This book is designed as a textbook for introductory archaeology courses as they are taught in most colleges and universities in North America: with the focus on methods. It is deliberately concise, offering the option of combining it with a package of readings or a case study. The concise nature of this text also makes it suitable to be used as one of multiple books in introductory courses that combine methods with world prehistory, archaeology with biological anthropology, or all four branches of anthropology together (archaeology, biological anthropology, cultural anthropology, and linguistics). But the coverage is broad enough that some instructors may wish to use it as the sole required reading for a course.
The development of the book has been guided by the principles of curriculum reform articulated by the Society for American Archaeology (SAA). To bring the teaching of archaeology more into line with the reality of archaeology in the world today, the SAA promotes seven principles for curriculum reform at all levels of college and university education, which revolve around making students explicitly aware of (i) the nonrenewable nature of the archaeological record, (ii) the fact that many other groups besides archaeologists have vested interests in the archaeological record, (iii) the socially relevant contributions of archaeology in the present and future, (iv) the ethical principles that guide archaeologists, (v) the importance for archaeologists to be effective communicators, (vi) the basic cognitive and methodological skills used by archaeologists, and (vii) real-world problem solving by archaeologists.
We don’t think it was the intention of the SAA that each principle necessarily guide the formation of every course or text used in archaeology education, but we have incorporated each into this book. The nonrenewable nature of the archaeological record is emphasized through such topics as the rise of cultural resource management, heritage legislation, and the destruction of sites through looting and warfare. Vested interests in the archaeological record by non-archaeologists are covered by examining Indigenous archaeology and the many parts of the heritage industry, including tourism. Making archaeology socially relevant is included in many areas, such as studies of contemporary garbage. Archaeological ethics are made explicit, as is the value of communication, with the sharing of information built into research designs. Real- world problem-solving is explored in such topics as forensics and the involvement of archaeologists in designing markers for nuclear waste sites.
Besides being guided by the SAA principles of curriculum reform, many characteristics of this book set it apart from competitors. It situates archaeology in the contemporary world much more than others do. This includes contextualizing archaeology in academia, industry, global social movements, politics, and popular culture. It places more emphasis on the management of heritage resources and includes sections on legislation and international agreements concerning archaeology. Unlike most textbooks for courses focusing on methods, this book includes a brief section outlining world prehistory and ancient civilizations, providing a frame of reference for students. Most books avoid the disagreements, ambiguities, and gray areas within the discipline, instead presenting information as if there was consensus among archaeologists. This book explicitly identifies these areas, ranging from differences in definitions of archaeology to explanations of the collapse of civilizations.
Introducing Archaeology, third edition, is accompanied by a website for students, including learning objectives, chapter summaries, study questions, exhibits weblinks, and a glossary. Instructor ancillaries for Introducing Archaeology include an instructor’s manual, PowerPoint slides, and a test bank. To access these materials, visit www.introducingarchaeology.com.
Comments and suggestions for future editions from instructors are welcome and can be directed to Dr. Stacey Camp.
Dr. Stacey Camp fell in love with archaeology when she was an undergraduate at Occidental College, a small liberal arts college in Los Angeles. While she was an undergraduate, she attended an archaeological field school in Ireland with Dr. Chuck E. Orser, Jr. that showed her how archaeology connects the people living in the present to the past. She continues to be interested in archaeology’s relevance to the modern world. She is currently an associate professor of anthropology and director of the Campus Archaeology Program at Michigan State University. Prior to working at Michigan State University, she oversaw one of three archaeological repositories in the state of Idaho at the University of Idaho. Her book, The Archaeology of Citizenship, explores how immigrants living in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century United States envisioned citizenship and national belonging. She has conducted archaeological and ethnographic research in the United States, Ireland, and China.
Robert (Bob) Muckle began his studies at a community college, with no idea that he would even take an archaeology class, let alone have a career in it. He simply enrolled in an archaeology class at community college because it fit his schedule, was hooked by that introductory class, and subsequently completed his undergraduate and graduate degrees in archaeology at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, Canada. He has experience in consulting archaeology, Indigenous archaeology, and academic archaeology, including fieldwork in Canada, Egypt, and the United States. He is a professor in the Department of Anthropology at Capilano University in North Vancouver, British Columbia, where he teaches several courses and has an active research program involving field and laboratory work. Other books he has authored include Through the Lens of Anthropology, second edition (with Laura Gonzalez, 2019), and Indigenous Peoples of North America (2012), both with University of Toronto Press.
List of Figures
List of Tables List of Text Boxes Note to Instructors
Note to Students
Acknowledgments
About the Authors
Preface to the Third Edition
Prologue: It's More Than Viking Hoards, Shipwrecks, and Lovers Entangled in Death
1. Situating Archaeology 2. Looking at Archaeology’s Past 3. Managing Archaeology in the Early Twenty-First Century 4. Comprehending the Archaeological Record 5. Working in the Field 6. Working in the Laboratory 7. Reconstructing Culture History 8. Reconstructing Adaptations 9. Reconstructing the Social and Ideological Aspects of Culture 10. Explaining Things of Archaeological Interest 11. The Archaeology of Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
Glossary
Bibliography
The principal objective of this book is to introduce students to the nature and scope of archaeology, especially as it is practiced in North America during the twenty-first century.
The substance and style of this book has been guided by the understanding that the content should be substantive enough that students intending on majoring in archaeology and perhaps making a career of it will leave the course for which the book is the text having learned enough to serve them well in future archaeology courses, and keep their interest in archaeology alive. It is also recognized the many, perhaps most, of the students taking the course for which this book is the text, are taking the course as an elective and will take few, if any, other archaeology courses. The choice of content and style is for these students as well. The objective for these students is to create material that is interesting and important, so that they have a lifelong appreciation of what it is that archaeologists do, how they do it, and why they do it.
The first two editions of this book were authored solely by Robert Muckle. The most important change for this edition is the addition of Dr. Stacey Camp as co-author. She brings more balance to this edition, bringing different experiences, perspectives, and areas of expertise.
The changes for this third edition are substantive and many. Regarding the art program, most of the images in this edition are now in color, approximately one-third of the images from the second edition have been replaced, and there are now several ink drawings created for this book. The book has fewer tables than the second edition but more boxes. Each of the eleven chapters now has two boxes. New boxes include those on feminist archaeology; space archaeology; taphonomy after Hurricane Katrina; making archaeology an equitable profession; orphaned and neglected collections; using ceramics to reconstruct ancient foodways; archaeology of children’s graffiti; the domestication of dogs; and archaeology and our changing climate.
New sections in this edition include discussions of decolonization in archaeology, digital archaeology, public archaeology, and interpreting the past in the future, which speculates on how archaeologists and others will understand life in the early twenty-first century. Sections on activist archaeology and archaeology of contemporary times have been expanded. Significant revisions have been made to the section on the current state of archaeology, and the Glossary has been expanded. Minor revisions and updates have been made throughout each chapter, which are reflected in the substantial
changes in the bibliography which now has a much higher proportion of references by women and Indigenous scholars than previous editions. Further, this third edition addresses some of the more problematic current issues such as harassment, lack of diversity in the profession, and inclusion.