Archaeologist

Find various books on being an Archaeologist, from fact, to fiction. SA Career Focus has assembled these titles for your convenience.

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Archaeologists study the history and culture of earlier human societies. They do so by surveying, mapping, excavating and recording archaeological sites and their findings. Using technology - Geographic Information Systems they attempt to reconstruct the history, customs and way of life of previous inhabitants.  

The Archaeologist's Fieldwork Companion

The Archaeologist's Fieldwork Companion is the only current collection of the practical information and material needed by archaeologists doing fieldwork. Specifically designed as a one-volume resource to be carried into the field, this concise informational toolkit provides detailed sections on classification and typology, creating forms and records, measurement and conversion, mapping, drawing, and photographing, and help with planning, along with a section of lists and checklists, and a resources section containing information on relevant associations and publications, the law and ethics relating to archaeology, and where to buy supplies. A final section contains extensive lists of abbreviations. This rich compendium of crucial tools will be an invaluable aid not only to students undertaking fieldwork for the first time, but also to seasoned archaeologists.

Review by Kalahari.net

The Archaeology of Southern Africa: (1ST - 2002)

Some of the earliest human populations lived in Southern Africa, and evidence from sites there has inspired key debates on human origins and on the emergence of modern humans. The sub-continent has one of the world's richest heritages of rock art, and specialists have developed innovative theories about its meaning and significance that have influenced the understanding of rock art everywhere. Passionate arguments about the hunter-gatherer way of life have centred on Southern African cases, and the relationship between archaeological and anthropological data is also central to understanding the past of Southern Africa's pastoralist and farmer communities. The pre-colonial states of the region provide some of the best documented cases of the influence of external trade on the development of African polities. Peter Mitchell has produced the first comprehensive modern synthesis of the sub-continent's archaeology. His book offers a thorough-going overview of three million years of Southern African history.

Review by Kalahari.net

Final Report: An Archaeologist Excavates His Past

Coe's moving memoir recounts how he went from being a traditional American youth growing up in a privileged Long Island family to constructing a life's work dedicated to overturning many previously held assumptions about the past. For more than four decades, Michael Coe has been at the forefront of American archaeology. His research on the Olmecs and the Maya has had a decisive effect on the way we think about Mesoamerican culture, and his acclaimed books have introduced archaeology to a popular audience.

Review by Kalahari.net

Digging Through Darkness: Chronicles of an Archaeologist

This work interweaves art and fact to recreate a distant world. The author, a native white South African, combines autobiography, historical archaeology and fictional reconstructions, to explore the roots and consequences of colonial conquest in Africa, Australia and the Pacific.

Review by Kalahari.net

Historical Archaeology: Why the Past Matters

What is historical archaeology and why is it important? Barbara Little, long-time archaeologist with the National Park Service, addresses these key questions for introductory students in this concise, inexpensive, and well-written text. Little covers the goals of historical archaeological work, the kinds of questions asked, and the ethical and political concerns addressed. She shows what historical archaeology can provide that neither of its parent disciplines can offer alone. She offers brief snapshots of key American sites: Jamestown, St. Augustine, West Oakland, the African American Burial Ground, the Garbage Project, among others. And she shows how historical archaeology is inextricably linked to public education, justice issues, and our collective understanding of the past. As an introductory guide for historical archaeology courses, or as a supplement for other undergraduate classes, this volume is unmatched in quality and scope.

Review by Kalahari.net

Nelson Glueck: Biblical Archaeologist and President of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion

This biography traces the life of Nelson Glueck, who played a central role in shaping the American Reform Jewry in the third quarter of the twentieth century and, with his mentor William Foxwell Albright, was a trailblazer in the field of biblical archaeology. By the age of fifty, Nelson Glueck had excavated remains of the civilization of the ancient Nabataeans in Transjordan, described in detail a biblical copper-mining industry at the shore of the Red Sea, and shown how the Negev could actually support a large population if proper irrigation techniques were used. In addition, Glueck was a personal friend of David Ben-Gurion, Abba Eban, Golda Meir, Henrietta Szold, and Judah Magnes, among other notables worldwide, and became a pioneer in the burgeoning field of biblical archaeology. But Nelson Glueck simultaneously played another academic role. He served a long tenure (1947-1971) as president of the Hebrew Union College and oversaw the merger of HUC with the Jewish Institute of Religion. He expanded the Cincinnati-based institution to include schools in New York, Los Angeles, and Jerusalem.;In California, he encouraged the creation of the Schools of Jewish Communal Service and Jewish Education. And in Israel, he founded and nurtured the School of Biblical and Archaeological Studies in Jerusalem. As an extraordinary man whose life straddled two distinct Jewish worlds, Nelson Glueck's many achievements and adventures make for fascinating reading.

Review by Kalahari.net

The Lost Pharaoh

A mysterious journal from the 1930s reveals the startling tale of an archaeologist's ill-fated expedition to Egypt, the land of the pharaohs. Follow along as the adventurer's words and vintage photographs involve you in a story that starts in the shadowy underworld of Cairo, moves to a violent confrontation with a rival explorer in the desert sands, and brings you face to face with a sinister cult of evil killers. 80pp, illustrated with vintage photographs and original sketches.

Review by Kalahari.net

Prehistoric Pottery for the Archaeologist

This work provides an introduction to the chronological development and technology of prehistoric ceramics. It should be suitable for laymen, students and specialists interested in prehistoric and Romano-British pottery. It aims not to reiterate or redefine existing and accepted ceramic styles used in prehistory, but to clarify and outline these styles in an accessible way. It is directed towards the more technical side of ceramic studies and presents new data.

Review by Kalahari.net