Everyday Life Matters

Book excerpt: While the study of ancient civilizations has often focused on holy temples and royal tombs, a substantial part of the archaeological record remains hidden in the understudied day-to-day lives of artisans, farmers, hunters, and other ordinary people of the ancient world. The various chores of a person's daily life can be quite extraordinary and, even though they may seem trivial, such activities can have a powerful effect on society as a whole. In this book, the author develops general methods and theories for studying everyday life - methods that are applicable in archaeology, anthropology, and a wide range of disciplines.