Archaeology as a discipline has undergone significant changes over the past decades, in particular concerning best practices for how to handle the vast quantities of data that the discipline generates. Much of this data has often ended up in physical – or, more recently, digital – archives and been left untouched for years, despite containing critical information. But as many recent research projects explore how best to unleash the potential of these archives through publication, digitization, and improved accessibility, attention is now turning to the best practices that should underpin this trend.

Shaping Archaeological Archives is edited by UrbNet’s center director, Professor Rubina Raja. In the anthology, scholars turn their attention to how best to work with and shape archaeological archives, and what this means for the field as a whole. The majority of the newly published case studies explore archaeological sites in the eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East, some of which are conflict zones today. However, the contributions also showcase more broadly the depth of research on archaeological archives as a whole and offer reflections upon the relationship between archaeological practices and archival forms. In so doing, the volume is able to offer a unique dialogue on best practices for the dissemination and synthetization of knowledge from archives more generally, whether physical or digital.

The volume is published by the acclaimed Brepols Publishers in the series Archive Archaeology, which is dedicated to exploring archives and legacy data related to archaeology and history.

Full reference

Raja, R. (ed.) (2023). Shaping Archaeological Archives: Dialogues between Fieldwork, Museum Collections, and Private Archives, Archive Archaeology 4, Turnhout: Brepols.

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Chapters by UrbNetters

Bobou, O, Miranda, A. C., Raja, R. & Steding, J. (2023). “Archiving Palmyra: Outcomes of Inquiry into Archaeological Legacy Data”, in Raja, R. (ed.), Shaping Archaeological Archives: Dialogues between Fieldwork, Museum Collections, and Private Archives, Archive Archaeology 4, Turnhout: Brepols, 47–70.

Brody, L. & Raja, R. (2023). “The Mosaics from the 1928–1929 Campaigns of the Joint British-American Expedition to Gerasa: Drawings by Grace and Dorothy Crowfoot”, in Raja, R. (ed.), Shaping Archaeological Archives: Dialogues between Fieldwork, Museum Collections, and Private Archives, Archive Archaeology 4, Turnhout: Brepols, 213–279.

Garth Jones, R. (2023). “Analogue Problems Through a Digital Lens: Reconsidering Underlying Issues with Archaeological Archival Practice Using the Digitization of the Samarra Archives”, in Raja, R. (ed.), Shaping Archaeological Archives: Dialogues between Fieldwork, Museum Collections, and Private Archives, Archive Archaeology 4, Turnhout: Brepols, 301–309.

Miranda, A. C. & Raja, R. (2023). “Considerations in Archive Archaeology: Past and Present Colonialism in the Study of Palmyra’s Archaeology and History”, in Raja, R. (ed.), Shaping Archaeological Archives: Dialogues between Fieldwork, Museum Collections, and Private Archives, Archive Archaeology 4, Turnhout: Brepols, 71–98.

Raja, R. (2023). “Shaping Archaeological Archives: Fieldwork, Collections, and Private Archives — Issues of Curation and Accessibility”, in Raja, R. (ed.), Shaping Archaeological Archives: Dialogues between Fieldwork, Museum Collections, and Private Archives, Archive Archaeology 4, Turnhout: Brepols, 1–7.

Raja, R. & Steding, J. (2023). “Revisiting Harald Ingholt's Excavation Diaries: Zooming in on Two Graves in the South-West Necropolis of Palmyra and their Inscriptions”, in Raja, R. (ed.), Shaping Archaeological Archives: Dialogues between Fieldwork, Museum Collections, and Private Archives, Archive Archaeology 4, Turnhout: Brepols, 99–126.