While I agree with Jay that "truth" is largely in the eyes of the
beholder and has relative aspects that we have to think carefully about,
I do not believe that archaeology is "just as bias as documents."
 
Documents, as deliberate human products, certainly contain bias, and the
interpretation of both documents and archaeological data, as deliberate
human endeavors, are subject to bias - no question there.  However, the
archaeological record, as a physical reality that is inadvertently
created by humans, is essentially bias free.  Trigger discusses this
point at length in his _History_ volume - he refers to the "objectivity"
of the archaeological record and the ways in which it "limits" what one
can believe about the past. (I would have written "believe to be true
about the past", but did not want to irritate Jay's delicate
sensibilities <g!>.
 
Regards,
John
 
John P. McCarthy, SOPA
Minneapolis