[1] Nineteenth-century archaeologists such as Heinrich Schliemann were drawn to study the societies they had read about in Latin and Greek texts.
Many universities and foreign nations maintain excavation programs and schools in the area – such is the enduring appeal of the region's archaeology.
However, over the course of the last century, the field has expanded to include discussions of the elaborate mosaic of cultures that produced the civilizations of Ancient Greece and Rome.
Classical archaeologists interested in Greece frequently discuss Crete and the Minoan civilization present on that island during the Bronze Age.
Classical archaeologists interested in Roman civilization discuss the influence of the Etruscans and other early cultures present on the Italic Peninsula.