Archaeologia Polona

From a metaarchaeological point of view

Henryk Mamzer

Metaarchaeology is a discipline that refers to archaeology as a specific field linked to a selfcritical approach, self-knowledge or self-reflection. Metaarchaeology amounts to a consideration of the actual thinking about the past. Therefore, the paper considers ways of reflecting on the past rather than a sequence of utterances about it. The objective is to understand what one does when one is investigating bygone societies, and is one aware of the vagueness of one's view of these societies. From the metaarchaeological point of view, archaeology investigates and provides a cognitive approach to the past, but it also co-creates the cultural reality in which it participates.

Keywords: archaeology, metaarchaeology, philosophy of archaeology

Language: English