<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section does not cite any sources . Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (February 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> Archaeology had its start in the European study of history and in people who were interested in the past . King Nabonidus (556--539 BCE), the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, was interested in the past so he could align himself with past glories . He led a revitalization movement and rebuilt ancient temples . Early systemic investigation and historiography can be traced back to the Greek historian Herodotus (c. 484--c. 425 BCE). He was the first western scholar to systematically collect artifacts and test their accuracy . He was also the first to make a compelling narrative of the past . He is known for a set of nine books called the Histories, in which he wrote everything he could learn about different regions . He discussed the causes and consequences of the Greco - Persian Wars . He also explored the Nile and Delphi . However, scholars have found errors in his records and believe he probably did not go as far down the Nile as he claimed . </P> <P> Archaeology later concerned itself with the antiquarianism movement . Antiquarians studied history with particular attention to ancient artifacts and manuscripts, as well as historical sites . They usually were wealthy people . They collected artifacts and displayed them in cabinets of curios . Antiquarianism also focused on the empirical evidence that existed for the understanding of the past, encapsulated in the motto of the 18th - century antiquary Sir Richard Colt Hoare, "We speak from facts not theory". Tentative steps towards the systematization of archaeology as a science took place during the Enlightenment era in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries . </P> <P> During the Song Dynasty period (960--1279) in China, educated gentry became interested in the antiquarian pursuit of art collecting . Neo-Confucian scholar - officials were generally concerned with archaeological pursuits in order to revive the use of ancient Shang, Zhou, and Han relics in state rituals . This attitude was criticized by the polymath official Shen Kuo in his Dream Pool Essays of 1088 . He endorsed the idea that materials, technologies, and objects of antiquity should be studied for their functionality and for the discovery of ancient manufacturing techniques . Although a distinct minority, there were others who took the discipline as seriously as Shen did . For instance, the official, historian, poet, and essayist Ouyang Xiu (1007--1072) compiled an analytical catalogue of ancient rubbings on stone and bronze . Zhao Mingcheng (1081--1129) stressed the importance of using ancient inscriptions to correct discrepancies and errors in later historical texts discussing ancient events . Native Chinese antiquarian studies waned during the Yuan (1279--1368) and Ming (1368--1644) dynasties, were revived during the Qing dynasty (1644--1912), but never developed into a systematic discipline of archaeology outside of Chinese historiography . </P>

Who is said to be the first modern archaeologist