Conjunctive archaeology

Conjunctive archaeology is a method of studying of the past developed by Walter Taylor in the 1940s that combined elements of both the traditional archaeology and the allied field of anthropology. It is exemplified by Taylor's A Study of Archeology (1948, American Anthropological Association, Memoir 69).

Taylor saw archaeology as an integrated discipline, combining the study of diet, settlement patterns, tools and other elements to provide a holistic view of the past. This approach, along with Taylor's open and specific criticism of leading archaeologists of his day, caused dismay amongst many archaeologists at the time, but Taylor's approach is now a standard practice in the discipline.

Taylor was one of the first to criticize the descriptive, historical approaches to archaeology that dominated the discipline. According to Patty Jo Watson, Taylor's purpose "was not to generate ill will but rather to stimulate examination ... of aims, goals and purposes by American archaeologists" (1983, Foreword to the 1983 edition of A Study of Archeology. Center for Archaeological Investigations, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale).