For more than 200 years, archaeological sites in the Middle East have been dug, sifted, sorted, and saved by local community members who, in turn, developed immense expertise in excavation and interpretation and had unparalleled insight into the research process and findings—but who have almost never participated in strategies for recording the excavation procedures or results. Their particular perspectives have therefore been missing from the archaeological record, creating an immense gap in knowledge about the ancient past and about how archaeological knowledge is created. Why Those Who Shovel Are Silent is based on six years of in-depth ethnographic work with current and former site workers at two major Middle Eastern archaeological sites—Petra, Jordan, and Çatalhöyük, Turkey—combined with thorough archival research. Author Allison Mickel describes the nature of the knowledge that locally hired archaeological laborers exclusively possess about artifacts, excavation methods, and archaeological interpretation, showing that archaeological workers are experts about a wide range of topics in archaeology. At the same time, Mickel reveals a financial incentive for site workers to pretend to be less knowledgeable than they actually are, as they risk losing their jobs or demotion if they reveal their expertise. Despite a recent proliferation of critical research examining the history and politics of archaeology, the topic of archaeological labor has not yet been substantially examined. Why Those Who Shovel Are Silent employs a range of advanced qualitative, quantitative, and visual approaches and offers recommendations for archaeologists to include more diverse expert perspectives and produce more nuanced knowledge about the past. It will appeal to archaeologists, science studies scholars, and anyone interested in challenging the concept of “unskilled” labor.

Identity, Oppression, and Diversity in Archaeology documents how racism, classism, sexism, heterosexism, and ableism affect the demographics of archaeology and discusses how knowledge that archaeologists produce is shaped by the discipline’s demographic homogeneity. Previous research has shown that, like many academic fields, archaeology is numerically dominated by straight white cisgender people, and those in positions of authority are predominantly men. This book examines how and why those demographic trends persist. It also elucidates how individual archaeologists’ social identities shape the research they conduct, and therefore, how our demographics affect and limit our knowledge production on a disciplinary scale. It explains how, through unflinching reflection, proactive policymaking, and sincere community-building, we can build a diverse and inclusive discipline. This book will appeal to archaeologists who have an interest in diversity and inclusion within the discipline as well as scholars in other disciplines who are engaged in research on diversity in academia.

A father and daughter living in the remote Appalachian mountains must reckon with the ghosts of their past in Kimi Cunningham Grant's These Silent Woods, a mesmerizing novel of suspense. No electricity, no family, no connection to the outside world. For eight years, Cooper and his young daughter, Finch, have lived in isolation in a remote cabin in the northern Appalachian woods. And that's exactly the way Cooper wants it, because he's got a lot to hide. Finch has been raised on the books filling the cabin’s shelves and the beautiful but brutal code of life in the wilderness. But she’s starting to push back against the sheltered life Cooper has created for her—and he’s still haunted by the painful truth of what it took to get them there. The only people who know they exist are a mysterious local hermit named Scotland, and Cooper's old friend, Jake, who visits each winter to bring them food and supplies. But this year, Jake doesn't show up, setting off an irreversible chain of events that reveals just how precarious their situation really is. Suddenly, the boundaries of their safe haven have blurred—and when a stranger wanders into their woods, Finch’s growing obsession with her could put them all in danger. After a shocking disappearance threatens to upend the only life Finch has ever known, Cooper is forced to decide whether to keep hiding—or finally face the sins of his past. Vividly atmospheric and masterfully tense, These Silent Woods is a poignant story of survival, sacrifice, and how far a father will go when faced with losing it all.

Now in its third edition, Introducing Archaeology continues to be a lively and approachable textbook for introductory-level students. Covering traditional elements of archaeology, including methods and prehistory, the new edition also opens up greater conversations about the current state of archaeology, discussing issues of representation, inclusion, and diversity in the field. The authors highlight recent developments in digital and public archaeology, as well as the social and political contexts of doing archaeological fieldwork. A new prologue challenges common misconceptions about archaeology portrayed by mainstream media. The result is a book that encourages students to critically examine the present by investigating the archaeological past. The third edition features over 50 full-color images and is accompanied by updated instructor materials and student resources. For more information see www.introducingarchaeology.com.

Becoming an Archaeologist: A Guide to Professional Pathways is an engaging handbook on career paths in archaeology. It outlines the process of getting a job in archaeology, including various career options, the training required, and how to get positions in the academic, commercial, government and charity sectors. This new edition has been substantially revised and updated. The coverage has been expanded to include many more examples of archaeological lives and livelihoods from dozens of countries around the world. It also has more interviews, with in-depth analyses of the career paths of over twenty different archaeologists working around the world. Data on the demographics of archaeologists has also been updated, as have sections on access to and inclusion in archaeology. The volume also includes revised and updated appendices and a new bibliography. Written in an accessible style, the book is essential reading for anyone interested in a career in archaeology in the twenty-first century.

The Oxford Handbook of the History of Archaeology offers comprehensive perspectives on the origins and developments of the discipline of archaeology and the direction of future advances in the field. Written by thirty-six archaeologists and historians from all over the world, it covers a wide range of themes and debates, including biographical accounts of key figures, scientific techniques and archaeological fieldwork practices, institutional contexts, and the effects of religion, nationalism, and colonialism on the development of archaeology.

Flooded Pasts examines a world famous yet critically underexamined event—UNESCO's International Campaign to Save the Monuments of Nubia (1960–80)—to show how the project, its genealogy, and its aftermath not only propelled archaeology into the postwar world but also helped to "recolonize" it. In this book, William Carruthers asks how postwar decolonization took shape and what role a colonial discipline like archaeology—forged in the crucible of imperialism—played as the "new nations" asserted themselves in the face of the global Cold War. As the Aswan High Dam became the centerpiece of Gamal Abdel Nasser's Egyptian revolution, the Nubian campaign sought to salvage and preserve ancient temples and archaeological sites from the new barrage's floodwaters. Conducted in the neighboring regions of Egyptian and Sudanese Nubia, the project built on years of Nubian archaeological work conducted under British occupation and influence. During that process, the campaign drew on the scientific racism that guided those earlier surveys, helping to consign Nubians themselves to state-led resettlement and modernization programs, even as UNESCO created a picturesque archaeological landscape fit for global media and tourist consumption. Flooded Pasts describes how colonial archaeological and anthropological practices—and particularly their archival and documentary manifestations—created an ancient Nubia severed from the region's population. As a result, the Nubian campaign not only became fundamental to the creation of UNESCO's 1972 World Heritage Convention but also exposed questions about the goals of archaeology and heritage and whether the colonial origins of these fields will ever be overcome.