Excavation and publication: some comments

Abstract

An excavator's skills cannot be assessed from even a full excavation report: the primary aim of archaeological publication is to make information available, not to encourage the impossible task of 'site reconstruction'. Moreover very few readers have the time or need to grapple with complex detail, even if they can afford the high costs of such reports. Hence conventional methods of publication in the 'Cranborne Chase manner' should be abandoned in favour of depositing a comprehensive primary report to publishable standard in an archive, with copies available in microform on demand. Only a distillation of this report would be printed in book or journal form.