In this delightful book on the "archaeology game" in present-day Italy, Dora Jane Hamblin exhibits the same wit, good humor and delight in her subject that have marked her numerous articles for Life magazine, for which she has worked as a reporter, correspondent and writer since 1948. Her discussions of the buried treasure of Sperlonga, the lost city of Spina, and the destruction and discovery of Pompeii, the world's most famous ruin, bring alive the fascination of archaeology and re-create for today's young people the haunting memories of the past.

In dramatic, often amusing episodes, she relates the discovery of Etruscan, Greek and Roman remains throughout Italy and describes the colorful but frustrating antics of Italy's moonlighting farmers, the grave robbers or tombaroli, the police who pursue them, and the archaeologists who battle robbers, tourists and the elements to preserve the precious remnants of the past. Chapters on the new art of underwater archaeology and on the growing use of scientific methods and space-age techniques combine to produce a book that will open up doors for every reader not only to the exciting, painstaking field of archaeology, but to the sense of art, culture and ancient history that is so much a part of it.

From the dust jacket