Readers of Histarch might be interested in a related pair of papers
currently posted under the Africa Forum section of the H-Africa website.
In the first paper, historian Jan Vansina argues that archaeologists have
been of little use to African historians.  In his response, archaeologist
Peter Robertshaw argues that archaeologists often have very different
goals than those envisioned for them by African historians.  See:

http://h-net2.msu.edu/~africa/

Brian Siegel