Reciprocity between Archaeology and History: A Case Study of Asar-us-Sanadeed.

History and Archaeology are sister subjects and complement each other though both sciences have different methodology. Archaeology mainly relies on fieldwork for collection of data whereas history is based on the study of documents. Archaeology provides historians concrete facts in the form of material remains to verify their assumptions. The findings of archaeologists help Historiansto build narratives to designate people their due place in history by highlighting their contribution. Today the emphasis on interdisciplinary approach in social sciences is considered a remarkable advancement. History provides many examples where two or more sciences had been combined and masterpieces were produced. Asar-us-Sanadeed is one such glaring example where the author combined the methodology of History and Archaeology and produced a remarkable scholarly work. It is a description of the buildings and monuments of Delhi. This work is valuable as it can contribute to the decolonization of the historical tradition in south Asia rectifying the assumptions of the orientalists of the nineteenth and twentieth century. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan deserves the credit and appreciation for such research. This paper attempts to highlight the reciprocal relationship of both sciences and how Sir Syed Ahmad Khan consciously or unconsciously used the methodology of both sciences to contribute an original work. This paper evaluates the research methodology Sir Syed employed in writing this book. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]