The book includes six chapters that cover Virginia history from initial settlement through the 20th century plus one that deals with the important role of underwater archaeology. Written by prominent archaeologists with research experience in their respective topic areas, the chapters consider important issues of Virginia history and consider how the discipline of historic archaeology has addressed them and needs to address them . Changes in research strategy over time are discussed , and recommendations are made concerning the need to recognize the diverse and often differing roles and impacts that characterized the different regions of Virginia over the course of its historic past. Significant issues in Virginia history needing greater study are identified.

This publication presents research into Britain's largest, earliest and most significant collection of Roman waxed writing tablets. The collection, which boasts the first handwritten document known from Britain, was discovered during archaeological excavations for Bloomberg. The formal, official, legal and business aspects of life in the first decades of Londinium are revealed, with appearances from slaves, freedmen, traders, soldiers and the judiciary. Aspects of the tablets considered include their manufacture, analysis of the wax applied to their surfaces, their epigraphy and the content of over 80 legible texts.