Ian Hodder

Scott Hutson

The third edition of this classic introduction to archaeological theory and method has been fully updated to address the rapid development of theoretical debate throughout the discipline. Ian Hodder and Scott Hutson argue that archaeologists must consider a variety of perspectives in the complex and uncertain task of "translating the meaning of past texts into their own contemporary language". While remaining centered on the importance of meaning, agency and history, the authors explore the latest developments in post-structuralism, neo-evolutionary theory and phenomenology. Previous Edition Hb (1991): 0-521-40142-9 Previous Edition Pb (1991): 0-521-40957-8

Current Approaches to Interpretation in Archaeology

Reading the Past

Documents the discovery and historical findings of the ancient city in central Turkey, tracing the collaborative efforts of archaeologists, scientists, and specialists to examine how Neolithic people moved into villages, adopted farming lifestyles, and began to accept social group domination.

Revealing the Mysteries of Çatalhöyük

The Leopard's Tale

A theory of human evolution and history based on ever-increasing mutual dependency between humans and things

The Evolution of Humans and Things

Where Are We Heading?

A powerful and innovative argument that explores the complexity of the human relationship with material things, demonstrating how humans and societies are entrapped into the maintenance and sustaining of material worlds Argues that the interrelationship of humans and things is a defining characteristic of human history and culture Offers a nuanced argument that values the physical processes of things without succumbing to materialism Discusses historical and modern examples, using evolutionary theory to show how long-standing entanglements are irreversible and increase in scale and complexity over time Integrates aspects of a diverse array of contemporary theories in archaeology and related natural and biological sciences Provides a critical review of many of the key contemporary perspectives from materiality, material culture studies and phenomenology to evolutionary theory, behavioral archaeology, cognitive archaeology, human behavioral ecology, Actor Network Theory and complexity theory

An Archaeology of the Relationships Between Humans and Things

Entangled

After the excitement of its discovery and excavations in the early 1960s, the world-important site of Çatalhöyük has remained dormant for 30 years. This is Volume 1 of the Çatalhöyük Research Project series. It describes the first phase of renewed archaeological research at the site. It reports on the work that has taken place on the surfaces of the east and west mounds and in the surrounding regions. It also discusses the material from the 1960s excavation in museums, which has been re-examined. The result is that new perspectives can be offered on the internal organization and symbolism of a site which is central to our understanding of the earliest development of complex societies.

Çatalhöyük 1993–1995

On the Surface

A theory of human evolution and history based on ever-increasing mutual dependency between humans and things In this engaging exploration, archaeologist Ian Hodder departs from the two prevailing modes of thought about human evolution: the older idea of constant advancement toward a civilized ideal and the newer one of a directionless process of natural selection. Instead, he proposes a theory of human evolution and history based on “entanglement,” the ever-increasing mutual dependency between humans and things. Not only do humans become dependent on things, Hodder asserts, but things become dependent on humans, requiring an endless succession of new innovations. It is this mutual dependency that creates the dominant trend in both cultural and genetic evolution. He selects a small number of cases, ranging in significance from the invention of the wheel down to Christmas tree lights, to show how entanglement has created webs of human-thing dependency that encircle the world and limit our responses to global crises.

"This is a substantial revision of the first edition. Perhaps most importantly I have now included a chapter on human to human entanglements and have pulled human relations more into the center of entanglements. This results from my critique of the notion of symmetry between humans and things that has widely been touted in recent years in archaeology and related disciplines but has raised ethical issues with which I concur and discuss in this volume. Another important change is that I have, after further thought, retreated from the notion of 'things-in-themselves' and from the object nature of things. I was wrong in the first edition to argue that things can exist outside their relations. The result is a more fully relational stance. I have also paid greater attention to flows and temporality. The greater focus on relationality is underpinned by a recognition that all things and humans are in flux. Change through time undermines notions of the fixed spatial extension of things. There is thus greater attention paid to the forces that generate flows, and an overall shift from being to becoming"--

South, North and KOPAL Area Reports from the 1995-99 Seasons

Excavating Catalhöyük

This companion volume to Archaeology as Long-term History focuses on the symbolism of artefacts. It seeks at once to refine the theory and method relating to interpretation and show, with examples, how to conduct this sort of archaeological work. Some contributors work with the material culture of modern times or the historic period, areas in which the symbolism of mute artefacts has traditionally been thought most accessible. However, the book also contains a good number of applications in prehistory to demonstrate the feasibility of symbolic interpretation where good contextual data survive from the distant past. In relation to wider debates within the social sciences, the volume is characterised by a concern to place abstract symbolic codes within their historical context and within the contexts of social actions. In this respect, it develops further some of the ideas presented in Dr Hodder's Symbolic and Structural Archaeology, an earlier volume in this series.

The Archaeology of Contextual Meanings

This updated edition of Professor Ian Hodders original and classic work on the role which anthropology must play in the interpretation of the archaeological record. There has long been a need for archaeologists and anthropologists to correlate their ideas and methods for interpreting the material culture of past civilisations. Archaeological interpretation of the past is inevitably based on the ideas and experiences of the present and the use of such ethnographic analogy has been widely adapted  and criticised, not least in Britain. In this challenging study, Ian Hodder questions the assumptions, values and methods which have been too readily accepted. At the same time, he shows how anthropology can be applied to archaeology. He examines the criteria for the proper use of analogy and, in particular, emphasises the need to consider the meaning and interpretation of material cultures within the total social and cultural contexts. He discusses anthropological models of refuse deposits, technology and production, subsistence, settlement, burial, trade exchange, art form and ritual; he then considers their application to comparable archaeological data. Throughout, Professor Hodder emphasises the need for a truly scientific approach and a critical self-awareness by archaeologists, who should be prepared to study their own social and cultural context, not least their own attitudes to the present-day material world.

An Introduction to Anthropology for Archeologists

The Present Past

This brilliantly argued, first-hand account of the authors major discoveries at the renowned archaeological site Çatalhöyük in Turkey, described by Professor Colin Renfrew as one of the most ambitious excavation projects currently in progress, is now available in paperback. A tour de force of archaeological writing, it offers many insights into past lives and momentous events, and is superbly illustrated with images of the art, the artifacts and the excavations at this world-famous dig. It will be a must-read for archaeologists and historians everywhere.

Revealing the Mysteries of Catalhoyuk

This volume presents material artifacts recovered from the site in these seasons, including a range of clay-based objects (ceramics, clay balls, tokens, figurines) as well as those made of stone, shell and textile.

Reports from the 2009-2017 Seasons

The Matter of Çatalhöyük

This book presents an interdisciplinary study of the role of spirituality and religious ritual in the emergence of complex societies. Involving an eminent group of natural scientists, archaeologists, anthropologists, philosophers, and theologians, this volume examines Çatalhöyük as a case study. A nine-thousand-year old town in central Turkey, Çatalhöyük was first excavated in the 1960s and has since become integral to understanding the symbolic and ritual worlds of the early farmers and village-dwellers in the Middle East. It is thus an ideal location for exploring theories about the role of religion in early settled life. This book provides a unique overview of current debates concerning religion and its historical variations. Through exploration of themes including the integration of the spiritual and the material, the role of belief in religion, the cognitive bases for religion, and religion's social roles, this book situates the results from Çatalhöyük within a broader understanding of the Neolithic in the Middle East.

Çatalhöyük as a Case Study

Religion in the Emergence of Civilization

This book tackles the topic of religion, a broad subject exciting renewed interest across the social and historical sciences. The volume is tightly focused on the early farming village of Çatalhöyük, which has generated much interest both within and outside of archaeology, especially for its contributions to the understanding of early religion. The volume discusses contemporary themes such as materiality, animism, object vitality, and material dimensions of spirituality while at the same time exploring broad evolutionary changes in the ways in which religion has influenced society. The volume results from a unique collaboration between an archaeological team and a range of specialists in ritual and religion.

Religion at Work in a Neolithic Society

This book is primarily for researchers and students in the archaeology of the Ancient Near East. The volume results from intense interaction between archaeologists at these sites and a group of theorists studying the scholarship of René Girard.

Girardian Conversations at Çatalhöyük

Violence and the Sacred in the Ancient Near East

Christopher Evans

Set in the context of Haddenham project's landscape surveys, this book covers four sites excavated at Haddenham providing insights into death and ritual in a changing prehistoric environment. It includes the internationally renowned Foulmire Fen long barrow, with its preserved timber burial chamber and facade.

Neolithic Sites at Haddenham

A Woodland Archaeology

Gavin Lucas

Michael Shanks

John Carman

Jonathan Last

Alexandra Alexandri

Victor Buchli

Routledge

Covers the ways in which material culture is understood and preserved in museums and how the nature of history is itself in flux.

Finding Meaning in the Past

Interpreting Archaeology

The 1980s witnessed exciting developments in theoretical writing in Western archaeology. Where previous decades were dominated by the Anglo-American perspective, or "New Archaeology", the recent years showed the European debate grow in confidence and vitality. This book, published in 1991, captures this spirit of debate as contributors from a wide cross-section of countries evaluate the development of the distinctly national and European characteristics of archaeology and assess future directions. Contributors consider an extensive range of ideologies and viewpoints, stressing the fundamentally historical emphasis and social construction of European archaeology. The development of archaeological theory is traced, with specific emphasis on factors which differ from country to country. Ultimately, it argues that the most active response to archaeology is to celebrate theory within a constantly critical mode. A great insight into the development of theory.

The Last Three Decades

Archaeological Theory in Europe

This volume reports on the ways in which humans engaged in their material and biotic environments at Çatalhöyük, using a wide range of archaeological evidence. This volume also summarizes work on the skeletal remains recovered from the site, as well as analytical research on isotopes and aDNA.

Ian Hodder

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