Customer Reviews

Flowerdew Hundred: The Archaeology of a Virginia Plantation, 1619-1864

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This book discusses the History of a Virgina Platation seen through the eyes of those that came long after the people who lived and toiled had departed. This story is about people. Some we know of,and some we don't. This is the story of their lives, told through the broken dishes and pipes that remain. James Deetz weaves together the history of this plantation to create a wonderous tapastry for all to enjoy, even if you arent an archeologist.

Writing about the archaeology of more than a dozen unrelated sites that existed over a period of 250 years is not a simple task. The late Jim Deetz, a fine writer, does his best to make sense of a lot of digging that took place over a period of more than twenty years. The account unavoidably drags in places. (Do we really care that much whether blacks or Indians made the inferior pottery known as Colono ware?) But Deetz's stylistic grace and sense of proportion keeps the inconsequential from getting out of hand. The introduction and final chapter contain excellent discussions of historical archaeology as a discipline.

This was very interesting reading. It was recommended to me by a museum curator I know. Great portions of it were well written and detailed archeological study. Some of it devolved into sociological speculation. The section detailing how to use antique and modern photos superimposed to show exact locations was a work of genius. Likewise the pipestem research was superb. Overall a good study.

This book tells a story that is a joy to read. The history of the plantation and the stories of the artifacts are interesting and informative. I use this book as a reference source all the time.