Forbidden Archeology: The Hidden History of the Human Race is a 1993 pseudoarchaeological book by Michael A. Cremo and Richard L. Thompson, written in association with the Bhaktivedanta Institute of ISKCON.

So what Cremo and Thompson have done is "comb the early literature in great—indeed impressive—detail"[6]: 196  and argue, on the basis of their historical study, "that the old arguments were never satisfactorily disproved and should be reconsidered with open minds".

Writing in the British Journal for the History of Science, Tim Murray[10]: 79  wrote, "This is a piece of 'Creation Science,' which, while not based on a need to present a Christian alternative, manifests many of the same types of argument," including accusing opponents of unscientifically trying to defend their biases, alleging they are acting conspiratorially, and explaining "the currently marginal position of your alternative as being the result of prejudice, conspiracy and manipulation rather than of any fault of the theory itself."

Writing in Geoarchaeology,[9]: 338  anthropologist Kenneth L. Feder said, "While decidedly antievolutionary in perspective, this work is not the ordinary variety of antievolutionism in form, content, or style.

Some reviewers (Feder[9]: 338  and Wodak & Oldryod[6]: 206–207 ) have faulted the book for attacking the current picture of human evolution but not offering an alternative paradigm.

"The reasons for its late appearance", Cremo wrote in the Introduction, "have more to do with the time it takes to research and write such a book rather than any desire to avoid a detailed discussion of a Vedic alternative to Darwinism".

Several reviewers (Murray,[10]: 79  Feder,[9]: 338  Wodak, & Oldryod[6]: 206–207 ) say that Forbidden Archeology proposes a "conspiracy theory" and argue that science in general and paleoanthropology in particular are more open than the book's authors would have us believe: "[Dissenting] voices in the literature evidences the fact that there is not some conspiratorial 'cover-up' in palaeoanthropology.

[6]: 206–207 Wodak & Oldryod[6]: 206–207  say that Forbidden Archeology is "one-sided" because, despite its great length, it does not discuss evidence favorable to the evolutionary model of human origins, nor the work of recent paleoanthropologists.

His book Human Devolution (2003), like Forbidden Archeology, claims that man has existed for millions of years, attempts to prove this by citing, as Meera Nanda puts it, "every possible research into the paranormal ever conducted anywhere to 'prove' the truth of holist Vedic cosmology which proposes the presence of a spiritual element in all matter (which takes different forms, thereby explaining the theory of 'devolution').

[12] In 1996 Thompson and Cremo appeared on the NBC special The Mysterious Origins of Man, which was based upon the book[13][14] and which was similarly criticized by the scientific community.