Abstract

The present article examines the theoretical foundations of Japanese archaeology epistemologically. The section 2 epistemologically examines excavation reports as one of the foundational works in Japanese archaeology, i.e., what excavation reports are and should be. It is argued that with a lack of epistemological justification of excavation reports, their epistemological status is highly puzzling. The section 3 also epistemologically and methodologically examines types or typology as one of the foundational methods in Japanese archaeology and it is claimed that definition of each type is ambiguous and not systematic. Taken together, as a conclusion, since some of the theoretical foundations in Japanese archaeology are epistemologically problematic, it might lead us to conclude that Japanese archaeology itself is epistemologically questionable.