On Giants in Swedish Archaeology

Before the development of archaeology there were speculations that prehistory had been populated by giants. Giants are often seen in opposition to a scientific worldview and basic archaeological concepts. It has been emphasised that during the early 19th century there was a break between old beliefs and scientific archaeology. The author wants to show that the belief in giants in prehistory was essentially already gone. It was revived around rgoo by an intensified interest in prehistory. It was central in formulating basic archaeological notions, such as the existence of a Stone Age. The belief in giants and the historicity of folk tales were part of romantic philosophy. The romantic roots of archaeology have been denied but are central for archaeological thinking.

The Archaeology of Roman Germany

This chapter provides an overview of the book’s main themes. The book gives Anglophone readers a representative, well-grounded survey of the current status of the archaeology of Roman Germany. It reveals a discipline that is evolving strongly in an interpretative sense, a discipline to which traditional stereotypical labels such as ‘positivist’ and ‘descriptive’ or ‘an archaeology at risk’ (Bloemers 2002) no longer apply. German archaeologists face the challenge of continuing to nurture their rigorous historicizing and empirical traditions, while at the same time seeking closer integration with social theory-building and the findings of scientific archaeology. The contributions to this volume are steps in this direction.