This book pursues the implications of questions of cultural identity for archaeology from a variety of perspectives. It offers a remarkably comprehensive treatment of issues that are becoming more important than ever in the modern world. The topics discussed in the book include the nature and limits of archaeological claims to knowledge of the past, the way material culture relates to other aspects of cultural identity and the significance of changing patterns of cultural variation in the past. The book's contributors come from an enormous range of backgrounds, offering a rich diversity of perspectives on the issues.