histories of archaeology such as Glyn Daniel’s (1947; 1950) and those of many
others after him.
Chapter 13 explores the development of evolutionism and its consequences
over the second half of the nineteenth century. The growing weight of notions
such as ‘race’ and ‘language’ in the deWnition of the nation, especially marked
in the second half of the century, would encourage most historians and
archaeologists to direct their attention to their study. This inXuenced not
only the archaeology of Europe from prehistory to the medieval period, but
also that undertaken in the classical lands and elsewhere. The eVect, however,
was to strengthen the awareness of national archaeology as well as that of its
polar opposite, the archaeology of the exotic, as will be explained in the
section on colonialism and imperialism. Interest in the archaeology of the
Great Civilizations did not diminish, but had to contend with a growing
interest in the national past from the second half of the nineteenth century.
Simultaneously, archaeologists’ understanding of the past was underpinned
by evolutionism, the belief in the transformation of things through time from
the simple to the complex, and the belief of progress as one of the powerful
motors of historical development. Evolutionism started out life as a radical
theory but it increasingly gained acceptance thanks to science’s great prestige
among intellectuals throughout the political spectrum. The mechanics of
evolutionism, despite their universality, did not contradict the conviction
of the uniqueness of each nation. This was shown in many forms, such
as typologies based on objects exclusively found in archaeologists’ national
territories and the geographical scope of books and exhibitions. The fact that
legislation and institutions inevitably operated at the level of the nation-state
further reinforced the sense of the nation. In the universities, the teaching of
prehistoric archaeology was integrated into the framework of the natural
sciences, whereas Roman and medieval archaeology was combined with
philology, architecture, and history.
Chapter 14 puts together some thoughts gathered throughout the writing
of this book, stressing the role of the individual in archaeology’s emergence as
a professional discipline in its national, colonial, and imperial context.
Archaeology did not become an established profession because governments
imposed its institutionalization, but because people wanted this to happen.
Issues of national pride, the role of antiquities in assisting the progress of the
nation, the state’s realization of the usefulness of having a historical account
legitimizing the nation, will be dealt with. Also, the existence of competing
views regarding the nation and how archaeologists changed their perspectives
over their lives will all form part of the discussion. Regarding imperialism and
colonialism, some thoughts will be given to the eVect of explorers’ and
archaeologists’ enthusiasm for recording of antiquities and to how helpful
22 Archaeology in the Nineteenth Century