Combat Archaeology

Archeologists often wish they were there then, and in the case of modern combat archeology, they are. Schofield (military programs, English Heritage and U. of Southampton) explains how the archeology of recent conflict is actually an interdisciplinary field based on established principles of archeology and history, sociology, philosophy, art and representation, and how heritage management practice is affected by the work of this new breed of archeology. He focuses on social contexts and values as he develops a social and theoretical context for the archeological remains of recent conflicts. He uses a number of fascinating case studies and sites as he explains material culture and how it applies to memory and meaning within conflict, the means of managing material culture as artifact, and the nature of presentation and interpretation of material in a heritage site. Distributed by International Publishers Marketing. Annotation c2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

John Schofield is visiting lecturer in archaeology at the University of Southampton.