Difference in Archaeology Theory and Practice: the Case of Classical Greece

Summary

The dichotomy between the "dirt" and the "word" has loomed large in the study of the Greek past, in a manner not shared by many other regions. This is true, ironically, for both the historical and prehistoric period. The interplay between the material record with the textual and the iconographic records in Greece is rich and complex, and one that extends across a broad time range. Disjunctions across these different avenues of inquiry are numerous, and often ignored. But it is precisely in these disjunctions and discrepancies that a systematic methodology in the way we approach the past can emerge, thereby potentially providing a powerful heuristic discourse. This paper will explore, through selected case studies, the dichotomy between the material and textual and iconographic realms in Greek archaeology in an attempt to incorporate non-correspondences in our interpretations of the past.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• Difference in Archaeological Theory and Practise

Keywords

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