The Cambridge Illustrated History of Archaeology offers a complete account of the history of the subject in a language accessible to the non-specialist. By way of extensive illustration and examples of particular events and discoveries, it shows how our notion of the past has evolved over time.

Archaeology is a subject in which the relationship between 'fact' and 'speculation' has always been a problematic one, and the book pays special attention to this, examining some of the hoaxes and forgeries and wrong-turns as well as the scientifically indisputable steps forward. There are special features on prominent sites and archaeologists; and the book is uniquely strong in its account of the subject today, offering informed reflections on its current status and on its future.