Interdisciplinary Approaches to Prehistoric Warfare and Violence: Past, Present, and Future

Abstract

Archaeological and anthropological research into prehistoric warfare and violence was long framed by two competing meta-narratives harking back to the work of political philosophers Hobbes and Rousseau. Whereas for some researchers violence is a key part of what makes us human, for others it emerges as a result of specific types of socio-political relationships. This contribution explores the ways in which these competing narratives, as well as Europe’s history of twentieth-century warfare, have influenced the way in which we have approached the subject. The paper argues that a turning point came in the wake of Keeley’s renowned monograph (i.e. War before civilization. Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1996). This has led to the creation of a vibrant field of specialist research on prehistoric warfare and violence. The authors argue that this field of study can be further advanced through interdisciplinary enquiries bringing together state-of-the-art scientific methods of analysis and contemporary theoretical reflections developed in the humanities and social sciences.