Greek Archaeology for Historians seeks to challenge the predominance of literature as witness to the classical past, and instead to integrate archaeological and historical approaches to understanding the world of Ancient Greece.


With such a wealth of surviving literature from the classical world, there has long been an over-reliance on literary records of the past, and even a tendency to view or distort archaeological remains as "proof" of literary history. The purpose of this book is to provide students of Greek history with a guide to the ways in which the archaeology of the Greek World may contribute to, enlarge and even challenge the interpretation of the past through textual evidence. Using case studies from across the wide range of topics in Greek archaeology and culminating in the example of the "Tomb of Philip II" at Vergina, this book draws together the threads of archaeology, history, science and art history in the study of antiquity.


Greek Archaeology for Historians will be a crucial guidebook for students and teachers of ancient history who are keen to expand their knowledge of the period's archaeology, and will be a valuable resource for archaeology students studying the Greek world.