Book review: Sudeshna Guha, Artefacts of History: Archaeology, Historiography and Indian Pasts

In Bengali, the signifier abhijñān denotes ‘a token of recognition.’ The term also has embedded within it the notion of abhijñā or ‘memory’ and abhijña, or the ‘expert,’ the ‘wise,’ and the ‘experienced.’ These significations, overt and covert, are mobilized in this volume to pay tribute to an ‘amateur’ archaeologist, i.e., an archeologist not trained in the discipline but one whose amour or love for archaeology has rendered him abhijña as the ‘expert,’ the ‘wise,’ and the ‘experienced.’ As a collection of eighteen research papers on South Asian archaeology and art history of artefacts, contributed by twenty-two scholars from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Italy and Germany, this volume of specially commissioned essays seeks to be a token of recognition that remembers and felicitates an expert, wise and experienced archeologist from Bangladesh, whose name is Abul Kalam Muhammad Zakariah.

"Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology", edited by C. Smith., 2014

Bulletin of the History of Archaeology, 2003

This is a fine book standing as a major contribution to the history of archaeology in India, as well as to the developing discourse about the nature of a Third World archaeology. Given the current focus on issues associated with the incorporation of postcolonial discourse into archaeology, this second element of Chakrabarti's book should guarantee that it receives the attention of archaeologists with a stronger interest in archaeological theory.

I am happy to release Indian Archaeology 1984-35-A Review and place it in the hands of readers and scholars. The publication of the Review has been somewhat in arrears. With this volume the gap has been further reduced. I hope we would be soon able to catch up with the arrears and make the publication uptodate.

Asian Perspectives, 2003

2019

COURSE DESCRIPTION In this course we will investigate the rich history of ancient India, from the Indus Civilization in 3 rd millennium BCE to the Gupta Dynasty in 4 th-6 th century CE. We will reflect critically on the evidence that scholars use to study the ancient past (e.g. ancient texts, inscriptions, coins, and the archaeological record) and the ways in which they interpret this evidence. We will also analyze and compare the different methods and frameworks used by scholars across multiple disciplines (e.g. archaeology, art history, philology). You will have the opportunity to engage with different primary source materials in class and will demonstrate your understanding of different historical methods and frameworks in the writing of a final research paper. We will also discuss the stakes of ancient Indian history as it relates to the present, including current academic debates and the role of history in the construction of modern political and cultural identities. COURSE OBJECTIVES This course aims to provide students with a detailed overview of the ancient history of India, and the ways in which this history is (re)constructed through different perspectives and the analysis of different sources. By the end of this course students will be able to: 1. Identify and describe the chronological periods and cultures of ancient Indian history. 2. Describe different conceptual and analytical frameworks for analyzing ancient history.

Antiquity, 2008

Archaeological investigation in India begins conventionally with the interest of Europeans. But India's own historical texts reveal examples of indigenous, curiosity-driven fieldwork as early as the sixteenth century. Describing the systematic search for lost sacred images and sites in places associated with Krishna's earthly pastimes, the author makes a spirited case for regarding this activity as real archaeology, comparing it with today's heritage projects.

Journal of Sikh and Punjab Studies , 2017

1984

The Journal of Asian Studies, 2011