History of field archaeology What is field archaeology?

? Field work related to human past, using scientific aids with proper discipline and minute observation As a discipline archaeology is hardly a couple of centuries old. cientific archeology is a modern development but treasure hunting was a very old pastime. !uriosity to know about the past and its remains can be trace back to classical times. "rigin # development outside of $ndia %ecord for earliest e&cavation goes back to the time of 'obonidus, a king of (abylon who decided to renovate the shrine of hamash at ippar. )he *reeks were interested in the problem of origin and development of man. Five stages of development +gold, silver, bron,e, -pic heroes # iron.///Hesoid 0lato and Aristotle +1evelopment of stages. %oman writer )acitus and %oman philosopher 2ucretius !hinese historian of 3nd cen. (.!. + four stages tone, 4ade, (ron,e, $ron. 56th to 57th !enturies development %enaissance movement in -urope increased new wave of interest in classical world Fashion to keep art treasures and anti8uities. )he men of $talian renaissance were known as Dilettanti +fore runners of archaeologist. Antiqaurianism distinct from Dilettantism of $taly. 4ohn 2eland and !amden +historical monuments.. (rittania in 569: 59th !entury 1evelopments everal important development took place invigorated by three things %ediscovery of *reece; painter 4ames tuart and architect 'icholas revett did splendid work. Antiquities of Athens +57:3., Antiquities of Ionia+57:<. and Ruins of Baalbec +5767.. 0ompeii and Herculaneum are the sites e&cavated. %omantic =ovement; tone/henges, forts etc are glorified due to interest.origin of (ritish prehistoric archeology is itself in %.=. everal e&cavations were undertaken by William tukeley 1evelopment of 'atural cience; growing interest in natural science and history. ocieties like %oyal ociety, 2ondon and society of anti8uaries of 2ondon. 5<th !entury 1evelopments (esides classical world countries like -gypt, 0alestine, =esopotemia received greater attention. 'apoleon (onaparte>s invasion of -gypt in 57<9. results published in work entitled Description of Egypt in 59?9/5936 Francois !hampoilian 1eciphered -gyptian writing. 5933 Auguste =ariette + -gyptian =useum at !airo. everal important discoveries took place like 'ineveh and (abylon in =esopotamia and Acropolis in Athens. H. %. %awlinson>s decipherment of trilingual inscription. (ut e&cavation techni8ues were still backward. (ritish and French Archaeologists competed each other.

 -&cavation at Assyrian capital 'imrud and 'ineveh are e&amples. )hree ma@or %evolutions *radually concept and techni8ues of e&cavation were developing through A ma@or developments *eological revolution; William mith and !harles 2yell +*eological stratigraphy. Anti8uaraian %evolution; )hree Age ysyem +stone, bron,e and iron. 1octrine of -volution; !harles 1arwin opened new approach to scientific world and man>s prehistoric past. all above A %. left impact on prehistoric study. ites like 2a =adeleine, 2e =oustier, 2ascau& and Altamira discovered. 4ohn 2ubbock. Henrich chliemann 5933/59<? $n the end o 5<th cen. -mphasis and outlook changed. "utstanding e&ample is H. . *erman became citi,en of B. .A. knew many languages like *reek, 2atin etc. %e@ected traditional view of Iliad and Odyssey (etween 597?/599< he located the city of )roy in mound of Hissarlik in Asia minor. 1ay to day notes and stratigraphy recognition were specialty of him. He showed that e&cavation solving many problems rather than recovering art ob@ects. 0itt %ivers 5937/5<?? Cnown as general 2ane Fo&. $nfluenced by theory of -volution, deeply interested in archaeology # anthropology. He was one who understand the value of three dimensional recording. He was personally present to supervise the digging and insisted recording of anti8uities in such way that each one could be replaced on plan and section. %egular and trained assistants. )ypology and comparison with ethnographic material His e&cavations were models of scientific digging based on stratigraphical observation supported by accurate plans and sections. 0recision, thoroughness and discipline of military operation. Anthropological and sociological approach. The principles of Classification, The E olution of Culture, !rimiti e "arfare and Early modes of #a igation his collection are at "&ford and Farnham museums are testimony of his pioneering and skillful work. ir Flinders 0etrie 596A/5<D3 -nglishman who did e&traordinary work in -gyptology and techni8ues in field archaeology. He emphasi,ed on four important aspects i.e. care for monuments, care in e&cavation and collection and description of everything found, accurate planning of e&cavation and publication of results. $ethods and Aims in Archaeology Ealue of pottery for chronological purposes He developed techni8ue of e8uence dating a form of eriation FArchaeology came of ageGH*lyn 1aniel 3?th !entury developments

2. .(. 2eakey>s discovery 'ew light on 'eolithic culture. ir Arthur -van>s e&cavations at palace of =inos at Cnossos reconstructed rich bron,e age civili,ation of =inaon. )ombs of Iuaa and )utankhamen was outstanding discoveries. %oyal tombs at Br by ir 2eonard woolley in 5<3: he published his works like The %umerians and &r of the Chaldeans' =any sites like )epe Hissar, hah )epe, )epe ialk and 0ersepolis (iblical Archaeology references of places found in (ible received attention. $mp places like 4erusalem and 4ericho were e&cavated. $n fact history of 4ericho traced back to 7??? (. !. and its destruction by -gyptians in 56?? (.!. came into light. At %as hamra 5?? of tablets bearing te&ts in !uneiform script datable to 5A5D th cen. (.!. found which were closely related to 0hoenician and (iblical Hebrew )he 1ead sea scrolls found in 5<D7 +oldest (iblical manuscripts. %obert -ric =ortimer Wheeler He developed further methods of 0itt %ivers. %oman Eestiges in (ritain and other parts were discovered and studied. Wheeler>s !rehistoric and Roman "ales and Rome Beyond its (rontiers are e&amples of it. Fo&, *rimes, !rawford, !hilde and 0iggott made substantial contributions. Wheeler emphasi,ed vertical site record and stratigraphy. )hrough planning, orderliness, hard work and dedication were some of factors. -&cavations at =aiden !astle # Eerulamium in -ngland were remarkable ones. $nter/disciplinary Approach $n present century field archaeology become highly systematic and inter/disciplinary. ciences like *eology, 0hysics, (otany, !hemistry, Joology and proper background of History, -conomics, *eography, 2iterature, ociology it became more useful. everal photographic techni8ues and remote sensing helps to locate ancient sites everal scientific dating methods helps to find out chronological assessment of ancient cultures ome Archaeological theories "ne another development in archaeological studies is conceptual interpretation for archaeological discoveries. )heory of evolution; development of culture in a certain se8uence or stages automatically all over the world. 2euis Henry =organ..Ancient %ocieties)'' -verywhere in the world , the same cultural stages or epochs gone through )his called K2aw of similar development> History of human race is one in ource, e&perience and one in progress )heory of 1iffusion; development of culture is attributable to the F timulus 1iffusionG by arrival or invasion of new people or indirect influences of new ideas perculating through contacts. !ulture did not everywhere go through precisely the same stages in the same way

Kused geology as framework for relative # absolute chronology of its cultural se8uence but it conceived its se8uence in term of historical and anthropological concepts, in terms of civilisations and cultures>/ *lyn 1aniel *ordon !hilde 59<3/5<67 *reat social thinker believed that Fman>s social evolution was dependent on his technology and the material culture was largely a response to an environment. He elaborate three stages of =organ i.e. avagery , (arbarism and !ivili,ation $an $a*es +imself, %ocial E olution, "hat happened in +istory, The da,n of European Ci ili-ation and #e, .ight on the $ost ancient East are some of his painstaking and pioneering works influence the modern archaeologist. %obert 4 (raidwood; -cological App 5<6D/66 his $ra8/4armo e&pedition was not a simple one but an attack on ecological problems. A *eologist, (otanist, Joologist and !eramic )echnologist were employed to study sub/ systems. 0aleo/environmental reconstruction. 2eft impact on scholars.. !riticism; this kind of approach underestimate human and social factors and view all as environmental changes. !hanging trends in Archaeogical theories number of proponents supports new view for e&plaining archaeology this goes under names of F'ew ArchaeologyG 2eius (inford, 1avid !lark, C.E. Flannery of the chief amongst them. )he behavioural pattern of the past culture can be investigated by hypothetic deductive method of science because archaeological remains and their spatial relationship are empirically observable records of that patterning. ystem theory approach; e&cavating site represents single e&ample of one type and does not reflect whole settlement pattern or system. number of proponents supports new view for e&plaining archaeology this goes under names of F'ew ArchaeologyG 2eius (inford, 1avid !lark, C.E. Flannery of the chief amongst them. )he behavioural pattern of the past culture can be investigated by hypothetic deductive method of science because archaeological remains and their spatial relationship are empirically observable records of that patterning. ystem theory approach; e&cavating site represents single e&ample of one type and does not reflect whole settlement pattern or system. 1evelopment of field archaeology in $ndia $mmense -pigraphical, architectural and sculptural wealth of $ndia were always sub@ect of reverence for $ndians and curiosity for foreigners who visited $ndia as invaders, travelers and rulers %espect and interest for preserving the old ob@ects and records is continuous from pastime. araswati =ahal in )an@avur of =aratha ruler arbho@i is an e&ample of the royal interest for collecting the valuable ob@ects.

alar@ang =useum, Hyderabad and %amnagar palace museum, Earanasi are e&ample of old royal collection in later days. Foreign rulers and visitors were interested in visiting $ndian monuments but they did not have any interest for knowing the historical background. ome of the missionaries learnt anskrit and some ancient languages like )amil but their interest was still linguistic. $t were the (ritishers who came to $ndia as a trader and replaced a territorial ruler who took interest in the anti8uarian wealth of $ndia. $t resulted the foundation of Asiatic ociety in !alcutta on 56 th 4anuary 579D by ir William 4ones with aimed to F$n8uire into the history and anti8uities, the arts, sciences and literature of Asia.G An annual @ournal called Asiatic Researches was first issued in 5799 and museum in595D. ir William 4ones Founder of Asiatic ociety was actually 4udge in upreme court at !alcutta as well as 2inguistic genius. $t has suggested that he owed the idea of Asiatic ociety to the ociety of Arts, (ritain who founded by William hipley. !harles Wilkins who had good Cnowledge of anskrit and 0assion for $ndian classics was good friend of him. With the help of Warren Hastings, they gave new shape to indological studies if $ndia. )hey translated several $ndian classics like the Bhag ad /ita, +itopadesa and %ha*untala into -nglish. )hough these were basically literary work but this was first step in revealing $ndiaLs past to outside world. !harles Wilkins provided key to the decipherment of *upta cript H.H.Wilson had done lot of work in Afghanistan and Francois (uchanan in (engal and =ysore brought to light many interesting finds like )emples, !oins, !aves etc. )he most important surveyor of this period after F. (uchanan was !olonel !olin =acken,ie. He organi,ed survey of $ndia as its first 1irector *eneral. 4ames Fergusson conducted an architectural survey of the country for eighteen years +593</59D7. and systematic classified the monuments. $t was in 59A? 2ieutenant/!olonel 4ames )od tried to e&plain the origin of $ndian rock/ cut caves. 4. Harrigton>s notes on (arabara caves and A. terling>s 1escription on (hubaneawar, 0uri and Conark were noteworthy task of this period. $t was remarkable work which remains still classic $n 59A9 4ames 0rincep who was assay master in !alcutta mint deciphered the (rahmi script in which Asokan edicts were written. )his opened new vista in historical studies in $ndia and provided sheet anchor for $ndian Archaeology. )here were occasional e&cavation but notices of sites were more fre8uent. $n the light of (iblical theory of creation scholars like William 4ones whose basic problem was to link the history of $ndia to the other early centers of civili,ation. (y 596? systematic archaeological survey of country was felt and *ovt. of $ndiaLs decision to establish the Archaeological urvey in 59:5 was in response to this need.

From about 596? worked flints and copper implements etc were reported from various parts of country but significance of these discoveries was not understood till some years. Ale&ander !unningham 59:5
He was army engineer by profession who worked with princep in spare time.

2ord !anning established Archaeological survey in 59:5 with !unningham as the Archaeological urveyor. He took keen interest in study of ancient monuments and about india>s past. He took up the work with single minded devotion and surveyed e&tensive areas in north and eastern part of $ndia. He followed the accounts of !hinese travelers like Fa/Hien and Hieun )sang and tried to find out ancient routes and places. He and his assistants like 4.1. (eglar. A.!.2. !arlleyle and H.(.W. *arrick visited several monuments and remains and published reports with photographs and drawings. He identified many ancient cities and sacred places such as city of )a&ila, Fortress of angala +!onnected with Ale&ander. ankisa, ravasti, Causambi and many other sites all connected with *autam (uddha. )he magnifying discovery of this period was stupa of (harut which has thrown light on development stages of stupa architecture. He discovered some Ashokan inscriptions and new rock edicts in (actrian characters. His publication and bulletins stand as testimony of his untiring efforts, dedication and respect of $ndian cultural heritage. ome scholars critici,ed his e&ploration # e&cavation techni8ues but it is pointless because techni8ues+-. # -. were not so developed in that period. His methods of work continued till the 5<D?. FAfter ir William 4ones indology owes to him than any other worker in the fieldGHA. 2. (asham. o that Ale&ander !unningham is !alled as KFather of $ndian Archaeology> 4ohn Faithful Fleet # -. Hult,ch 4.F. Fleet appointed as *overnment -pigraphist in 599A for initially three years and he published his definitive Inscriptions of Early /upta 0ings and Theirs %uccessors as a Eolume of the Corpus Inscriptionium Indiacarum $n 599: Hult,ch appointed as epigraphist for south $ndia. )he first volume of %outh Indian Inscriptions published in 59<? and Epigraphica Caranatica as separate series of inscriptions in 59<D under the purvies of =ysore state. Hult,ch was very well versed in anskrit, 0ali and other 1ravidian languages. (oth of these scholars did remarkable @ob in bringing to light valuable inscriptions and publishing them with their scholarly notes. =edows )aylor )he credit of adopting scientific method in en8uiry goes to =edows )aylor and %obert (ruce Foote. =edows )aylor was administrator in the service of 'i@am of Hyderabad.he is known by his schoarly work The Confession of Thug'

He e&cavated a number of =egalithic tombs of !entral and southern $ndia with meticulous details for details. )he drawings of plan and section were clear indication of his differentiation between the layers and presented the se8uence of the deposits.his works show an acuteness of perception and technical competence far advance of time. His achivements stands out as a landmark in the annals of archaeology. His recordings published in 1ournal of the Bombay Branch of Royal asiatic %ociety +5965. and Antiquities +59:3. )rue e&cavator and recorder so far $ know/%.-.=. Wheeler %obert (ruce Foote *eologist by 0rofession acknowledged as KFather of $ndian 0rehistory>. He served *. .$. to 5969/59<5 made valuable contribution to the study of geology of peninsular $ndia and interested in archaeology especially traces of early man. 59:A he discovered first paleoliths. He did e&tensive survey of southern $ndia and discovered numerous 0aleolithic, 'eolithic and =egalithic sites. $n 5<5D he published two volume on his collection which now e&hibited in =adras =useum. The (oote Collection of Indian !re2historic and !roto2historic Antiquities' it is remarkable publication containing numerous photographs and drawings of the prehistoric tools, pottery, iron ob@ects etc. He had good idea of stratigraphy and se8uence of cultures. 4ames (urgess He succeeded Ale&ander !unningham as the 1irector 4ournal of Archaeological urvey of $ndia in 599:. =any circles established under his leadership like (engal, 0un@ab etc. He started publication of Indian Antiquary in 5973 and Epigraphica Indica also twenty monumental work of his elaborate survey as Archaeological %ur ey of India 3 #e, Imperial %eries' He was not e&cavated much sites but he took measures against indiscriminate digging. 2ord !ur,on $t is said that period after the retirement of (urgess in 599< up to the arrival of lord !ur,on in 59<< was problematic. )hough he knew for his imperial ambitions, he was deeply interested in preservation of ancient cultural relics and archaeological researches. F $t is e8ually our duty to dig and discover, to classify, reproduce and describe, to copy and decipher, to cherish and conserveG )he Archaeological urvey was reorganised and enlarged. )o this e&tent the viceroyalty of 2ord !ur,on was K the dawn of the new era> A young archaeologist 4ohn =arshall was appointed as 1irector *eneral in 5<?3 ir 4ohn =arshall 597:/5969 1uring his tenure hundreds of monuments and sites were declared protected under Ancient $onuments !reser ation Act 4567 . everal new circles and branch offices formed.

He e&cavated many sites like )a&ila, arnath, %a@gir, anchi, ravasti, Cushinagara, 'alanda, 0ataliputra etc. %emains of =auryan palace at 0ataliputra and town planning system at )a&ila were remarkable one. $ndus valley civilisation was greatest triumph of this period. He gave much emphasis on publication. Annual Reports and $emoirs and $ohen8odaro and the Indus Ci ilisation are result of his scholarship. Brnburial site ate Adichannalur by Ale&ander %ea and 'agar@unkonda by A.H. 2onghurst are some of e&cavations during his tenure. 2aws of conservation 4ohn =arshall recruited many people who became masters of $ndian studies in their own right some of them were 1.%. (handarkar, =. . Eats, C.'. 1ikshit, Hargreaves, Ale&ander %ea, Hiranand hastri etc. After 55 years of his retirement in 5<A< ir 2eonard Wooley was invited to decide future policy of e&ploration # e&cavation. He critici,ed e&cavation techni8ues. )hey had no latest touch adopted in Western countries. )here was very little attempt to established cultural se8uence based on stratigraphy. He submitted his reports to government but it has never been published. $n fulfillment of these ob@ectives ir =ortimer Wheeler appointed as the 1irected *eneral of Archaeolgical urvey of $ndia in 5<DD.

ir =ortimer Wheeler 59<?/5<7: He introduced first time scientific methods of -&cavation which he had developed from earlier techni8ues of 0itt %ivers and 0etrie. He e&panded several Functional branches like e&cavations, museums, technical, research etc. He conducted several well planned and discipline oriented e&cavations at )a&ila, Harappa Arikamedu and (rahmagiri where he invited scholars from universities for particaipation. Ancient India and Indian Archaeology He was founder of $nstitute of Archaeology, 2ondon and chool of Archaeology, 'ew 1elhi. He realised the need to train young scholars. $ndian archaeologists sent abroad for learning latest techni8ues. He brought to line $ndian archaeology in real international standards. %ole of Bniversities and tate 1epartments everal tate and Bniversity department in $ndia have made valuable contributions to the progress of archaeology. 0rior to independence =ysore, )ravancore, !ochin, 0udukottai, Hyderabad, *walior, (aroda, 4aipur had dept. of Archeology but their interest were in the fields of -pigraphy and =useums. $n recent years all states have separate dept. of archaeology. =any universities also have same one. ome of the large scale e&cavations like =aheshwar, Causambi, Atran@ikhera, )ekkalkota, $namgaon etc. were done by university departments.

A number of $ndian scholars have done significant work in the post/independent era like H.1. ankalia, A. *hosh, *.%. harma, (.(.2al, (. ubbarao, =.'. 1eshpande, (.C. )hapar, %.E.4oshi, C.E. oundaryara@an, %. ubrahmanyam etc. =any dating methods assumed great importance. ome of institutions have facilities for this kind of investigations. )he )ata $nstitute of Fundamental %esearch, (ombay and 0hysical %esearch 2aboratory, Ahmadabad and (irbal ahni $nstitute of 0aleobotany, 2ucknow and $nstitute of 0hysics, (hubaneshwar are some of one. A. .$. has also its own conservation and scientific wings in which chemical conservation methods are undertaken. Bnderwater archaeology wing doing good work under the control of A. .$. Archaeology departments are doing collaboration with Anthropological, Joological and (otanical urvey of $ndia making valuable contributions to 0re and 0roto/historic studies. F)oday no part of the world is better served in archaeological matters than is the %epublic of $ndiaG/ ir =ortimer Wheeler