Archaeology in the Global Cold War

Archaeology in the Global Cold War explores archaeological practices, theories, and methods, as well as social networks and knowledge circulation in Eastern and Western Europe and beyond during the Cold War (1947–1989).

Drawing on archival sources, published works, and personal recollections, this volume examines archaeology under the Cold War at a broad international scale and from a range of thematic, theoretical, and methodological perspectives. It is structured in five parts. The first examines how political ideology and propaganda shaped archaeological knowledge production. The second explores the relationship between Cold War science policy and archaeological practice. The third analyses the role of institutions and individual actors. Addressing theory and method, the fourth part considers developments such as aerial photography and the work of influential figures. The volume concludes with personal accounts by archaeologists reflecting on their professional experiences, integrating lived experience with broader historical analysis.

This volume is for archaeologists interested in the history of their discipline, historians of science and the humanities, and scholars of contemporary history working on the intellectual history of the Cold War.

Laura Coltofean is a historian of archaeology and a member of Research Cluster 5: History of Archaeology at the German Archaeological Institute.

Susanne Grunwald specializes in the history of archaeology and works at Archaeological Heritage Authority in Brandenburg/Germany.

Fabian Link is a historian of science specialized in the history of the humanities and the social sciences in the twentieth century at Goethe-University Frankfurt.

Katja Rösler is a project team member at the Romano-Germanic Commission (Frankfurt) at the German Archaeological Institute.