Prehistory: the modern approach

Abstract

There is still an all too frequent tendency for the archaeologist to be popularly regarded as a professional treasure hunter. The prehistorian would be similarly classified, and few people would bother to set him in a separate category. And those who take such a view of him are also inclined to suppose that his sole function is to excavate, and that his equipment, his badge of office almost, is nothing more sophisticated than a spade. If this were ever generally true, even in the distant past of the development of archaeology, it has long ceased to be so, and is getting further from the truth as each year passes.