The year 1983 in archaeology involved some significant events.

Explorations

• Laconia Survey begins (joint British–Dutch project); continues to 1989.

Excavations

• Mausoleum of the Nanyue King, Zhao Mo, Emperor Wen of Nanyue (d. 122 BCE), discovered under Elephant Hill in Guangzhou, China, and excavation by Mai Yinghao and Huang Zhanyue begins.
• Tell Qarqur in Syria, by an American team, is begun.
• Hengistbury Head, by Barry Cunliffe, is continued (begun in 1979).
• Boxgrove Quarry, by Mark Roberts of University College London, is begun (continues to 1996).
• Excavation of the Sima de los Huesos (Pit of Bones) at the archaeological site of Atapuerca in northern Spain begins.
• Abric Romani cave near Capellades in Catalonia is begun.

Publications

• Christopher Chippindale - Stonehenge Complete.
• R. C. Gaur - Excavations at Atranjikhera: early civilization of the Upper Ganga Basin.

Finds

• May 13 - Lindow Woman discovered at Lindow Moss in north west England by peat cutters.^[1]
• First Ayn Ghazal statues found in Jordan.
• Zhangjiashan Han bamboo texts, including the Book on Numbers and Computation, from tomb M247 at Mount Zhangjia in central China.
• Kitora Tomb discovered at Asuka, Nara, Japan.
• 16th century turkey bones in Exeter, England, subsequently identified as from one of the earliest of the birds in Britain.^[2]
• Gloucester tabula set in England.
• A multi-tablet collection of literature in the Hurrian language with a Hittite translation is discovered at Hattusa in Turkey.

Events

• British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles is formed.

Births

Deaths

• Joan du Plat Taylor, British pioneer of maritime archaeology (b. 1906)