Description

This is the fifth volume to appear in the Getty Conservation Institute's Readings in Conservation series, which gathers and publishes texts that have been influential in the development of thinking about the conservation of cultural heritage. The present volume features more than seventy texts that have made important contributions to the understanding of the conservation and management of archaeological sites, addressing key issues from both a historical and a contemporary perspective.
The readings cover a broad spectrum of site types, geographic locations, cultural contexts, and methodological approaches and techniques. They range chronologically from early eighteenth-century memoirs and late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century texts by such pioneers as Heinrich Schliemann and Sir Arthur Evans to a thorough representation of recent scholarship. The volume is divided into five parts focusing on historical methods, concepts and issues; conserving the archaeological resource; the physical conservation of archaeological sites; the cultural values of archaeological sites; and site management. Each of the five sections is preceded by an introduction, as well by a selection of brief quotations that offer perspectives on relevant themes. Each reading is preceded by short prefatory remarks explaining the rationale for its selection and the principal matters covered. There is also a bibliography.