Why are you digging it up? How did it get buried? How did you know it was there? In this simple guide to the basic elements of archaeology, Professor Branigan tackles the questions most commonly asked by visitors to archaeological sites. Drawing on examples from both the Old World and the New and from prehistoric to recent times, he shows the fascination of archaeology as a study in itself and the exciting part it plays in our general view of the past.

'The best explanation of archaeology for the layman that I have ever read. The writing is clear and concise, the illustrations are excellently selected to support the examples, and the style is so interesting that it will keep the reader fascinated to the end.' American Antiquity