Dumbarton Oaks Publications announces the publication of Past Presented: Archaeological Illustration and the Ancient Americas, edited by former Dumbarton Oaks Director of Pre-Columbian Studies, Joanne Pillsbury.
Illustrations remain one of the fundamental tools of archaeology, a means by which we share information and build ideas. Often treated as if they were neutral representations, archaeological illustrations are the convergence of science and imagination. This volume, a collection of fourteen essays addressing the visual presentation of the Pre-Columbian past from the fifteenth century to the present day, explores and contextualizes the visual culture of archaeological illustration, addressing the intellectual history of the field and the relationship of archaeological illustration to other scientific disciplines and the fine arts.