Francis Bacon wrote in 1605 that "antiquities are history defaced, or some remnants of history which have casually escaped the shipwreck of time." Treasure hunters, grave robbers, and academics have been seeking “antiquities” to carry back to civilization for a millennium. By definition, antiquities are objects from the past, ranging from simple arrowheads to artistic treasures. The sense that a lost civilization could be uncovered by a systematic study of its relics and artifacts has driven amateur collectors and eminent scholars (and thieves) to seek out and dig these up at antiquity sites around the globe … including some of the most inhospitable places known. This passion for collecting the leavings of the human past eventually gave rise to a new academic discipline - the field of archaeology.