Evidence of Absence

A critical history of exclusion and its consequences for archaeological knowledge

“Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence” has long guided archaeological thinking, and this volume takes that principle as both method and critique. Evidence of Absence brings together leading scholars to investigate whose presence has gone unrecognized in American archaeology and why women, Black, LGBTQ+, Indigenous, and disabled scholars have been excluded within the discipline itself.

Through historical analysis, case studies, archival research, and theoretical interventions, volume contributors trace how archaeology’s foundations in the late nineteenth century embedded exclusionary practices into its methods and interpretations. The volume demonstrates how these biases have shaped reconstructions of the past and current structures and norms. By identifying both the people who were always there and the processes that rendered them invisible, this book offers a critical rethinking of archaeological knowledge and points toward more inclusive, reflexive, and rigorous practices for the future.