文档介绍：Archaeology and World Religion
Archaeology and World Religion is an important new work, being the first
to examine these two vast topics in conjunction with each other. The
volume explores the relationship between the two, and the contribution
archaeology can make to the study of what are today termed ‘World
Religions’, namely Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism.
This work is the definitive text for this growing area of archaeology.
Divided into two parts, it first surveys each of the religions in question
and then goes on to address the important themes of ethics, gender and
death. The contributors consider a number of questions: can religious
(sacred) texts be treated as historical documents, or do they merit special
treatment? Does archaeology with its emphasis on material culture dispel
notions of the ideal/divine within religious texts and what are the implications
of this possible conflict? Does the study of archaeology and religion lead
to differing interpretations of the same event? In what ways does the
notion of a uniform religious identity exist, the ideal Muslim or Christian,
for example, and is this recognisable in the archaeological record—through
diet, dress, sacred buildings, burials, art and iconography, landscapes and
personal possessions?
Clearly written and up to date, this volume will be of special significance
to anyone interested in archaeology and religion and will be an indispensable
research tool for academics and specialists in these fields.
Timothy Insoll is Lecturer in Archaeology at the University of Manchester.
Contributors: Anders Bergquist, Dilip Chakrabarti, Robin Coningham,
Rachel Hachlili, Timothy Insoll, Paul Lane, Rachel MacLean and Mike
Parker Pearson.
Archaeology and World
Religion
Edited by
Timothy Insoll
London and New York
First published 2001
by Routledge
11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge