Nery Delgado was a key figure in the development of archaeological methods applied to prehistoric sites in Portugal within European archaeology at the end of the nineteenth century. He was the first in Europe to use a grid in his 1879–1880 excavation at the Casa da Moura cave (Óbidos, Portugal). The grid divided the cave into twenty-eight sectors excavated independently and, in each, all archaeological and bioanthropological finds were documented and marked with labels recording depth and excavation units. The 3D information obtained by Nery Delgado features among late nineteenth-century attempts at recording contextual data, a precursor of archaeological methods of data gathering that are used worldwide today. Nery Delgado was, thus, a pioneer of contemporary archaeological excavation methods.

Too little is known about the effects of archaeology policy, which makes it difficult to evaluate and adjust the policy on the basis of rational arguments. We simply do not have enough hard evidence. As a result, policy development depends largely on subjective factors such as instinct, vision and expert judgment. A well-balanced assessment of policy – something both politicians and the public would very much like to see – is therefore impossible. To help fill the gap, targeted research is now being conducted into the effects of policy. This article outlines the findings of the report Archaeology in the Netherlands 2002: the national archaeological review and outlook, which was presented to the government of the Netherlands.

Childe withdrew from revolutionary politics after his post-university years in Australia in favour of a career in prehistoric archaeology in Britain. Though remaining a Marxist, his application of Marxist principles to prehistory developed only slowly as his interpretations became more sophisticated. He became increasingly interested in knowledge about prehistory from studying results of the interactions between material remains and their interpretation (in Marxist terms, the relationships between practice and theory). In his paper ‘Retrospect’, Childe (1958b:73) charted the development in his thinking to where he rejected ‘transcendental laws determining history and mechanical causes … automatically shaping its course’ with an understanding that a prehistoric society's knowledge of itself was ‘known or knowable … with its then existing material and conceptual equipment’. Thus the prehistory of Europe could be seen not as a product of Oriental civilization, but as an independent entity. Childe could then write a prehistory of Europe ‘that should be both historical and scientific’ (1958b:74). This book, The Prehistory of European Society (1958a), also demonstrated his use of the epistemology of knowledge to understand prehistory as a sociological phenomenon.

The Underwater Archaeology Centre of Andalusia opened in 1997 due to the need to correctly manage and preserve the underwater archaeological heritage of Andalusia; the main goal set was protection. Aware that the protection of this heritage necessarily involved global knowledge thereof, the Centre decided to focus its efforts on executing a core project – an archaeological map – a tool that would enable the establishment of specific protection and preservation mechanisms and the design of research strategies. The results obtained from this project have enabled the achievement in recent years of some of the goals set, notably guaranteeing the legal protection of these space, and drawing up projects with specific research targets.

In recent research, the interpretation of the Scandinavian early Medieval period has changed to emphasise increasingly the leading role of South Scandinavia. Comparisons have been made between the South-Scandinavian kingdom and the early Frankish empire, including the probable existence of royal retinues. The territorial organisation of Scandinavia is discussed and used as the basis for a re-assessment of Style II as an indication of the movement of South-Scandinavian royal retainers. The organisation of retinues is discussed with reference to comparative Continental analyses, Beowulf, and later Nordic sources. They all seem to describe the same system: young warriors following a lord in order to achieve honour and wealth. Ring-swords and helmets are suggested by Continental scholars to betoken the Frankish royal retinue, and it is here suggested that ring-swords and Style II on weaponry and horse-equipment indicate the same in Scandinavia. On the basis of a regional and chronological analysis of Style II and its context, the assumed distribution of the probable retainers is studied. This reveals a clear structure in alliances, as well as the targets for military activities organised by the South-Scandinavian kings. It results in a conquest of Öland, Sweden, in the late sixth century AD and at least threats against Vestfold, Norway, in the seventh century AD.

Most people are used to forgetting the past quite quickly and are inclined to consider the recent situation as normal and forever valid. Comparisons of the East and the West often neglect the depth of the historical development between 1945 and 1990. Descriptions of East German situations and occurrences from the forties to the sixties often unconsciously suggest a comparison with the present-day Federal Republic.

This paper seeks to explore how prayer and praying practice are reflected in archaeological sources. Apart from objects directly involved in the personal act of praying, such as rosaries and praying books, churches and religious foundations played a major role in the medieval system of intercession. At death, an individual's corpse and burial primarily reflect the social act of representation during the funeral. The position of the arms, which have incorrectly been used as a chronological tool in Scandinavia, may indicate an evolution from a more collective act of prayer up to the eleventh century AD to a more individual way of praying in the late and post-medieval periods.