The Australian Institute of Archaeology was founded in 1946 as an organisation to facilitate and monitor the scientific study of the ancient world of the biblical narrative. To assist in this
process the Institute has a significant archaeological library and a noteworthy museum collection comprising Near Eastern
artefacts and replicas. The Institute provides resources for those who study the Ancie
nt Near East generally. The Library is available for reference by students and researchers and the replica collection and illustrative material may be accessible for
teaching. The artefact collection provides material for students of archaeology to study by way of a hands-on introduction to the discipline and as the basis for research. The artefacts include many sherds and samples of archaeological material. The Institute also arranges public lectures, sponsors exhibitions, promotes research and produces occasional publications. It also publishes an annual journal, Buried History,
containing papers that utilize the results of historical research shedding light on the ancient Near East for a general readership. The Institute was established with a conservative tradition illustrated by such people as William Ramsay and Flinders Petrie. It aims to draw upon all means of study, geographical, epigraphical, geological, ethnographical and archaeological, to encourage an informed understanding of the biblical story, which is integral to many aspects of civilisation as we know it, and more generally to promote a credible view of history.
