Archaeology of the Modern City

Archaeology of the Modern City

Background and Significance

The vast archaeological collections of Sydney are the direct result of State heritage legislation which has required developers who seek to disturb or destroy archaeological sites or contexts to pay for the excavation and preliminary analysis of artefacts. However a lack of detailed analysis of those artefacts and sites has mean that the community remains poorly informed about what such places mean.

Since the early 1980s the costs and difficulties involved in undertaking a complete analysis of such collections has, with the exception of GML's work in The Rocks and Mayne and Murray's ARC-funded research at Little Lon, meant that the majority of urban archaeological heritage projects have added to the problem rather than helped to solve it. The collaborators in this project have pooled their skills and experience to make significant inroads into this backlog and in doing so contribute to making new histories of Sydney and Melbourne which grow from an effective integration of archaeological and historical information.