The Mindsets for Archaeology

Once by chance, I was interviewed by a nonprofessional who, as an outsider, wanted to understand the mindset of archaeology and see if other disciplines could draw any inspiration from it. I don’t remember what we talked about exactly, but I was pretty impressed by this question. It is not some question archaeological insiders commonly ask because we have many specific problems to address and seldom take notice of such a “groundless” issue. Outsiders are a bit like the kid in The Emperor’s New Clothes, whose question hit right at the essence of archaeology. What is the unique secret of archaeology? Or rather, what is the trick of the trade for archaeology? If archaeology requires no exceptional skills, what makes it a branch of knowledge? Therefore, this question deserves much attention, not only because it concerns our values, but because it contains more profound significance, which is to reflect—Is the archaeological mindset vested? Are there certain paradigms? An examination of the changing mindsets of archaeology may be conducive for us to grasp the development trends in archaeology.