CHAT is a new, British-based, archaeology conference group providing opportunities for dialogue to develop among researchers in the interdisciplinary fields of later historical archaeology and the archaeology of the contemporary world. After a highly successful launch at Bristol University in 2003, this second meeting takes place at the University of Leicester.

The 2004 conference will include three sessions:

Conflict The last 500 years have seen numerous battles and wars. What is the archaeological contribution to their interpretation? How does scholarly archaeology of war differ from popular (and profitable) battlefield archaeology? What ethical and political issues confront the archaeologist working in this area? What role has archaeology played in uncovering evidence of very recent conflict, and what issues surround this? Conflict need not only refer to state-organised large-scale violence. Other kinds of confrontation between groups and individuals may also be considered: riots and civil disobedience; national, ethnic or racial antagonism; class or gender based conflict; insurgents, "terrorists" and "freedom-fighters" and so on. Papers relating to any aspect of the archaeology of conflict are welcome.

Industrialising society The archaeology of industrialisation is about much more than the detailed recording of steam engines and factory buildings in a narrowly defined period-based study. Instead, it is moving beyond period- and process- based definitions to a more open, wide ranging, and theoretically informed sub-discipline within the broader church of historical archaeology. The study of industrial society is about the whole range of human actions, reactions and interactions with the processes associated with industrialisation. The aim of this session will be to look beyond industrial sites and monuments and look at the wider study of later post-medieval society as it developed from the fifteenth to the twentieth centuries. Issues tackled may include the archaeologies of consumption, capitalism, colonialism and international trade; gender and ethnicity in labour relations; and the meaning of industrial landscapes. Papers should also focus on an examination of the social world of the workplace itself - discussing aspects such as the relationship between 'artisanship' and 'proletarianisation', labour hierarchies and social identity.

Reform Explicit and discursive reform is a key social and economic aspect of the period, as well as an important part of its religious and political history. How evident is a desire for reform, or the institution of a designed programme of reform, in the archaeology of the period? Spheres to consider might include religious practice, social conditions, crime and punishment, landscape and civic planning and so on.

Delegate registration is now open. For further information, please contact Dr.Sarah Tarlow (sat12@le.ac.uk) or by post.