ABSTRACT
It may be taken as a sign of the increasing theoretical maturity of the discipline of archaeology that it is beginning to see itself as a product of the forces of history. Over the last ten to fifteen years there has been a shift from an internal understanding of archaeology as an objective and value-free practice towards a broader understanding that situates archaeology in its social and political context. The following essay contributes to this development through an analysis of the ways in which European myths of origin have been manifested in, and constructed through, archaeological discourses.
