Time Team Dig Book

by Tim Taylor

Time Team is Channel 4's perennially popular archaeology show, and the experts are ready to share their archaeological know-how with us. So many of us watch the show and wish that we, too, could get out there, get digging, and uncover an artifact such as a piece of pottery, glass, brooch, or pipe stem. Now we can! The Time Team Dig Book explains all the key skills the budding archaeologist needs to know. From gaining permission for your dig and surveying the landscape, to locating and excavating your first trench; from identifying pottery, to your final report and the legacy of your dig. Taking us on a tour of some of their latest key excavation sites, Tony, Mick, Phil, and the gang share with us their wealth of expertise and tell us all we need to know in order to join in.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Archaeology

224 pages, Hardcover

First published February 26, 2013

Reviews

[James]

Enjoyable read that is great adjunct to the television series. Written in an easygoing and thoroughly readable way, the book gives a summary of the six episodes in one series of Time Team from the viewpoint of several of the cast and crew, alongside "topic boxes" delving little deeper into the types of finds that may be discovered, the methods used, and how they are preserved. Nothing that a seasoned archaeologist wouldn't already know, but a good entry point for the layperson, especially if read in conjunction with watching the series.

[Wendelle]

browsed only-- a wonderful photobook showing the step-by-step daily procedures of an archaeogical dig, featuring sites in Iron Age-, Anglo-Saxon-, and Medieval Britain. Goes really into detail about different archaeological procedures of interest, from identifying research questions, distinguishing the time periods and features of pottery shards, setting up trenches, using LIDAR etc.

[Jason Bleckly]

Just like the TV show, only written. Though it did take me more than 3 days to read.

[Peter]

For a fan of the long-running TV series, this provides some enjoyable insights into the background of the making of Time Team programmes, and details around the practice of archaeology in the series. Beautifully illustrated, and featuring columns from many familiar faces.

The downside - the book is built around one of the later series after the departure of Mick Aston and several of my other favourites from the series, and their presence is missed.

[Elaine]

A very good report of one seasons episodes of digs and great background articles on pottery dating and archaeology techniques.