69th SFTC, BIAM, Dhaka. Book review presentation.

2. Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction
By Paul Bahn
A Very Short Introduction
to
DR. NILOY KUMER BASAK
Roll-19
69th Special Foundation Training Course
BIAM Foundation, Dhaka

3. Brief Identification Of The Book
Title : Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction
Author : Paul Bahn
Illustrator : Bill Tidy
Genre : Non-fiction
Published : 1996
Publisher : Oxford University Press
Series : Very Short Introductions
Pages : 133
More info on : www.oup.co.uk/vsi

4. Author’s Biography
Academic & Professional Career
Bahn studied archaeology at the University of Cambridge, also completing his Ph.D. there. He held
several post-doctoral fellowships, at Liverpool and London, as well as in Getty Foundation.
He went freelance in the mid-80s, and since then has devoted himself to writing, editing and
translating books on archaeology.
He is a contributing editor to Archaeology magazine published by the Archaeological Institute of
America (AIA).
Honours & Achievements
On 9 January 1986, Bahn was elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London.
Bibliography
He wrote the popular archaeology textbook ‘Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practices’ with
Colin Renfrew and also has other notable works.
Paul G. Bahn is a British archaeologist and writer who has published
extensively on a range of archaeological topics, with particular attention to
prehistoric art.

5. Introduction
“Archaeology is nothing if it is
not about pleasure.”
- Late Archaeologist Glyn Daniel

6. This entertaining introductory book reflects the enduring popularity of archaeology
- a subject which appeals as a pastime, career, and academic discipline,
encompasses the whole globe, and surveys 2.5 million years.
Archaeology Transports Someone Into The
World Of……
This book is intended to whet the appetite by presenting some exciting & spectacular
aspects of archaeology in the hope to stimulate the readers to delve more deeply into
its rich literature, to rouse their back-looking curiosity.
TOMBS
AND
TREASURES
ART
AND
ARTEFACTS
LOST CITIES
AND
MYSTERIOUS
SCRIPTS
MUMMIES
AND
MAMMOTHS
TEMPLES
AND
TOOLS

7. Book Summary
The author divided the book into ten chapters & one introductory
chapter. Each chapter encompasses certain aspects of archaeology
sometimes with overlapping themes.

8. Introduction
(What is Archaeology?)
Archaeology is undeniably a ‘luxury’ subject, which constantly needs to
justify its existence but at the same time it is one which the majority of
the general public find fascinating and entertaining and which
contributes immeasurably to world tourism.
Archaeology means the study of the human past through the
material traces of it that have survived.
The term ‘human past’ needs stressing, archaeology starts at the point
when the first recognizable ‘artefacts’ (tools) appear.

9. Chapter-01
The Origins And Development Of Archaeology
(Evolution Of Archaeology)
Humans have always been curious about the traces left by their
predecessors.
The seventeenth and eighteenth centuries saw archaeological
activities grow into a more systematic approach as excavations became
careful dissection, noting the relationships of artefacts to different
layers of soil.
It was really only in the early to mid-nineteenth century that
archaeology evolved into the systematic and scientific study.
Through the twentieth century it has become a massive, multi-
disciplinary undertaking, drawing on the expertise of innumerable
fields.

10. Chapter-02
Making a Date
(Chronology in archaeology)
Other modern techniques include the Potassium/Argon method to
date volcanic rocks, uranium series dating for rocks in stalagmite cave,
Thermoluminescence (TL) dating for pottery, Optically-stimulated
luminescence (OSL) for certain types of sediments and Electron Spin
Resonance (ESR) for human and animal teeth.
Until fairly recently, there were only two
ways of establishing a chronology –
relative dating and historical dating.
The cutting edge of dating is
‘radiocarbon dating’.

11. Chapter-03
Technology
(Technological advances in human history)
In archaeology human progress is seen largely in terms of technology.
The human past is divided into a
succession of ‘ages’ – Stone, Bronze, and
Iron, with numerous subsequent
subdivisions – that was based on
technological development.
Most notable practical contributions of
archaeology lie in the realm of
agricultural technology.
‘Seismic archaeology’ deals with record of
past earthquakes in ancient inscriptions
and documents.

12. Chapter-04
How did people live?
(Lifestyle of ancient people)
Much of archaeology is devoted to studying the ‘lifestyles of the dead
and buried’.
To understand the lifestyle archaeologists need
to examine the remains of the past people.
Subsistence – the quest for food – is the most
fundamental necessity & driving force of
human life. Archaeology investigates the clues
to what people ate.
Archaeology likes a long-term view which
requires some assessment of diet of the
ancients. ‘we are what we eat’: diet radically
affects teeth - and also leaves characteristic
chemical signatures in bones.

13. Chapter-05
How did people think?
(Arts & artistry of ancient people)
It is infinitely harder to get inside people’s minds, and get their beliefs & thoughts
let alone ‘prehistoric mindways’.
This is the scope of the cognitive archaeologists. They
resurrect those (prehistoric mindways) through logic
applied to the art and material remains that are
reckoned to be connected with religion and ritual or
suchlike.
Religious activities are often of paramount importance in
‘primitive’ people’s lives.
As like religion ‘art’ also occurs well before modern
humans. Art often used to record and transmit
information.
An entire area of cognitive archaeology is taken up with
archaeoastronomy – the study of ancient knowledge of
celestial phenomena.

14. Chapter-06
Settlements and society
(Civilization in ancient history)
Archeologists classified ancient societies into four broad categories.
They are:
• Bands: small-scale societies, mobile, exploit wild resources, lives in
temporary shelters.
• Tribes: Up to a few thousand people who are settlers.
• Chiefdom: Between 5,000-20,000 people, different social statuses,
ranking system based on relationship to the chief.
• States: King or queen, Laws & army to enforce it, different classes.
These are simply arbitrary points in a continuum.

15. Chapter-07
How and why did things change?
(Reason for Change of structure of ancient societies)
Archaeology attempts to explain
the past, and especially the
changes in the past.
So archaeologists put up theories
based on their understanding of
the evidence. These theories are
often monocausal & biased.
Archaeology deals in degrees of
probability, in this sense
multivariate explanations are
probably far more realistic.

16. Chapter-08
Minorities and Sororities
(Ethical aspects of archaeology)
In the early 1970s, archaeologists were the people from the ‘Top
Nations’, at that time knowledge was obtained and promulgated with
an eye first to the community of archaeologists. By the end of the
1970s rumblings of displeasure began to be heard from the native
peoples.
Since then codes of ethics have been
adopted in various countries,
acknowledging archaeology’s obligations to
respect and consult with the living people
whose ancestors’ lives are being studied.
For many years archaeology remained
mostly androcentric. Now ‘Gender
Archaeology’ developed to remedy past
omissions to some degree by focusing on
all genders equally.

17. Chapter-09
Presenting the Past to the
Public
(Public relations with archaeology)
Archaeology’s ultimate goal – to convey its
findings not only to students and colleagues, but
above all to the public which generally footed the
bill for the work and paid the salaries.
Archaeological tourism is on an uptrend,
and contributing much in the economy of
China, Peru, Mexico, or Egypt. It already
accounts for 6 per cent of all jobs.
Public awareness and enjoyment of
archaeology are crucial to the discipline’s
survival and development.

18. Chapter 10
The Future of the Past
(Future Prospects of Archaeology)
Although archaeology is ‘a thing of the past’, it is still a very young
discipline, many of whose basic techniques and theories are recent
developments, and as it grows and matures it will certainly continue to
flourish and change.
The brighter side of archaeology’s popularity’ is the blossoming of
heritage centres and museums around the world.
With its uniquely long-term view archaeology is our only means of
seeing the ‘big picture’. If we want to know where we’re going, we
need to trace our trajectory, to see where we’ve come from. That is
why archaeology is so important.

19. Criticism
STRENGTHS weaknesses
• The greatest strength of this
book is its brevity.
• Common archaeological
jargons are carefully avoided.
• Based on the author’s
experiences.
• Immersive reading through
stories and examples.
• Touched almost all the
important aspects & questions
pertinent to the subject
• Incorporated humor to relieve
boredom
• Often partial & opinionated
by author’s own experience.
• Chapter divisions are not so
linear.
• Areas of archaeology outside
the expertise of the author
are mostly overlooked or
omitted altogether.
• Humors of this book often
feels cumbersome.
• Not for scholarly reading.

20. How long does it take to finish this book?
About 08-10 hours

21. Should you read this book?
If you are a casual reader and want to know some fun
facts & gist of archaeology than this book may
interest you.

22. Comparative Discussion

23. Archaeology
A Very Short Introduction Archaeology for DUMMIES Archaeology: An Introduction
Experience driven narrative.
Occasional use of humor.
Delivered as like a lecture.
Bullet pointed information.
Good for novice readers.
Better chapter allocation.
Scholastic articles.
Detailed scientific figures.
Not well suited to casual readers.

24. Conclusion
Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction’ by Paul Bahn is a good read.
Though it has its shortcomings but most readers would find it amusing,
entertaining and instructive. It is very hard to write a simple
introductory book to a complex and vast subject like archaeology. But
with this book Paul Bahn might have done just that also in no more
than 133 pages. That is a tremendous feat in any measure.

25. Archaeology
Bangladesh Perspective