Cultural Continuity, Identity and Archaeological Practice in the Indian Context

Abstract

I worked with Bruce Trigger as a graduate student in Anthropology at McGill University, where, with a fellow student, I took Professor Trigger’s graduate seminar in Advanced Archaeological Theory. It was during our discussions on the development of archaeology that I first heard that despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, we continue to hold on to our beliefs about the world and the nature of things. The gravity of the statement was deeply felt during meetings with Professor Trigger for my doctoral research on Indian archaeology. Written over a year after his death, the unique research and teaching environment at the McGill department fostered this chapter.