Now that archaeology is really popular and serious attention is
even being given to Roman-British sites, there should he a large public for Mr. Leonard Woolley's excellent little book on Digging Up the Past (Benn, 6s.). Here the famous explorer, from his long experience in Egypt, Syria, Iraq and England, tells us simply and clearly how scientific excavations are con- ducted, with examples and photographs from various sites. The work is arduous and complicated and it is seldom that the objects unearthed have any intrinsic value or artistic charm. Tutankhamen's tomb was a rare exception. But the results are none the less important, because only by the spade can any addition be made to our knowledge of the ancient world. If the Hittites, the Minoans, the Sumerians, the early Egyptians, are now familiar to students, we owe the revelation to Mr. Woolley and his fellow-workers in the field.
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