News
Poetry Corner – Agatha Christie
While our trusted columnist, Sid E. Dweller, insists in this issue’s column that ‘archaeology will never inspire any memorable lines of poetry or song’, the Poetry Corner begs to differ: although silent for some issues, it now strikes back! We at JUA have always loved Agatha Christie’s fancy for archaeology and archaeologists (we’re a bit […]
Revealing the World in a New Way
Thomas Bernhard’s Städtebeschimpfungen What can one learn about urban centres and networks from literature?In some cases, a lot. In others, not so much. Städtebeschimpfungenis a posthumous compilation of passages from various works, publicstatements, and the correspondence of Thomas Bernhard (1931–1989) exploring the topic of the unpleasantness of various cities. Atthe core of their insults lies […]
Times-a-Changing
In recent years, researchers have begun to argue for a poetics of archaeology, and for a rapprochement between scientific and poetic discourse. I beg to differ. This is a view I have strongly endorsed throughout my professional life, ever since the times of my earliest fieldwork. I was working in Mexico in the early ’60s. We […]
Open call for submissions to Journal of Urban Archaeology
Just a reminder! JUA 6 is an open issue, and we are ready to receive your contribution. We will send articles in review as we receive them (count on two months review time), so you are welcome to submit your paper already today. You will find the journal style guide here at the website under […]
Structure is Structure is Structure
This is the first column I write from my new and — being frank, somewhat more sparse — desk space, following the rearrangement of the office by my truly wonderful editor Síri Ospley, who never ceases to amaze. As explained elsewhere, Síri has found it necessary to escape our glass ceiling. I for my part […]
Backlog – Another Day Down the Drain
Another Day Down the Drain Ballerina shoes. Knee-length woollen socks. Cloche hat. Back in the day, archaeologists certainly knew how to dress in the field. ‘The field’ here being the city of Ur in southern Iraq, known for summer temperatures of well over 45°C. You will be relieved to hear that the excavations at Ur […]
All Roads Lead to Rome!
Stratigraphies are amazing. They tell you all sorts of things you did not know about the past — things both big and small, and important in understanding how the world worked. The dense, fine-meshed layers in the accumulated urban stratigraphies hold immense amounts of information about important developments, many of which are simply waiting to […]
JUA 4 submission deadline is approaching
1 February is the deadline for submitting articles to volume 4 of Journal of Urban Archaeology. Check the tab ‘Submit an article’, and you’ll find more information as well as our guidelines. Do get in contact with the editorial team, if you have any questions.