Digging Deeper: How Archaeology Works

by Eric H. Cline

From the bestselling author of 1177 B.C., an accessible primer to the archaeologist's craft



An archaeologist with more than thirty seasons of excavation experience, Eric H. Cline has conducted fieldwork around the world, from Greece and Crete to Egypt, Israel, and Jordan. In Digging Deeper, Cline answers the questions archaeologists are most frequently asked, such as: How do you know where to dig? How are excavations actually done? How do you know how old something is? Who gets to keep what is found? How do you know what people from the past ate, wore, and looked like? Adapted from Cline's acclaimed book Three Stones Make a Wall, this lively little volume is brimming with insights and practical advice about how archaeology really works. Whether you are an armchair archaeologist or embarking on your first excavation, Digging Deeper is an essential primer on the art of the dig.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Archaeology, Science, Ancient History

176 pages, Paperback

First published November 3, 2020

About the author

DR. ERIC H. CLINE is the former Chair of the Department of Classical and Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations and current Director of the Capitol Archaeological Institute at The George Washington University. A National Geographic Explorer, NEH Public Scholar, and Fulbright scholar with degrees from Dartmouth, Yale, and the University of Pennsylvania, he is an active field archaeologist with 30 seasons of excavation and survey experience in Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Cyprus, Greece, Crete, and the United States, including ten seasons at the site of Megiddo (biblical Armageddon) in Israel from 1994-2014, and seven seasons at Tel Kabri, where he currently serves as Co-Director. A three-time winner of the Biblical Archaeology Society's "Best Popular Book on Archaeology" Award (2001, 2009, and 2011) and two-time winner of the American School of Archaeology's "Nancy Lapp Award for Best Popular Archaeology Book" (2014 and 2018), he is a popular lecturer who has appeared frequently on television documentaries and has also won national and local awards for both his research and his teaching. He is the author or editor of 20 books, almost 100 articles, and three recorded 14-lecture courses. His previous books written specifically for the general public include "The Battles of Armageddon: Megiddo and the Jezreel Valley from the Bronze Age to the Nuclear Age" (2000), "Jerusalem Besieged: From Ancient Canaan to Modern Israel" (2004), "From Eden to Exile: Unraveling Mysteries of the Bible" (2007), "Biblical Archaeology: A Very Short Introduction" (2009), "The Trojan War: A Very Short Introduction" (2013), "1177 BC: The Year Civilization Collapsed" (2014), “Three Stones Make a Wall: The Story of Archaeology" (2017), and “Digging Up Armageddon” (2020). He has also co-authored a children's book on Troy, entitled "Digging for Troy" (2011). For a video of his "Last Lecture" talk, go to http://vimeo.com/7091059.

Reviews

[Saul Connelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

it’s alr but idc about what type of trowels they use or types of dirt-to be expected though tbf

[Jordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A winsome little book that answers some common questions about archeology (eg “How do you know where to dig?” and “How old is this?” and “Do you get to keep what you find?”). Cline writes from extensive experience in biblical and late Bronze Age field work in the eastern Mediterranean and packs this book with carefully chosen examples not only from his own work, but from that or archaeologists in other fields.

Perhaps my favorite chapters were those in which he described the varying environments in which even bodies—like those of Ötzi (ice) or Tollund man (bog)—could be preserved, and the penultimate chapter on whether archeologists get to keep their finds (no), in which he presents a passionate and principled argument against looting, which is more of a problem now than ever. Cline concludes with reflections on the potential future of archeology.

A great short read that I plan to recommend to students. I hope to read the book from which some of this material has been excerpted and updated, Three Stones Make a Wall, soon.

Highly recommended.

[Dan Cassino · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an abridged version of Cline’s longer treatise on the procedures of modern archaeology, “Three Stones Make a Wall.” As such, it leaves out a lot of the detail, focusing on basic ideas about how archaeology is carried out, in the for, of answers to common questions: How do you know how old something is, Do you get to keep what you find, etc. There’s some of the really deep procedural detail I was hoping for in here, but not enough to really slake my thirst. I can imagine an interested middle grades reader really liking it (I could have said “digging.” You’re welcome), but it was a little too light for me.

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part Wikipedia overview and part personal observations, the book has interesting moments but not enough to be fully engaging. It often introduces an interesting insight and then move rapidly on to the next topic without finishing the thought. I enjoyed the author's passion about archaeology but was left with too many unfinished story lines.

[Ergative Absolutive · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a bit more surfacey than I wanted, but I enjoyed the details about the actual procedures on site, which is what I really wanted to know about. I might look into his bigger book, 'Three Stones Make a Wall', but given that the intro here says that this pretty scanty book is providing the deeper details that his big book doesn't contain, I doubt I'm going to get more of what I want.

[MJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ever wonder if you wanted to go on a dig? This nifty little book answers tells us how to find a place to dig, how to interpret what is found, all the other scientists help to interpret what is found, etc. Do you get to keep what you dig up? Do you lose weight and gain muscle? Loved it. And now off to find his other books. Eric H. Cline is also on Youtube--has a fine sense of humor.

[Savannah Nielson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great quick read! A super accessible book for learning about key archaeology facts and a brief account of some important finds and the methods used to asses them.