Abstract
This chapter focuses on the research questions that lie at the heart of archaeology and archaeological chemistry. The questions we ask – what we want to know – determine where and how we look for answers. Archaeologists want to know about people in the past – what our ancestors were like, how they lived, what they ate, what sort of environment they inhabited, what kinds of things they did, their relationships with other people, religious beliefs and ceremonies, and more. These are really just who, what, where, when, and why questions about the past.
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Suggested Readings
Gould, Richard A., and Michael Schiffer. 1981. Modern Material Culture: The Archaeology of Us. New York City: Academic Press
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Price, T.D., Burton, J.H. (2011). What Archaeologists Want To Know. In: An Introduction to Archaeological Chemistry. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6376-5_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6376-5_2
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4419-6375-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-4419-6376-5
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