Movies and television have presented a romantic vision of archaeology as adventure in far-away and exotic locations. A more realistic picture might show researchers digging in smelly mud for hours under the hot sun while battling relentless mosquitoes. This type of archaeological research produces hundreds of small plastic bags containing pottery shards, animal bones, bits of worked stone, and other fragments. These findings must be classified, which requires more hours of tedious work in a stuffy tent. At its best, archaeology involves a studious examination of the past with the goal of learning important information about the culture and customs of ancient (or not so ancient) peoples. Much archaeology in the early twenty-first century investigates the recent past, a sub-branch called "historical archaeology."

What Is Archaeology?

Archaeology is the study of the material remains of past human cultures. It is distinguished from other forms of inquiry...