Archaeology is considered by many to be the point where science and religion overlap. Religious myths or stories make up much of the background of religious studies. Archaeology is the science that literally digs into those stories, not to prove their historicity as much as to lend insight into the flesh-and-blood people who were at their core. It is an exact science, requiring academic training as well as fieldwork, with specializations having developed in extremely minute fields of study.
Religions existing in cultures without written languages, such as those of Central and South America and the prehistoric cultures of Europe, would be completely unknown without the science of archaeology.
Cutting-edge science and religion are often perceived to be at odds. But there is no question that, on purely philosophical grounds, both share a common goal. Through different disciplines, both search for truth.
