What to say about Avatar? Why am I even commenting on this Science Fiction? It's not archaeology, right? It's simple. This is one of the most breath-taking movies ever made! And it deals with one of the most fundamental tenets of Archaeology.  It also has much to teach us about Science ethics and out future.

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Wow, this one is a real thrill ride! The new release from Sony, 2012, is the disaster movie that puts all disaster movies to shame! Regardless of anything else, this is worth seeing for the imagery.

But why am I writing about a disaster movie?  For two fundamental reasons:  It's based upon a false notion that the Maya (and other cultures) get to say "Told You So!"; and that this regularly happens (ever hear of Noah?).

Time really flies.  It has been forever since I watched this pair of action/adventure/science fiction & archaeology gone bad movies. It's been almost a decade since these hit the silver screen, and the public perception of archaeology has never been the same.

In a strange twist, though, the Lara Croft character, has done much for women's participation in archaeology.  Though frankly, some of the most amazing archaeologists were women, going back almost a century.

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Review: Battlestar Galactica
Science Lost In A Neopolitical Era
Commentary By Tim McGuinness, Ph.D., April 21, 2009

Now that the excellent remake of Battlestar Galactica is over, there is time to reflect on what we saw, the stereotypes displayed, and on the series ending.

What you may ask, does this have to do with Archaeology?  Actually several things!

In the series, we are lead to believe from the beginning that this is a "parallel" civilization.  This is critical so that we set aside our natural skepticism and disbelief.  There are so many things that defy possibility in their similarity, but a parallel allows for these.

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Rant: Harrison Ford Given Award By AIA!!?
Commentary By Tim McGuinness, Ph.D., October 25th, 2008

HARRISON FORD HONORED BY THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICA - Ford to Be Presented with First-Ever Adolph Bandelier Award for Public Service at Organization’s 2009 Gala!  What exactly has he done to deserve this?

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Rant: What is Archaeology?
Commentary By Tim McGuinness, Ph.D., August 8th, 2008

Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek archaios, meaning primal, ancient, or old; and logos, meaning to study) is the science that studies human cultures through the recovery, documentation, analysis and interpretation of material remains and environmental data, including architecture, artifacts, features, biofacts, and landscapes. Because archaeology's aim is to understand mankind, it is a humanistic endeavor.

The goals of archaeology vary, and there is debate as to what its aims and responsibilities are...

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I recently had the pleasure? of watching the latest installment in the Indiana Jones saga: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.  I am the first to admit it was a good adventure movie in the tradition of past Indiana Jones movies from Steven Spielberg and George Lucas.

The irony in this for me, was that I was contacted by a staffer at Lucas a couple of years back about my expertise on the subject of Crystal Skulls, and on Peru.  I agreed to participate, and suggested several other archaeologists as specific experts in several subject areas.  I never heard from them again!  However, I am left to guess at the reasons why they did not use credible archaeologists in the conceptualization of this movie.  I assume that they knew they were going to go way over the top, producing a total false story, and that if they shared the plot line, no one would have helped them.

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I recently watched an episode of the TV series "Numb3rs" produced by Tony Scot, called "The Art Of Reckoning"

In this episode, one of the steady characters, named "Larry" had just returned from to trip to the International Space Station aboard the Space Shuttle.  While in orbit, Larry occupied his mind creating a Kipu.  He proceeds to tell the character Charlie about it.  He describes it as an Aztec creation, "use to hide information from the conquering Spaniards"!

Is there no one in Los Angeles on the production company that knows anything about history?

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Here we go again, with another Mummy Movie!

While I really didn't expect much reality from this production company, and while it was a generally entertaining farce, here again Hollywood doesn't even bother to try to get anything right.

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A technically exciting videogame of a film, 300 loses touch with a critical and moving event in Greek history.

Herodotus, the “Father of History,” told many good stories, but there are few tales in his repertoire that surpass his narrative of the last-ditch stand of the Greeks against numerically superior forces at the pass of Thermopylae in August, 480 B.C. A huge military force led by Xerxes, the Persian King of Kings, crossed the Hellespont from Asia into Europe, intent on the subjugation of Greece. Whether Xerxes intended this invasion as revenge for the Athenian victory over the Persians at Marathon a decade earlier or whether his expedition had been planned all along as the natural extension of Persian rule into Europe is still a matter of debate among modern historians. The Greek city-states were aware of the movement of Asian land and naval forces through the areas north of them. Greek representatives met and attempted to plan a defense against an army that may have numbered hundreds of thousands (precision in numbers is impossible). A dispute among the Greeks regarding their best defense was resolved thus: the Peloponnesians, led by Sparta, would build a wall across the Isthmus of Corinth in order to protect the cities of southern Greece. Athens, which was vulnerable, would be evacuated, and the powerful Athenian fleet would be used to engage and destroy the Asian naval forces, thereby depriving Xerxes of necessary support. But time was short, and an attempt to delay the relentless advance of Xerxes' army was necessary to enable the Athenians to abandon their city and the Peloponnesians to build their defensive wall.

Read The Review In Archaeology Magazine »