Archaeologists can recreate lost cultures and describe ancient civilisations, yet the role of women in these societies has largely been ignored. Such discussion as there is tends to reflect a curiously Victorian set of assumptions.

And are answers to these questions to be sought in more research on gender and gender relations, or do the practice and theory of archaeology require radical rethinking? Alison Wylie considers the history and nature of these issues, where the truth may lie, and the theoretical perspective that might inform - and be derived from - the research needed to establish a balanced understanding of ancient socieities and of the material culture of historical societies. She illustrates her argument with numerous cases drawn from North American and European archaeology. The great archaeological discoveries of modern times have been achieved with one eye shut. The feminist perspective so ably advanced here shows how much more there is to be seen and to be understood.