Email this article
|
|
History and Archaeology Bulletin Board
|
2000
|
|
|
Great Divide between Archaeologists and Historians
Posted by Darrell Lewis on April 21, 2000 at 10:07:32:
I am a historian with the Alaska Office of History and Archaeology. I work along side Archaeologists on a daily basis and have come to appreciate and respect their work. Historians and Archaeologists that look down their noses at each other should spend some time working with each other. We have come to realize that their is a point in our study of the past where archaeology is no longer effective in telling what happened at a particular place and this is where the Historians step into the picture. Historians have also realized that past a certain point archaeology is a more effective tool in studying a certain place. We realize this in our office and take advantage of each others expertise. Universities are the worst about fostering the sense of superiority that pervades both fields. I think it is childish and short sighted of both professions. As a historian I know the limits of what my profession can contribute to our understanding of ourselves and I accept that. I would rather invite an archaeologist to tell me what I can only hypothesize about than not know at all. It is a diservice to those interested in our past to do otherwise.
Back to Board
|