Book Review: An Introduction to Museum Archaeology. By Hedley Swain

This book provides a comprehensive survey of the key themes of museum archaeology, ranging from the history of archaeological collections and museums to future trends, and from collections management to exhibition design and interpretation. It is full of interesting and useful information, clear definitions of key terms and concepts, and critical discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of museums, of archaeology and of museum archaeology, all supported by plentiful references to the relevant published literature and to a wide variety of examples of archaeology museums and exhibitions from around the world. The book is based on a combination of wide reading of the extensive published literature on museum archaeology, and Swain’s significant experience and contacts gained in the museum profession, notably as (former) Head of Early London History and Collections at the innovative Museum of London. It is written in an engaging and accessible style, with plenty of sign-posting and well-chosen quotations throughout. My only criticism here is the almost complete absence of illustrations in all but one of the chapters, and the evident failure of proof-readers to spot the numerous spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors (the variants on Pierre Bourdieu’s name being just one example)