Murray 2008

Reviews 233
Barbara J. Little: Historical

Archaeology. Why the Past
Matters. Left Coast Press, Walnut
Creek, CA 2007. 205 pp., 11 figs.
ISBN 97-1-59874-022-6 (hbk); 978-
1-59874-023-3 (pbk)
TIM MURRAY
There is no shortage of textbooks on historical

archaeology, and there is a large and growing
number of ‘companions’ and ‘guides’, among the
Tim Murray, La Trobe University, Victoria, Australia.

E-mail: [email protected]
234 Reviews
most recent being the Cambridge Companion to Neolithic and the Bronze Age, often seem unable
Historical Archaeology (2006). So, instructors to find room in their departments for archae-
have a wide range of possible choices, not least ologists working on the archaeology of the last
because no single work seems to be able to three centuries. No such prejudices inhibit
capture the essence of the field. What happens contexts where the archaeology of the modern
instead is that teachers tend to set multiple world is routinely practised – the post-colonial/
readings in an effort to get breadth of coverage post-imperial settler societies of North America,
and approach, while at the same time arguing Australia and New Zealand (and the somewhat
that students should read critically and seek to different context of South Africa). Here histor-
distinguish between substance and spin. ical archaeology is vibrant and growing quickly
Importantly, the vast bulk of contemporary and very strongly connected to the rapidly
historical archaeologies – be they about cities expanding industry of archaeological heritage
or rural areas, the ‘Atlantic world’ or elsewhere, management.
migration and identity formation or one of a Little’s Historical Archaeology should be seen
number of a host of other concerns that jostle as a product of all that vibrant activity and an
for attention – are strongly connected to broader attempt to explain to neophytes about the ways in
debates within the societies where they are which historical archaeology contributes to our
practised. Practitioners well understand the attempts to make history. In this it has a lot in
social and cultural importance of their work, if common with other general surveys of the field,
only because it focuses on the recent histories of particularly in terms of its focus on the social and
communities and places that have been either cultural consequences of practice. Long ago
transformed or created by the modern world. historical archaeologists used to argue with
Archaeologies created in the contexts of the historians about their capacity to elicit informa-
recent or immediate past are redolent with tion about society’s mute and dispossessed, the
meanings both shared and disparate that can people whose lives rarely (and then only fleet-
act powerfully in society. Long gone are the ingly) appear in written records. It was true then
days when historical archaeology and its con- and to a lesser extent remains so, if only because
cerns were a quaint afterthought in American some historians have now got the message that
archaeology – the sort of place where people material things and their archaeological contexts
who liked collecting clay pipes or bothering contain valuable historical information. Many of
about wear patterns on musket flints could find the settings that archaeologists of the modern
a home with the steam enthusiasts or the world work in – those of diaspora, indigenous
engineering obsessives. dispossession, slavery, convictism, the creation of
I often wonder whether this was ever true. The new nations, the consequences of imperialism and
late Jim Deetz (a pioneer of what was to become colonialism, charting the flows of capital and
known as ‘contact’ archaeology) could write technology, and the creation of global trade in
about the decoration of headstones in a way that commodities and consumer goods – naturally
went right to the core of the archaeologist’s throw up significant ethical issues that budding
project. Invitation to Archaeology (1967) and In practitioners need to get to grips with. Little’s
Small Things Forgotten (1977) are among the book discusses a sample of these potentially
best discussions of the nature and purpose of contentious research areas in a forthright and
archaeology, and they were written by a generally useful kind of way, and in so doing lays
historical archaeologist whose role in the devel- down a coherent set of principles that guide her
opment of late 20th-century theoretical archae- activities as a historical archaeologist.
ology has yet to be fully appreciated. Indeed, it Of course, given the size of the work, Historical
is very much the case that contemporary Archaeology cannot be considered to be a compre-
archaeological theory continues to be much hensive survey of the field. However, the core of the
influenced by historical archaeology and archae- book is a clear exposition of the line Little takes
ologies of the recent past, although one could be through such contentions. In this it is a useful
forgiven for believing otherwise when prehistor- addition to the literature. But its limitations of
ian colleagues, who consume those perspectives scope and approach critically limit its utility
(especially in Europe) when they write about the outside this pretty narrow focus. Given that the
Reviews 235
book was published in 2007 it is very surprising

that its focus is so North American. Although
some hasty nods are cast in the direction of the
archaeology of Australian convictism and the odd
mention of things from Europe and Africa (all of
which, from the reference list, look like the
products of a lack of familiarity with relevant
literature), the vast bulk of the cases used by Little
are from North America. Furthermore most of the
sites and contexts discussed by her ( for example
Five Points, the African Burial Ground, the
Garbage Project) are very well known and with
large literatures of their own. Given the amount of
work that has been done outside North America
over the last 30 years the lack of detailed
engagement with historical archaeology as a global
practice significantly limits the pedagogical value
of the work.
To some extent this lack of diversity is
compensated for in the final section, in which
Little reflects on broader ethical issues of
historical archaeology as public archaeology. In
several very short chapters she considers mem-
ory, education, reconciliation and the public role
of history which, taken together, pose some
significant questions that resonate outside North
America. However, the discussion of these issues
is too short to foster a serious engagement with
them. This sense of superficiality is reinforced by
a partial (in both senses of the word) list of
suggestions for further reading. In the end I
believe that this might be a somewhat false
impression. Little has a very solid understanding
of the core issues she is seeking to discuss, but
the organization of the volume around numer-
ous small chapters with very limited examples
gave her scant opportunity to demonstrate
clearly the value of her perspective on the
importance of historical archaeology.
REFERENCES
Deetz, J. 1967. Invitation to Archaeology. Natural
History Press, Garden City, NY.
Deetz, J. 1977. In Small Things Forgotten. Anchor
Press/Doubleday, Garden City, NY.
Hicks, D. & Beaudry, M. C. 2006. The Cambridge
Companion to Historical Archaeology.
Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
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Reviews 233

Barbara J. Little: Historical

There is no shortage of textbooks on historical

Tim Murray, La Trobe University, Victoria, Australia.

book was published in 2007 it is very surprising

# 2008 Tim Murray

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