A word About the Review

Only a small portion of human history exists in written form. Much the greater part of that record, when it can be found, exists as archaeological collections from sites which may range from readily-seen surficial remains to the far more common occurrences of buried traces found by accident or as a result of determined scientific search. The interpretation of these remains is time-consuming, often equivocal, and always dependant upon other sciences likewise involved in reconstructing past landscapes. A major part of archaeological discourse revolves about the interpretations of these evidences.

While the Review of Archaeology is primarily directed to those professionally engaged in the concerned fields, it may be read with profit and enjoyment by anyone with strong interests in archaeology, palaeontology, studies of the Quaternary period, and methods of dating, as these subjects are studied and published on in various parts of the world.

The Contributing Editors select publications that, in their judgment, merit critical attention. From time to time articles may be solicited from invited reviewers. In either case, he, or she, then determines the form of the review and its length. The reviews may focus on a single publication or upon several. For the most part, the subjects are research reports and syntheses of research issued in the form of books, monographs, and even short articles.

ROA articles are generally lengthy allowing the authors to consider broadly, and in depth, the matters brought up by the publication. Thus, for the reader the resulting articles are interesting, searching, informative, and intellectually engaging. As a measure of this assertion, on occasion the review article may be as long or longer than the publication reviewed.

ROA was originally The Quarterly Review of Archaeology and was issued in the format of a tabloid newspaper. The change to the current format was made in 1989.

In addition to the diversity of literature reviews that normally characterize ROA issues, now, from time to time, the Review publishes Special Issues which are devoted to one particular subject. These issues are usually complied by one of the Contributing Editors or a scholar selected by them. The Special Issue editor also selects as contributors those considered best qualified for the particular subject. A listing of special Issues may be found in following pages.

The journal is published annually yearly.