How Indiana Jones is Helping the Archaeological Community: Antiquarianism to

Archaeology
Archaeology is the study of humanitys past through material culture: through the study
of artifacts. Archaeologists discover new sites and use newly found artifacts to learn about the
past. Generally speaking, most people know about archaeology in some capacity. People might
even be familiar with some major archaeological sites such as the pyramids at Giza, Machu
Picchu, Pompeii, and Stonehenge. Archaeology has been around for hundreds of years.
However, in the very beginning, archaeology as we know it today didnt exist. Instead, it was
known as antiquarianism (History of Archaeology). Antiquarianism was essentially the
pastime of the rich. However, in reality, it was little more than treasure hunting. While
archaeology is the discovery of things for scientific study, antiquarianism is the discovery of
such objects for the purpose of collecting or even just stealing. In short, modern archaeology
teaches about the past, while the now extinct antiquarianism sought to collect artifacts and build
the most extensive private collections. Antiquarianism, for better or for worse, is where
archaeology has its origins. Archaeology may have started out as treasure hunting, but it
progressed to a major scientific discipline. It did so because of the push from dedicated
individuals and explores, the advent of new technology, and the evolution in the way people
view the past.
In the beginning, antiquarianism was used as a supplement to the study of the classical
civilizations. As stated in the article Archaeology Boom, destinations would often be picked
using classical sources such as the Bible, or writings such as those of the Roman historian
Tacitus. Many of the first things to be discovered are from classical antiquity (French). One of
the first major discoveries under the blanket term antiquarianism was made in the year 1799.
Napoleons troops marched through Egypt and uncovered many treasures, such as the Rosetta
stone. After Napoleons conquest in Egypt, he created an entire wing in the newly created
Louvre in order to house all of the spoils he had brought back from the Egyptian campaign. It is
not coincidence that around the same time, the British Museum became a popular attraction;
according to Archaeology Today, its original purpose was mainly to deal with antiquities like
those that Napoleon brought back. It was established in order to house all of the new artifacts
that were being discovered by antiquarians. The museum later went on to become home to the
aforementioned Rosetta Stone just two years after its discovery.
The antiquarianism frenzy is perhaps best evidenced by the famous case of
archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann. Archaeology Today said that Schliemann believed that
he would be able to find the lost city of Troy from The Iliad. Schliemann did indeed find the
correct location of the city; however, he excavated too deeply, and effectively destroyed the city
he had tried so hard to find. Also, he later reneged on deals he had made with local authorities in
order to complete his excavations in the first place. Schliemann even went so far as to steal some
artifacts from said excavations. These were not sound archaeological practices. However, these
methods were fairly common among antiquarians. Had this been a true archaeological
excavation like those of today, the important information would have been gathered and
documented rather than made a mockery of in this manner.
With all of this early history in mind, the question becomes this: how did archaeology
evolve into a scientific field of study? It began when American president Theodore Roosevelt
instituted the Antiquities Act in 1906 in order to grant protection to both historic and prehistoric
sites on federal land in the United States. This was a huge step, as it allowed for the preservation
of sites in North America. This act prevented them from falling prey to methods such as the
antiquarianism that had been practiced on their European counterparts. As years progressed, an
entire organization of similarly dedicated individuals arose. This organization is UNESCO, or
the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. In the year 1970,
UNESCO held a convention that ultimately banned the trading of artifacts (Illicit Trafficking).
This eventually led to 125 countries joining the group in order to swear off the illicit antiquities
trade. This in and of itself is a huge difference from the practices of the antiquarians. Prior to this
meeting, looting of archaeological sites and museums had been on the rise (Illicit Trafficking).
Very few people before UNESCO tried to curtail this phenomenon. Furthermore, UNESCO went
on to develop a committee that solely oversaw the rightful distribution of artifacts and settle
disputes over ownership.
The United States has a similar program for dealing with things on a national level. It is
known as Cultural Resource Management, or CRM. They most frequently operate in the form of
government-mandated archaeology. CRM seeks to preserve archaeological findings. Cultural
Resource Management most often comes into play before a project that uses federal funds is
commenced. Construction projects that use federal funds such as road construction must have
archaeological excavations carried out first in order to make sure that nothing of significance will
be destroyed by the project. If something is found during the tests, the government project is then
put on hold until further, more conclusive, testing can be done. It is practices like these that show
how far archaeology has come from antiquarianism into the practice of respecting history.
Another reason for this shifts occurrence is the development of new technology. The
first real piece of technology that was used by archaeologists was radiocarbon dating, and it was
created in 1949. This process tracks the amount of carbon found in organic material to determine
the absolute age of an artifact. It works on artifacts that are up to about 80,000 years old
(French). For the first time, archaeologists were able to label artifacts with concrete dates. Before
this invention, archaeologists had to guess or assume that object A was older than Object B.
Since then, many modern technologies have been invented to help the shift towards
archaeology move along more rapidly. One such example is the indispensable archaeological
tool known as Ground Penetrating Radar. As stated by Dolphin, this technique allows
archaeologists to map out a site underground before digging any of it. It is still used today. Entire
archaeological sites have even been found using this technique. This technology helps to cut
down on antiquarian practices because it eliminates part of the need for them. Antiquarianism
was a very destructive process, but today, in the archaeological world, new technology saves
much time and effort, and preserves the integrity of the artifacts by allowing archaeologists to
see what lies beneath the surface before too much time and effort are invested in one site.
Technology is still developing. Today, techniques for sourcing jadeite are being researched.
According to the lecture Sourcing Jadeite, this would allow archaeologists to determine where
artifacts came from originally, which would in turn lead to a more thorough understanding of
actual events that currently are only theories. The overall development of technology allows for
the development of archaeology because, generally speaking, technology equates to progress.
Another thing that changed was the way people view the past. Originally, the past, even
history itself, was seen as something that could be collected and owned. This was the time in
which antiquarianism thrived due to the desire for people to have what the modern day considers
looted artifacts. Of course, the attitude shift did not happen all at once. It started in the minds of
the scientific community before progressing to the thoughts of mainstream society. An example
of that is Sir Arthur Evans, a British archaeologist who discovered the Palace of Knossos on the
island of Crete in Greece. In Archaeology Today, we are given the story of Evans discoveries
at Knossos which actually compare them to those of the aforementioned Schliemann. The main
difference is that Evans' team of respected archaeologists carefully excavated the site. Unlike
their predecessors, archaeologists of this time were able to treat their work more seriously.
Things that started to change the minds of people outside of the professional community were
organizations such as UNESCO and the popularization of the archaeological field through new
associations like that of Indiana Jones.
Since archaeology is ever-evolving, it has become so much more than it was at its
inception, especially in our time. In fact, Archaeology Today uses the perfect description of
archaeologists of this time: they are more scientist than adventurer. Although there is
undeniably adventure had by slogging through the Peruvian jungle or Egyptian desert, at the end
of the day, the modern purpose is for science, not treasure hunting. As Indiana Jones said, That
belongs in a museum.




Works Cited
Deans, Ralph C. "Archeology Boom." Editorial Research Reports 1971. Vol. II. Washington:
CQ Press, 1971. 521-40. CQ Researcher. Web. 29 Oct. 2013.
Dolphin, Lambert. "HOW GEOPHYSICAL METHODS CAN HELP THE
ARCHAEOLOGIST." N.p., 8 Feb. 2011. Web.
French, Kirk. "History of Archaeology." 4 Sept. 2013. Lecture.
Foecke, Kimberly. "Sourcing Jadeite." 24 Oct. 2013. Lecture.
"Illicit Trafficking of Cultural Property." United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural
Organization. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2013.
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Dir. Steven Spielberg. Perf. Harrison Ford and Sean
Connery. Paramount Pictures, 1989.
Masci, David. "Archaeology Today." CQ Researcher 24 May 2002: 457-80. Web. 29 Oct. 2013.
Renfrew, Colin, and Paul G. Bahn. Archaeology Essentials: Theories, Methods, and Practice.
New York, NY: Thames & Hudson, 2010. Print.
"World Leader in Ground Penetrating Radar and Electromagnetic Induction Instruments."GSSI.
N.p., n.d. Web. 6 Dec. 2013.