A Simple Introduction to Archaeology

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Archaeology has become a fascinating subject in recent decades. The history-loving people want to know all about archaeology. The past has always been a matter of great importance to them. But, many people think archaeology and history are boring subjects. This is mostly because their first introduction to archaeology has not been interesting enough.

Sometimes the definitions of these two subjects in books and lectures are boring or difficult to understand. People, especially students, cannot relate to the subjects.

In this article, I am going to give a simple and brief introduction to archaeology. After that, you will understand archaeology is not just collecting old stuff and digging old places. It is much more than that! First, see some definitions of archaeology with a little bit of background. After that, we will try to understand the importance of archaeology.

What is Archaeology?

Let us begin your introduction to archaeology with a brief background history of the field. The formal study of archaeology started in the mid-19th century. In North America, archaeology is considered a sub-field of anthropology. However, in some parts of Europe, it belongs to a different field.

The word Archaeology is a combination of two Greek words, archaios which means old or ancient, and logia, which means learning or studying. Together these two words mean studying or learning about ancient objects.

Scientists have defined archaeology in many ways. You will find tons of definitions of archaeology on the internet. So, to make things easy, we have picked some interesting ones for you:

“The study of the buildings, graves, tools, and other objects that belonged to people who lived in the past, in order to learn about their culture and society”
Cambridge Dictionary

“Archaeology is the scientific study of peoples of the past… their culture and their relationship with their environment. The purpose of archaeology is to understand how humans in the past interacted with their environment, and to preserve this history for present and future learning.” ( Larry J. Zimmerman)

“[Archaeology] is the method of finding out about the past of the human race in its material aspects and the study of the products of this past.” (Kathleen Kenyon, 1956. Beginning in Archaeology. Phoenix House, London).

So, what do you find common in these definitions? All of them give a lot of emphasis on studying past human civilizations and their cultures. And how is that possible? Archaeologists say it is possible to understand ancient civilization and humans through the scientific study of places, objects or materials left behind by the people.

“Material remains” means anything we can touch. It can be buried remains, relics, objects and constructions (buildings, monuments or structures etc.). Archaeologists discover these things to investigate the past.

Types of Archaeology

The field of archaeology is huge. There are many types of archaeology studying different subjects of the past. From shipwrecks to the Ancient Pyramids of Egypt, archaeology covers a lot of things. Here are some well-known branches of archaeology briefly talked about for your knowledge.

Prehistoric Archaeology

The subject of prehistoric archaeology is prehistory. It studies the past before written records were available. As there is no written evidence, prehistoric archaeology has to take help from anthropology, biology, and geology. Archaeologists carefully examine ancient materials. Then, they come up with different theories based on their findings.

Historical Archaeology

Historical archaeology works with the materials of the past or present through the help of written and oral information. Archaeologists scientifically examine the findings and cross-check them with written information. The writing system is a fairly recent invention compared to the existence of humans in this world. So, we can say that historical archaeology studies recent historical events and the past.

Biblical Archaeology

This branch of archaeology deals with the biblical account of the Ancient Near East and the Holy Land (Palestine, Israel, and Canaan). Biblical archaeology was first introduced in the late 19th century. The archaeologists of this field follow the Hebrew Bible as their main source. Combined with the theories and practices of archaeology, biblical archaeology tries to understand the past culture of Palestine and Israel. This field is mostly concerned with the Iron age.

Classical Archaeology

This area of archaeology is fully dedicated to research on the Greek and Roman civilizations. Classical archaeology became a formal research program during the 19th century. Archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann had an obsession with Greek and Roman history. He contributed a lot to developing the field of classical archaeology. Many institutions still conduct excavations to discover more about Greek and Roman civilizations.

Underwater Archaeology

The study of shipwrecks, submerged archaeological sites, and materials is called underwater archaeology. In the past, underwater archaeology was not considered a field of archaeology. But, the idea changed when universities started to consider the field an important part of archaeological research. Now, it has its own branches like maritime archaeology and aviation archaeology.

Industrial Archaeology

This field of archaeology systematically studies the industrial past. Industrial archaeology focuses on the industrial past and things related to the industrial revolution. The archaeologists of this field focus on materials like buildings, technology, artifacts, sites, infrastructure, and documents related to the industrial era. The field of industrial archaeology was introduced during the 1950s in Great Britain.

A Specialized Fields

There are fields of archaeology focused on specific civilizations such as Egyptology, Mayanology, Assyriology, and so on. Egyptology studies the history of ancient Egypt, culture, language, literature, and archaeology. Similarly, Mayanology focuses on the Mayan civilization, and Assyriology focuses on the history of Assyria, its language, and its materials. Many archaeologists dedicate their lives to studying only one specific field. Thus, they are also known as Egyptologists, Mayanologists, Assyriologists, etc.

What is the importance of archaeology?

Now, after your introduction to archaeology, you are probably thinking, what is the importance of archaeology? What is the point of knowing about the past? Or how is it related to our present?
You might have heard people say that the past does not matter. But, the past actually matters for human civilization. Archaeology is important for modern civilization in many ways. It is a magical door to the past. Let us see how archaeology is important for us.

First, archaeology can change history. The evidence of archaeology can either support the written evidence of history or dismiss it. A simple analysis of ancient pottery, tools, or even jewelry can change history. Archaeology follows scientific methods to investigate the past. Thus, it can prove whether any historical records are true or fabricated. Since the research is based on scientific evidence, there is very little possibility of a mistake.

Second, archaeology studies the lost civilizations and their culture to understand the development of human society. Archaeologists examine archaeological evidence like relics, buildings, constructions, monuments, places, and the environment. This observation helps us to know how human civilizations gradually developed through the ages.

Thirdly, archaeology can tell us when the past civilizations started, how they thrived, and why they collapsed. This knowledge will teach us about the past mistakes of ancient society and why they could not prevail. Observations can also predict human action and what can be the consequence based on the past. So, we can avoid repeating the same mistakes as the previous civilizations.

Conclusion

Finally, I hope this simple introduction to archaeology has sparked at least a little bit of interest in you about archaeology. The past has always been an attractive subject for many people. Solving the past can mean a lot for the present which is not possible without archaeology.

Bibliography

Archaeology. Wikipedia, 2020.
Hirst, K. Kris. “Defining Archaeology: 40 Different Ways to Describe Archaeology.” ThoughtCo, Aug. 28, 2020, thoughtco.com/different-ways-to-describe-archaeology-169847.
Jarus, Owen. “What Is Archaeology?” LiveScience, Purch, 28 Mar. 2014, www.livescience.com/44448-what-is-archaeology.html.
Johnston, Grahame. “Types of Archaeology.” Archaeology Expert, 29 July 2020, www.archaeologyexpert.co.uk/typesofarchaeology.html.

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Archaeology

10 Fascinating Facts about the Enigmatic Sumerians”

The Sumerians are said to form one of the first civilizations in the history of humanity. The civilization was mapped in Ancient Mesopotamia which became Babylonia later. Now it’s considered to be in Southern Iraq and parts of Syria, between the rivers named Tigris and Euphrates. In between the 6th and 5th millennium BC (roughly six thousand years ago) during the Chalcothilic and early Bronze Ages, the Sumerians built up their own world.

Gopala: The First Buddhist King of Bengal

Bengal has been long ruled by many dynasties, both of native and foreign origins. Among one of the oldest to rule all over Bengal throughout centuries, the name of the Pala dynasty will always come first.

Ancient Buddhist Stupa Discovered in Munshigonj

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An ancient Buddhist Stupa has recently been discovered in Munshigonj. Archaeologists found this Stupa while excavating at Nateshwar, a village under Tangipara Upazila. This is not the first archaeological structure to be found in this area. Many archaeological and historical sites have been discovered since 2013.

Excavations have been conducted by Bangladeshi archaeologist teams from Jahangir University and Cumilla University. The Agrashar Vikrampur Foundation and Chinese archaeologists are providing support to fully excavate the region. The new Buddhist stupa is the result of the second phase excavation by the Agrashar Vikrampur Foundation in Nateshwar.

According to Sufi Mostafizur Rahman who is the Director of the Archaeological Excavation and Research program and Professor of Archeology Department of Jahangirnagar University, the Stupa was the centre of the Buddhist religion and the centre of religious practice. It is the largest Buddhist Stupa ever found in Bangladesh. It is believed to be consanguineous with the stupas of Sanchi, Bharhut and Amravati in India.

North-east side of the Buddhist stupa has been excavated which is 43.5 meters long and its height is 43 meters. Four stupa hall rooms, huge central room, several rooms, border walls, and entrance path can be identified of the Buddhist Stupa. More than 5000 square meters of area in Munshigonj has been excavated from 2013 to 2018. The pyramid-shaped Buddhist stupa has been excavated in the year 2018 to 2019.

In the past, The Daily Star reported that 16 stupas have been discovered in Nateshwar from 2013 to 2016. The stupas have exceptional designs and unique archaeological style. Each of them is square shaped and the walls are made of bricks. The brick walls are 16 meters in length and 3.5 meters in width.

A few years ago, an ancients Buddhist city was discovered in Munshigonj. Various structures, old roads and drains were found in that site. Professor Mustafizur Rahman told the Daily Star that they had sent samples in the US for carbon test and the tests proved that the site was more than 1,100 years old.

Munshigonj, known as Bikrampur in the past, has always been a place of rich cultural heritage. It was one of the capital cities of Bengal during the Vedic Period. Around 820, emperor Dharmapala constructed approximately 30 monasteries during his reign and the discovered monastery is one of them.

The city was also famous for being a centre of Buddhist teaching and religious practice. The place might be the birthplace of the famous Buddhist scholar Atish Dipankar. He also might have been in this area for teaching Buddhism. Thousands of teachers, monks, preachers and students came to Bikrampur from far places like Thailand, Nepal, China and Tibet. Thus, the sites are very important for archaeologists from both Bangladesh and China to understand the great scholar and his life.

The team of archaeologists has a plan for more excavations for the next five years. Moreover, there is a plan to build an archaeological park in Nateswar as many historical and archaeological sites. From these sites, the archaeologists also discovered many relics and pottery.

So, there are enough resources to make it an archaeological park with a museum where history lovers can learn about the ancient ‘Temple City’ of Bangladesh. The researchers also believe that the sites of Munshigonj will receive recognition from UNESCO World Heritage site.

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