This comprehensive, fully illustrated Companion answers the need for an in-depth archaeology reference that provides authoritative coverage of this complex and interdisciplinary field. The work brings together the myriad strands and the great temporal and spatial breadth of the field into two thematically organized volumes.In twenty-six authoritative and clearly-written essays, this Companion explores the origins, aims, methods and problems of archaeology. Each essay is written by a scholar of international standing and illustrations complement the text.

Part 1 Origins, Aims and Methods; Chapter 1 Discovering the Past, Alain Schnapp, Kristian Kristiansen; Chapter 2 The Development of Archaeological Theory, Charles L. Redman; Chapter 3 The Nature of Archaeological Evidence, John Collis; Chapter 4 Field Archaeology, Martin Carver; Chapter 5 Establishing Archaeological Chronologies, Anthony Harding; Chapter 6 Reconstructing the Environment and Natural Landscape, Tony Brown; Chapter 7 Studying People, Simon Hillson; Chapter 8 Studying Structures, Matthew Johnson; Chapter 9 Studying Artefacts, Elizabeth Slater; Chapter 10 Preserving and Presenting the Evidence, Mike Parker Pearson; Part 2 Themes and Approaches; Chapter 11 Culture and Identity, Julian Thomas; Chapter 12 The Organization of Society, Chris Gosden; Chapter 13 Settlement and Territory, John Bintliff; Chapter 14 Food and Farming, Graeme Barker, Annie Grant; Chapter 15 Production and Exchange in Prehistory, Timothy Earle; Chapter 16 Production and Exchange in Historical Archaeology, John Moreland; Chapter 17 Population Dynamics, Fekri A. Hassan; Chapter 18 Cognition, Steven Mithen, Nigel Spivey; Part 3 Writing Archaeological History; Chapter 19 Human Evolution, Andrew T. Chamberlain; Chapter 20 Hunter-Gatherer Societies, Robin Dennell; Chapter 21 Early Agricultural Societies, Peter Bogucki; Chapter 22 The Development of Rank Societies, Stephen J. Shennan; Chapter 23 Urbanization and State Formation, Simon Stoddart; Chapter 24 The Development of Empires, Stephen L. Dyson; Chapter 25 Post-Collapse Societies, Joseph A. Tainter; Chapter 26 Europe in the Middle Ages, Neil Christie; Chapter 27 Archaeology and Islam, Alastair Northedge; Chapter 28 Archaeology of the Modern State: European Colonialism, James A. Delle, Mark P. Leone, Paul R. Mullins; Chapter 29 The Archaeology of Industrialization, Marilyn Palmer;