1953 in archaeology

Excavations

• German excavations at Uruk resume.

  Finds

• "Cave of Letters" at Nahal Hever in the Judaean Desert identified.
• Jerusalem ossuaries found stored in a cave on the Mount of Olives near Jerusalem by Franciscans.
• The Narsaq stick is found in Greenland, the first example of Viking Age runic inscriptions found in the country.
• 1st century Roman leather bikini briefs found in the City of London.

  Events

• November 21: Piltdown Man is shown to be a hoax.

  Publications

• O. G. S. Crawford - Archaeology in the Field.
• B. H. St.J. O'Neil - Castles: an introduction to the castles of England and Wales.
• Gordon R. Willey - Prehistoric Settlement Patterns in the Virú Valley, Perú.

  Births

• Mensun Bound, Falkland Islands-born maritime archaeologist
• Arlen F. Chase, American archaeologist whose work focuses on Mesoamerica

  Deaths

• March 24: Félix-Marie Abel, French biblical archaeologist