Collecting Ancient Europe

In order to understand our past, we need to understand ourselves as archaeologists and our discipline. This volume presents recent research into collecting practices of European Antiquities by national museums, institutes and individuals during the 19th and early 20th-century, and the ‘Ancient Europe’ collections that resulted and remain in many museums.

This was the period during which the archaeological discipline developed as a scientific field, and the study of the archaeological paradigmatic and practical discourse of the past two centuries is therefore of importance, as are the sequence of key discoveries that shaped our field.

Many national museums arose in the early 19th century and strived to acquire archaeological objects from a wide range of countries, dating from Prehistory to the Medieval period. This was done by buying, sometimes complete collections, exchanging or copying. The networks along which these objects travelled were made up out of the ranks of diplomats, aristocracy, politicians, clergymen, military officials and scholars. There were also intensive contacts between museums and universities and there were very active private dealers.

The reasons for collecting antiquities were manifold. Many, however, started out from the idea of composing impressive collections brought together for patriotic or nationalistic purposes and for general comparative use. Later on, motives changed, and in the Dutch National Museum of Antiquities became more scientifically oriented. Eventually these collections fossilized, ending up in the depots. The times had changed and the acquisition of archaeological objects from other European countries largely came to an end.

This group of papers researches these collections of ‘Ancient Europe’ from a variety of angles. As such it forms an ideal base for further researching archaeological museum collection history and the development of the archaeological discipline.

“"...an engaging and well-illustrated publication that offers a fascinating insight into what these early collections can reveal about both the past and our understanding of it."”

-- "Current World Archaeology"

Luc Amkreutz (1978) studied Prehistory at the University of Leiden. In 2004 he gained his MA with a study of the earliest farmers in the Netherlands (Linearbandkeramik) and their settlements along the river Meuse. In 2013 he was awarded his doctorate for his thesis Persistent Traditions: A long-term perspective on communities in the process of Neolithisation in the Lower Rhine Area (6000–2500 cal. BC), within the Malta Harvest project ‘From Hardinxveld to Noordhoorn – from Forager to Farmer’. He focused particularly on the socio-cultural changes in small-scale communities during the transition from hunting and gathering to agriculture.Since 2008 Amkreutz has been the curator of Prehistory at the Dutch National Museum of Antiquities (RMO). Apart from numerous exhibitions, he worked on the 2011 new permanent exhibition Archaeology of the Netherlands, offering a fresh perspective on 300,000 years of the country’s history. Amkreutz is also a member of the Faculty of Archaeology at Leiden University. He has conducted wide-ranging research including field projects into Early Neolithic farmers and the investigations of burial mounds. Currently, he is involved in researching the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic Prehistory of Doggerland. In 2016 he was awarded an NWO Museumgrant to investigate the ‘Ancient Europe’ collection of the museum.

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.