ELi5 : Why does it seem a lot of archeology began so recently in the 20th and 19th centuries? Why weren’t we digging up stuff much earlier?

Question

It seems many of the most important archeological findings were in the 20th and 19th century. Why did humans wait so long to start digging stuff up?

In: 961

Answer 1

Most religious traditions would prefer their adherents to destroy artifacts and monuments that are older than the religion is, rather than to preserve and study it. That’s why 2/3 of the Roman structures in Italy had the marble stripped off of them to build churches.