Practical and Theoretical Geoarchaeology

Practical and Theoretical Geoarchaeology provides an invaluable overview of geoarchaeology and how it can be used effectively in the study of archaeological sites and contexts. Taking a pragmatic and functional approach, this book presents:

• a fundamental, broad-based perspective of the essentials of modern geoarchaeology in order to demonstrate the breadth of the approaches and the depth of the problems that it can tackle.

• the rapid advances made in the area in recent years, but also gives the reader a firm grasp of conventional approaches.

• covers traditional topics with the emphasis on landscapes, as well as anthropogenic site formation processes and their investigation.

• provides guidelines for the presentation of field and laboratory methods and the reporting of geoarchaeological results.

• essential reading for archaeology undergraduate and graduate students, practicing archaeologists and geoscientists who need to understand and apply geoarchaeological methodologies.

Artwork from the book is available to instructors online at: www.blackwellpublishing.com/goldberg

“This is one of the best textbooks that I have read in years. I enjoyed reviewing it, and found it well-written and thorough in its coverage of the traditional earth science aspects of geoarchaeology. The non-traditional aspects were intriguing and equally thorough... I predict that this book will become the textbook of choice for geoarchaeology classes for several years.”

Geomorphology 101 (2008) 740–743