- Paperback: 347 pages
- Publisher: Wordwell; illustrated edition edition (14 Oct 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1869857585
- ISBN-13: 978-1869857585
- Product Dimensions: 23.8 x 16.2 x 2.2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,944,900 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Synopsis
Over thirty archaeologists, historians and scientists working in the academic, research and commercial sectors were approached and encouraged to share with the reader their personal insights into the world of Irish archaeology, or to share some of the thrill and excitement of a 'discovery', however big or small, that has shed some light on our understanding of the past. The only concession to academic convention is the inclusion of a short bibliography of further reading for those readers who might wish to explore the subject matter in more depth. The theme of this book is largely archaeological, but a number of notable historians were more than willing to rise to the challenge. The result is a diverse collection of thirty essays, short stories and personal insights into the realm of research and rediscovery. In many instances they illuminate not only some darkened detail of the distant past but also something of the personality of the author. The aim of this book is primarily to enlighten the general reader, and perhaps to remind ourselves of the diverse nature of the role of the archaeologist.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
Format:Paperback
"Lost and found" is a collection of 31 articles, all aimed at capturing the experience of making an archaeological discovery. The book neither attempts, nor suceeds in giving anything like a full picture of Irish archaeology. Indeed, although some pieces are excelent, the whole thing is marred by uneven quality, random order, a lack of overview (chronologically and geographically)and by strange omissions -why isn't there a single paper on Northern Ireland, so very few on Munster,none on the mesolithic, or on theory? Why so many papers on Dublin, on late medieval and recent periods and on archival research?
Due to these flaws, "Lost and fopund" is a bit of hit-or-miss read. Some papers are excelent, written with humor and contagious enthusiasm, including McCutcheon's "Light on a saucer" and Newman's "The elephant and the tunnel"; others are more sober, but still very well written, including O'Keefe's "Discovering the Versailles in the smallnes of my own experience" and Raftery's "Once upon a time in the west", but many are pedestrian, and a few are downrigth bad -meaningles, unfocused rantings, trying to sum up years and years of archeaology in three or four pages. It doesn't work, and less prominent archaeologists would never have got away with it.
Unfortunately, "Lost and found" is not quite equal to presenting the everyday life of irish archaeologists either. There are plenty of papers on excavation, here, ranging from the traditional (Eogan, Monk, M. O'Sullivan) to the innovative (A. O'Sullivan), and a few good papers on surveys (notably Berg, Simpson, Sweetman), but nothing on administration, on the differences between rescue and research or between ecavations conducted by private companies and those conducted by state instutions. Post-excavation research is very poorly and very unevenly presented, with a notable lack of papers on artefact studies. The three papers on archeology and history (Bhreathnach, Wiggins and Kelleher) are very representative and instructive, however. They clearly display the different approaches available, and could easily be included in a reader in archaeological method.
All in all, a bed-time read rather than a piece of grounds-breaking research. Readers familiar with the people or places involved will probably enjoy this book, but it would have benefitted from a stricted editor. Readers interested in the practice of archaeology in Ireland will be in for a few eye-opening experiences, though not as many as I would have hoped. Readers looking for a scientific overview of Irish archeology need look elsewhere, unfortunatly. A good idea, but it could have been better executed, and would have bennefitted from more order.
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