The Archaeology of Britain: An introduction from ... - waughfamily.ca

British archaeology since 1945
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framework through radiocarbon dating, and new perspectives derived from archaeological
approaches to, for example, social change might have permitted a radical alternative framework
to be devised, this can be left to others, on another occasion. The primary purpose here is to
present a guide to current archaeological interpretations of the sites in Britain’s landscapes, and
the artefacts in its museums.
Despite the breadth of coverage, each chapter has been deliberately restricted in its bibliography.
Each has two levels of bibliography: a set of some five key titles that encapsulate the evidence of,
and approaches to, the period under consideration; and a further set of about 25 titles that allows
for greater detail or specialization. The criteria set were that all citations should be to works likely
to be readily accessible in university libraries. This, it is anticipated, should assist students to
embark on their own research for essay writing and other practical course requirements. It will
also give more highly motivated students opportunities to begin to consider particular approaches
or periods that are absent or less stressed in the particular academic environments in which they
are studying.
In another context, John Updike wrote that ‘the fate of all monuments is to become…a
riddle’. Whilst their interpretation undoubtedly poses challenges, the following chapters represent
something of the range of archaeological approaches to the physical fabric left by earlier societies
that is now being attempted. Medieval monasteries, for example, once viewed primarily as building
layouts and as repositories for the study of the development of architectural styles, are now
frequently approached as constituent parts of economic landscapes and as arenas for evolving
ritual practices. Similarly, castles, formerly considered essentially as fortifications and as keys to
changing military tactics and equipment, may now be viewed as symbols of elite power and as
central elements in organized economic hinterlands from which they drew resources. Comparable
changes are evident for artefactual study, where some archaeologists are now much more readily
prepared to hypothesize on social and ritual roles than was the case in the years immediately after
the Second World War. Medieval artefacts, for example, viewed solely as fodder for art historical
studies, have in recent decades been increasingly studied as keys to technology, as products of
exchange and trade, and as indicators of social relations and stratification.
As archaeological evidence accumulates, the very diverse characteristics of different places,
sites and objects, conventionally described in the same way, are writ large. This is a book that
encapsulates archaeological change in many forms—a ‘snapshot’ of how we have been thinking,
excavating and learning in the late 1990s.
Bibliography
Ashmore, P.J., 1996. Neolithic and Bronze Age Scotland. London: Batsford/Historic Scotland.
Atkinson, J.A., Banks, I. and O’Sullivan, J. (eds) 1996. Nationalism and archaeology. Glasgow: Cruithne
Press.
Barrett, J.C., 1995. Some challenges in contemporary archaeology. Oxford: Oxbow=Oxbow Lecture 2.
Bell, M. and Walker, M.J.C., 1992. Late Quaternary environmental change: human and physical perspectives. Harlow:
Longman Scientific and Technical.
Bewley, R., 1994. English Heritage Book of prehistoric settlements. London: Batsford/English Heritage.
Biddle, M., 1994. What future for British archaeology? Oxford: Oxbow=Oxbow Lecture 1.
Bradley, R.J., 1984. The social foundations of prehistoric Britain: themes and variations in the archaeology of power.
London: Longman.
Brown, I., Burridge, D., Clarke, D., Guy, J., Hellis, J., Lowry, B., Ruckley, N. and Thomas, R., 1995. 20th
century defences in Britain; an introductory guide. York: Council for British Archaeology=Practical Handbooks
in Archaeology 12.
Champion, T.C., 1996. ‘Three nations or one? Britain and the national use of the past’, in Díaz-Andreu, M.
and Champion, T.C. (eds) Nationalism and archaeology in Europe. London: UCL Press, 119–145.
Clark, A., 1996. Seeing beneath the soil. London: Routledge.