This text presents a coherent framework for the study of memory in past societies. It is a concise book explicitly designed to serve as an introduction to the central issues in the study of memory, authored by noted archaeologists working in a variety of contexts and geographic areas.

As in the present, past peoples commemorated, constructed, and manipulated their past for their own social and political ends. Archaeologists can use a variety of evidence to study social memory and to recover past ideas about what the more distant past was like. Archaeologies of Memory is a groundbreaking text that presents a coherent framework for the study of memory in past societies. This unique collection of new essays brings together contributions from both anthropological and classical archaeologists. Essays, drawn from a variety of cultures and time periods, engage a number of common themes, such as issues of authority and identity, and the role memory plays in their creation and transformation. Archaeologies of Memory is an accessible investigation into the central issues in the study of memory and provides an engaging introduction to this controversial subject.

Preface.
Notes On Contributors.
1. Archaeologies Of Memory: An Introduction: Ruth M. Van Dyke And Susan E. Alcock (Colorado College
University Of Michigan).
Part I: Memory Studies With Access To Texts:
2. Echoes Of Empire: Vijayanagara And Historical Memory, Vijayanagara As Historical Memory: Carla M. Sinopoli (University Of Michigan).
3. Memory's Materiality: Ancestral Presence, Commemorative Practice And Disjunctive Locales: Lynn Meskell (Columbia University).
4. Memory Tattered And Torn: Spolia In The Heartland Of Byzantine Hellenism: Amy Papalexandrou (Independent Scholar).
5. Glories Of The Past In The Past: Ritual Activities At Palatial Ruins In Early Iron Age Crete: Mieke Prent (University Of Amsterdam).
6. Concrete Memories: Fragments Of The Past In The Classic Maya Present (500-100 AD): Rosemary A. Joyce (University Of California, Berkeley).
Part II: Memory Studies In Prehistory:
7. Creating Memory In Prehistory: The Engraved Slate Plaques Of Southwest Iberia: Katina T. Lillios (Ripon College).
8. Memory, Mounds, And The Mississippian Argument Against Structure: Timothy R. Pauketat And Susan M. Alt (University Of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign).
9. Memory And The Construction Of Chacoan Society: Ruth M. Van Dyke (Colorado College).
Part III: Caveats And Commentaries:
10. The Familiar Honeycomb: Byzantine Era Reuse Of Sicily's Prehistoric Rock-Cut Tombs: Emma Blake (Stanford University).
11. The Translation Of Time: Richard Bradley (University Of Reading).
Index.