The birth of archaeologically themed television programmes is intimately linked to the birth of television itself. Yet little is known of the earliest broadcasts owing to both the fragmentary archival record and the longstanding hype surrounding later archaeology TV productions. This article examines two of the first such shows, likely the earliest in the English-speaking world for which records survive, focused on the British Iron Age site of Maiden Castle and on the reconstruction of prehistoric pottery. While noting the role of Mortimer Wheeler in their development, I also highlight several key women who produced the programmes, starred in them, and otherwise held critical posts in the establishment of professional archaeological practice in Britain, including Margot Eates, Ione Gedye, and Delia Parker — all based at London's Institute of Archaeology (IoA). These BBC TV broadcasts were specifically deployed to showcase the sites and methods of the burgeoning discipline of archaeology. More importantly, however, they were subtle players in the building of intellectual and institutional capital for both the IoA and the BBC. Augmented by other graphic media produced by the IoA itself, the earliest televised archaeology shows generated income, exposure, capacity, and clout for these two very different but pioneering organizations.

中文翻译：

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电视考古，1937

以考古为主题的电视节目的诞生与电视本身的诞生密切相关。然而，由于零碎的档案记录和围绕后期考古电视制作的长期炒作，人们对最早的广播知之甚少。本文考察了最早的两个此类展览，可能是英语世界中最早有记录的展览，重点是英国铁器时代的少女城堡遗址和史前陶器的重建。在注意到 Mortimer Wheeler 在他们的发展中的作用的同时，我还强调了几位制作这些节目、出演这些节目并在英国建立专业考古实践中担任重要职位的关键女性，包括 Margot Eates、Ione Gedye 和 Delia帕克——都在伦敦' s 考古研究所 (IoA)。这些 BBC 电视广播专门用于展示新兴考古学科的地点和方法。然而，更重要的是，他们在为 IoA 和 BBC 构建智力和机构资本方面扮演着微妙的角色。借助 IoA 本身制作的其他图形媒体，最早的电视考古显示为这两个截然不同但具有开拓性的组织创造了收入、曝光率、能力和影响力。