Description
Book SynopsisDebating Archaeological Empiricism examines the current intellectual turn in archaeology, primarily in its prehistoric and classical branches, characterized by a return to the archaeological evidence. Each chapter in the book approaches the empirical from a different angle, illuminating contemporary views and uses of the archaeological material in interpretations and theory building. The inclusion of differing perspectives in this collection mirrors the conceptual landscape that characterizes the discipline, contributing to the theoretical debate in archaeology and classical studies. As well as giving an important snapshot of the practical as well as theoretical uses of materiality in archaeologies today, this volume looks to the future of archaeology as an empirical discipline.
Trade Review“[Provides] a good glimpse of the future prospects of archaeology as a theoretically vibrant discipline and as a mature and responsible way of dialoguing with the material world. The much-needed and revitalized archaeological interest in its empirical basis is leading to far more sophisticated and self-conscious intellectual frameworks.” European Journal of Archaeology
Table of ContentsIntroduction
Johannes Siapkas & Charlotta Hillerdal
Why ‘The Death of Archaeological Theory’?
Julian Thomas
Comment by Johannes Siapkas
Comment by Christopher Witmore
Archaeology and the Second Empiricism
Christopher Witmore
Comment by Frands Herschend
Comment by Michael Fotiadis
Public Archaeological Challenges in the 2010s: Learning from Participatory Action in Practice
Katherine Hauptman
Comment by Charlotta Hillerdal
Comment by Julian Thomas
Students First, Please!
Michael Fotiadis
Comment by Frands Herschend
Comment by Katherine Hauptman
Archaeology is History or it’s History
Frands Herschend
Comment by Katherine Hauptman
Comment by Johannes Siapkas
Empirical Tensions in the Materialities of Time
Charlotta Hillerdal
Comment by Julian Thomas
Comment by Michael Fotiadis
Neo-Empirical Mixtures
Johannes Siapkas
Comment by Christopher Witmore
Comment by Charlotta Hillerdal
Postscript
Gavin Lucas
