Back To Author’s Lounge

Beyond Words : What things can (perhaps) tell us – A Straight Talk

By Neil MacGregor

28th February 2019

Our understanding of human pre-history is completely dependent on the material objects we uncover at archaeological digs. We attempt to reconstruct complex societies based on designs on a shard of clay or remains in a cup. But do these objects tell us their history or do we project our usage on them to reflect a world we can understand?