Prehistoric stamps : theory and experiments.
Dragoş Gheorghiu, Robin Skeates · Durham Research Online (Durham University) · 2008
The wide-ranging and thought-provoking contributions to this volume raise a series of questions regarding archaeological studies of early stamps and, more generally, of ancient artefacts. My aim here is to highlight these questions, using a critical perspective that is intended to draw out some of the key issues raised by the contributors at the same time as encouraging all of us to explore new ways of approaching these expressive but ambiguous objects. My simple but central observation is that the ways in which archaeologists have previously studied early stamps has had significant consequences for our understandings of them, and that we should therefore think carefully and critically about our role as authors and about the data-sets, terminologies, classifications, methods, theories and interpretations that we promote in future studies.