What is the subject matter of archaeology today? How is the interplay of past and present reflected in the work of archaeologists? What kinds of stories do archaeologists now tell and which ones are passed over in silence? These questions were in focus in a session held at the 9th Annual Meeting og the European Association of Archaeologists in St. Petersburg. The papers in this volume deal with various subjects, such as the archeological treatment of eastern influences in prehistoric Scandinavia, the influences of nationalism in archeological interpretation, the democratic dimension in managing the cultural heritage, archaeology in popular culture, and existential reflection within the archaeological field.

With people's relationship to water as a unifying theme, this book explores and interprets archaeological material from different historical periods and with topics ranging from stone-age coastal hunters to nineteenth-century pilots. Human cultural interaction with the marine environment around the Baltic Sea is the key concern.