Palestinian archaeology

A Future for the Past: Petrie’s Palestinian Collection highlights the extraordinary finds made by the archaeologist Sir Flinders Petrie, who spent many years working in the area around modern Gaza in the 1920’s and 1930’s.The sites he dug include major towns and trading centres which flourished over 5000 years ago. Petrie found beautiful pottery and jewellery and a huge variety of tools. This is the first time that many of these unique objects have been on public display.

The exhibition draws on the letters, notebooks and photographs kept by Petrie and his colleagues that help recreate what daily life was like for the European archaeologists and for the Palestinian men, women and children who worked on these excavations in the 1930’s. Visitors can see into a “dig house,” explore a trench and sit inside a Bedouin tent to watch a short film about life on the dig. Special interactive areas allow visitors to explore what archaeology can —and cannot— tell us.

Brunei Gallery, SOAS, London

October 17 through December 9