	246	(2)
Postprocessual Archaeology	248	(1)
Cognitive-Processual Archaeology	249	(4)
The Future	253	(3)
Summary	256	(1)
Archaeology Tomorrow	257	(8)
The Future of the Past	258	(2)
Archaeology and You	260	(3)
Summary	263	(2)
Sites and Cultures Mentioned in the Text	265	(6)
Guide to Further Reading	271	(9)
Glossary	280	(10)
References	290	(1)
Illustration Credits	291	(3)
Index	294