Archaeology Filmography
updated (10/00)

Aegean [videorecording] : legacy of Atlantis / Time Life Video & Television presents ; produced, directed & written by Jenny Barraclough. Legacy of Atlantis Atlantis. Alexandria, Va. : Time Life Video & Television, c1995. Lost civilizations. 1 videocassette (ca. 50 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Archaeologists are unearthing data that may support the existence of the island Atlantis, once thought to be only a legend and also are looking into the historical roots of the Battle of Troy. Archaeologists make a voyage of discovery into the origins of western culture as they visit the Greek isle of Thera, Crete, Turkey and the Greek mainland where legend and history combine VHS 5174

Africa [videorecording] : a history denied / Time Life Video & Television presents ; written, produced & directed by David Dugan. History denied . Alexandria, Va. : Time Life Video & Television, c1995. Lost civilizations. 1 videocassette (ca. 50 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Film looks at the extraordinary achievements of Africa's indigenous civilizations. Because Africa's white settlers couldn't believe that natives were responsible for the once great kingdoms of Great Zimbabwe and the Swahili Coast, these ancient cultures were credited to everyone from wandering Phoenicians to the Queen of Sheba. Now the place where human history began is being reclaimed from centuries of indifference by the descendants of those lost kingdoms and the glories of their accomplishments are being revealed. VHS 5178

Buried in ash [videorecording] / a NOVA production by the Science, Outreach & Special Unit of the Nebraska ETV Network for WGBH/Boston. Boston, MA . c1994. 1 videocassette (60 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Depicts Ashfall Site in Antelope County, near Royal, Nebraska, where camelid, horse and rhino complete skeletons have been excavated in a 10-foot layer of volcanic ash that probably came from Idaho about 10,000 years ago. Mike Vorhies, paleontologist, who made the original discovery, directs the dig in association with the University of Nebraska Museum. VHS 3095

The Chaco legacy [videorecording] / Public Broadcasting Associates, inc. Boston, Mass. : Public Broadcasting Associates, c1980. Odyssey series. 1 videocassette (60 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Examines archaeological theories about the rise and fall of Chacoan culture, which had a high level of technical development and flourished over 900 years ago in the area of Chaco Canyon, New Mexico. Shows their extensive water control system, the large network of roads they constructed and several mammoth structures they built. Includes a history of the different excavation projects. Examines the theory that the Chaco civilization was a technological society that collapsed because of the gradual depletion of their resource bases. VHS 4955

Digging for slaves [videorecording] : the excavation of American slave sites / a BBC-TV production in association with Arts and Entertainment Network. Digging for slaves, the excavation of American slave sites Excavation of American slave sites. Princeton, NJ . c1992. 1 videocassette (50 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Provides details of excavations of 18th-century slave quarters on Middleburg Plantation near Charleston, S.C., at Monticello, the home of Thomas Jefferson and at Colonial Williamsburg. VHS 2541

Egypt [videorecording] : quest for immortality / Time Life Video & Television presents ; produced, written, and directed by Robert Gardner. Quest for immortality. Alexandria, Va. : Time Life Video & Television, c1995 Lost civilizations. 1 videocassette (ca. 50 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. With the opening of the tomb of Tutankhamen, the world was provided with details of the ancient civilization of Egypt. In the land of the pharaohs a culture existed that believed in eternal life for all, from farmer to aristocracy. Film looks at how archaeologists are discovering the mysteries of the ancients: preparing a mummy for burial, the art of composing a love letter in hieroglyphs and the technology necessary to raise enormous stone buildings. VHS 5171

The Eyes of empire [videorecording] / an HTV West Production for Channel Four. Princeton, N.J. : Films for the Humanities, 1990, c1989. Images, 150 years of photography ; pt. 4. 1 videocassette (26 min.) : sd., col. with b&w sequences ; 1/2 in. Draws on the anthropological photographic collections of the Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford ; the Royal Anthropological Institute ; and the Cambridge University. The program also deals with the work of an amateur archaeologist, Gertrude Bell. VHS 1514

Franz Boas, 1858-1942 [videorecording] / Public Broadcasting Associates. Boston, Mass.: Public Broadcating Associates, c1980. Odyssey series. 1 videocassette (60 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Profile of the German physicist who was responsible for shaping the course of American anthropology, by bringing discipline and order to a field that had previously dealt in subjective "race classification." Includes reflections and anecdotes by scholars and students, excerpts from journals and letters, and archival photographs. Discusses the Kwakiutl Indians, the principal subjects of Boas' field work. VHS 4953

The Incas [videorecording] / Public Broadcasting Associates, inc. Boston, Mass. : Public Broadcasting Associates and British Broadcasting Company, c1980. Odyssey series. 1 videocassette (60 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Chronicles the Inca civilization and how it was built up into one of the best run civilizations ever. Also explores how current archaeologists are attempting to better understand the inner workings of this impressive civilization. VHS 4956

Incidents of travel in Chichen Itza [videorecording] / Documentary Educational Resources presentation. Watertown, MA . 1997. 1 videocassette (90 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Set during the spring Equinox when a shadow said to represent the Maya serpent-god Kukulkan appears on one temple pyramid, video depicts how New Agers, the Mexican state, tourists and archaeologists all contend to "clear" the site of the Maya city of Chichen Itza in order to produce their own idealized and unobstructed visions of "Maya" while the local Maya themselves struggle to occupy the site as vendors and artisans. Questions whether fieldwork is possible at such a spectacle and questions the status of ethnographic authority as people from the various groups converge on the event. VHS 5557

Legacy [videorecording] / produced by Maryland Public Television and Central Independent Television, UK, in association with NHK Enterprises. New York : Ambrose Video Publishing, Inc., c1991. 6 videocassettes (57 min. ea.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. This six part series explores the influence of ancient culture on our lives today. Host/writer Michael Wood visits the ancient cities and great ports of India and China, the deserts of Egypt and Iraq, the Mexico of the Inca, Aztec and Mayan peoples, the Greek and Roman monuments of Europe and the jungles of Central America searching for the living legacies of these once great civilizations. The series traces how the institutions that arose with urban civilization 5,000 years ago, such as organized religion, bureaucratic government and international trade are still affecting the political and cultural mindset of many parts of the world today. VHS 1691-1696

The Lost world of the Maya [videorecording] / BBC-TV. New York . 1974. 1 videocassette (36 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. + discussion guide. For over a thousand years the Mayan civilization grew and flourished in the rain forests of Central America. Discovered and finally destroyed by the Spanish Conquistadors, it was lost again until explorers brought it to light in the 19th century. Eric Thompson, an archaeologist who has had a 45 year love affair with the Maya, takes the viewer on a pilgrimage through the Mayan world, visiting, on the way, all the great ruined cities he has known for half a century. Describes ruins existing in such ancient cities as Tikal, Palenque, Yaxchilan, and Quirigna, and re-creates the Mayas' daily life. Concludes with a description of the theories that have been used to explain why Mayan civilization fell. VHS 5676

Mesopotamia [videorecording] : return to Eden / Time Life Video & Television presents ; produced, directed & written by Robert Gardner. Return to Eden. Alexandria, Va. : Time-Life Video and Television, c1995. Lost civilizations. 1 videocassette (ca. 50 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. The roots of the world's major religions lie in the river valleys of Mesopotamia's Fertile Crescent. Here in this ancient "Eden" archaeologists are digging for physical clues that may Help tell the truth behind many Biblical stories and also unearthing clues to the dawn of civilization itself among the first cities of ancient Sumer. VHS 5173

The Mystery of Machu Picchu [videorecording] / Kurtis Productions Ltd. and WTTW/Chicago. Chicago, IL : Films Inc. [distributor], c1996. The new explorers. 1 videocassette (58 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Follows a Peruvian expedition that offers new clues to the mystery of Machu Picchu, the famous lost city of the Incas. VHS 4037

The Myth of Masada [videorecording] / Arkios Productions ; in association with the Archaeological Institute of America at Boston University & the Learning Channel. Princeton, NJ . c1993. 1 videocassette (22 min.) : sd., col. with b&w sequences ; 1/2 in. Scholars and archaeologists examine the story of the defense and mass suicide at Masada and question the accuracy of Josephus' account of the mass suicide. VHS 2458

Myths and the moundbuilders [videorecording] / Public Broadcasting Associates. Moundbuilders. [Boston?] : Public Broadcasting Associates, 1981. Odyssey series. 1 videocassette (60 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Archaeological. ecological and experimental studies of the mound builders of the U.S. Midwest and Southeast. The huge earthworks and mounds scattered through the eastern half of the United States prompted people in the nineteenth century to speculate that a lost civilization had preceded the Indians then living among the mounds. Though we've known for some time that the ancestors of those Indians actually built the mounds, archaeologists are still exploring their contents for a better understanding of their builders. Includes both the Hopewell (100 BC- 300 AD) and Mississippian (700-1600 AD) prehistoric American cultures, and discusses social organization in such large communities as Cahokia in East St. Louis. VHS 4949

The Naked warriors of Europe [videorecording] / produced by Greystone Communications for A&E Network.. New York . c1995. 1 videocassette (48 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. The Celts terrified the Greeks and Romans in battle. Fighting naked, and with the ferocity of wild beasts, they cut off the heads of their enemies for battle trophies. Film examines these fearsome fighters and their lives beyond the field of battle. Searching out their roots in ancient Europe, archaeologists hunt for the artifacts that offer clues to the daily lives of the Celts. They were master farmers and metalworkers, that much is clear,. But how much did their devotion to their enigmatic holy men, the Druids, influence their passion for war? VHS 3971

On the trail of the jaguar [videorecording]. Princeton, N.J. : Films for the Humanities, 1990. Lost civilizations. 1 videocassette (43 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Exploration of the archaeological finds from the Mayan civilization at the Tikal region of northern Guatemala. VHS 3478

On the trail of tragedy [videorecording] : the excavation of the Donner Party site / produced by the USDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region, 1990. On the trail of tragedy, the excavation of the Donner Party site Excavation of the Donner Party site. [Tahoe, Nev.?] : Tahoe National Forest, USDA Forest Service, [1990?]. 1 videocassette (29 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Shows the Archaeological Field School of the University of Nevada, Reno and Forestry Service archaeologists at work at the Donner Camp Historic Site in the Tahoe National Forest in the summer of 1990. This is one of several camp sites that the Donner Party used in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Participants in the dig discuss their fascination with the Donner Party history and the charges of cannibalism and demonstrate the methods archaeologists use to preserve the artifacts they find and the sites they excavate. VHS 2069

Other people's garbage [videorecording] / Public Broadcasting Associates, inc. Washington, D.C. : The Associates, 1979. Odyssey series. 1 videocassette (60 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Archeological excavations of the recent past expand our understanding of the texture of everyday life. Historical archeologists have unique resources not often available to prehistoric archeologists--records, legal, civil and historic documents and oral histories. Looks at the mining town at Mount Diablo, east of San Francisco; the slave quarters on the plantations of Saint Simon's Island, Georgia; and archeological projects made necessary by the expansion of Boston's mass transit system. VHS 4954

Roman Britain [videorecording]. Princeton, N. J. 1991. 1 videocassette (25 min.) ; sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Artifacts in the British Museum and on-site explorations are used to show the history and civilization of Roman Britain. VHS 2425

Science or sacrilege [videorecording] : Native Americans, archaeology, & the law. Native Americans, archaeology, & the law Native Americans, archaeology, and the law. Berkeley, Calif. c1996. 1 videocassette (57 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Discusses the issue of the controversy between Indians and scientists on the excavations and study of Indian burial grounds and remains. Examines the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation act (NAGPRA) passed in 1990, its underlying moral and political issues, its practical consequences, and the prospects for science in the post-NAGPRA world. VHS 4126

The Search for Herod's harbor [videorecording] : solving a 2,000 year old mystery / director and cinematographer, Stephen Fairchild ; writer, Stephen Fairchild ; executive producer, Thatcher Drew ; a production of Drew/Fairchild. New York, N.Y. c1989. 1 videocassette (28 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. An adventure with archaeologists above and below the Mediterranean as they solve the mysteries of King Herod's magnificent harbor at Caesarea Maritima. VHS 1114

Search for the first Americans [videorecording] / a BBC-TV production in association with WGBH Boston ; written and produced by Simon Campbell-Jones. Princeton, N.J. 1992. 1 videocassette (60 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Follows the trail of America's first inhabitants. Did they really migrate across a Bering Sea land bridge at the end of the last Ice Age, or did they in fact arrive thousands of years earlier, possibly by some different route as new archaeological evidence increasingly hints? VHS 1957

Seeking the first Americans [videorecording] / Public Broadcasting Associates. Boston, Mass. : Public Broadcasting Associates, c1980. Odyssey series. 1 videocassette (60 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Who were the first Americans and when did they arrive? Archaeologists from Texas to Alaska share their search for answers to one of the most controversial questions in North American history. The earliest Americans may have arrived 20-30,000 years ago. A significant controversy has developed over the origin of Clovis Man, the one-age culture of New Mexico dated at 11,000 B.C. VHS 4952

Siberian ice maiden [videorecording] / a BBC/Horizon Nova/WGBH co-production. Ice mummies, Siberian ice maiden. South Burlington, VT : WGBH Boston Video, c1998. Ice mummies. 1 videocassette (60 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. Archaeologist Natalya Polosmok journeys to the Altay Mountains in southern Siberia to search for traces of an ancient people known as the Pazyryk. Using film footage and interviews, program looks at the life and death of the Siberian Ice Maiden -- a woman mummified, buried and frozen in a wooden tomb on a high plateau in Central Asia over 2400 years ago -- who is believed to be a link to the Pazyryk culture. Also discusses the question of who has rights to ancient graves. VHS 5812

The Story of Lucy [videorecording] / WGBH/Boston ; written and produced by Michael Gunton. Boston, Mass. : WGBH Educational Foundation, 1994. In search of human origins ; 1. 1 videocassette (55 min.) : sd., col. ; 1/2 in. In 1974 Don Johanson unearthed Lucy, at almost 3 million years of age, our oldest human ancestor. Lucy's tiny three-and-a-half-foot skeleton set the world of paleoanthropology on its ear. Lucy walked upright and provided evidence that a larger brain was the key difference between early man and the ape. In this film Johanson recounts his discovery of Lucy as he returns to the site of his find in Ethiopia and expounds upon the important information it still continues to generate. VHS 2471

Page Created by Media Services