Theory and experiment: an interdisciplinary collaboration with the aim of a better understanding human craft activities

We can define at least three levels of experiments in archaeology. First, those who aim to reconstruct the prehistoric working processes based on original conditions. Second, the ones that seek to understand techniques, tools and prehistoric craft in general. They often are executed under modern conditions. And, third, experiments that aim to expand the researcher’s knowledge guided by prehistoric evidence. Finally, a fourth category, often used unknowingly of its experimental character and importance, aims at understanding the consequences of our actions. This article presents the theoretical background against which the various experimental activities contribute to understanding prehistoric crafts. It will show how ‘the things we do’, the implicit knowledge and our habitus, can help illuminate prehistoric craftspeople’s actions. The brief introduction of the questionnaire approach as another method of studying prehistoric crafts emphasises the importance of questions in research. This article will discuss the importance of integrating experimental archaeology in order to ask qualified questions and allow us to quantify the qualitative.