Fallen into Oblivion: The 1956 Greek-Dutch Expedition to Archanes on Crete

Abstract

Documentation of the unpublished Greek-Dutch excavation in 1956 at Troullos -the eastern quarter of Archanes on the isle of Crete -was recently rediscovered and assembled. The slides, photographs, plans and notes, presented here for the first time, not only provide a vivid picture of the excavation that had fallen into oblivion, but also offer an interesting view of the methods and approaches of archaeology at the time, the ways of communication in the archaeological world and the circumstances in which campaigns were organised in the 1950s.

Jericho-off-the-Record: Tracing ‘New’ Records of the 1950s Excavations at Tell es-Sultan

“…The type of documentation we now want to add to the npaph-site, may be able to fill some gaps in the official documentation as they might show some features or details of the site that have not (sufficiently enough) been recorded by professional photographs and draughtsmen. B -The aspect of the 'history of archaeology'; it gives an insight into the circumstances of past excavations, the people who joined the dig, the techniques and methods used at the time (Figure 4), the way the campaign was organised and the relations between archaeological institutions in the region ( Wagemakers, 2015). Furthermore, it provides an impression of the personal experiences of the former participants.…”

“…In recent years the Non-Professional Archaeological Photographs project (npaph) has already demonstrated that documentation made by so-called 'non-professionals' is of great significance to current archaeological research (Wagemakers, 2015;idem, 2014;Wagemakers & Ameling, 2012;Wagemakers & Taylor, 2011). The term 'non-professional' refers to participants of excavations who are not part of the trained staff but who support the dig as part of their continual education or out of interest, such as students, volunteers, reporters and sponsors.…”