Challenging Archaeology and the Collecting Public

"What are the grand challenges facing YOUR archaeology?"

Doug's Archaeology is running another "blogging carnival" under quite a wide-ranging title: 'The Grand Challenges for Archaeology: A Blogging Carnival' (January 1, 2016). In his post he explains what this event consists of and how to go about it. I suspect I will not be able to refrain from expressing my views on one area of those challenges (guess which ones).

It occurs to me that here is a great opportunity for those opponents in the collecting communities who are not averse to slagging off archaeology, archaeologists and heritage organizations to articulate their views. What do the lobbyists, metal detectorists and relic and antiquity collectors (part of our audience after all) think are the challenges facing archaeology from their point of view? As Doug says, "It is open to anyone and everyone". That means Mr Tompa and Mr Sayles, Dealer Dave, John Howland, John Hooker and all the rest. Let's see some well-reasoned analyses from this milieu (these milieus) stating where they think archaeology has been going wrong and where it should be going from the collector's point of view. I would say there is here a jolly good opportunity for the ('Learning, Audiences and Volunteers') PAS to do some of their outreach here too, they now have the various regional blogs, plenty of scope for people actually involved deeply with the British public to express their considerations of what challenges facwe the discipline at this crucial point.

Potential contributors, please note the requirement to email Dr Rocks McQueen (at the address he gives in his post) to inform him of entries to ensure they are not missed.