What is the meaning of historical evidence?

Answer 1

'Historical evidence' is considered to be evidence of past events or persons that can be verified to a reasonable standard of certainty. There are several issues that historians seek to establish: the date on which a record was actually written or an artefact produced; the reliability of the witness who is said to have written that record; the context in which the record was written or the artefact existed; the reliability of the discovery of the record.

In ancient times, historical records were often written on stone monuments. These can often be dated by the strata in which they are found, but only if there is a reliable witness who oversees the removal of the artefact from that stratum and provides evidence for the age of the stratum. Sometimes this can be based on the known age of other artefacts found in the same stratum or one immediately above or below; sometimes it can be based on specific damage, such as from a major earthquake. A scribe with no personal, religious or political interest in creating or exaggerating an account can usually be considered to be a historical witness.

At times there can be a good deal of anecdotal evidence for a past event, but little or nothing that can be considered historical evidence. In this case, historians have to make a judgement as to whether to accept conditionally that the event actually occurred or that the person ever lived. They tend to provide the benefit of the doubt towards accepting the existence of a once famous person or event if independent contemporary testimonies speak of that person or event. At the same time, they accept that much of what may have been passed down about the person or event is likely to be legend, with no basis in fact.