ABSTRACT
At first blush (as lawyers sometimes put it), there might seem to be little or no connection between the subjects of archaeology and law. One is a research discipline, concerned with understanding the human past from material remains; the other occupies a central role in contemporary society, regulating conduct and, as far as possible, ensuring justice. A closer examination, however, reveals significant common ground between these two disciplines. This is because an important aspect of law is the use of evidence to try and establish what happened in the past. This is seen most clearly in contested trials, but comparable processes are also at work when investigations are undertaken in legal contexts (such as police or prosecutorial investigations when a crime has been committed).