1853 in archaeology

Below are notable events in archaeology that occurred in 1853.

Explorations

 * Alexander Cunningham examines and describes the ruins at Harappa in the Punjab
 * John Thurnam begins investigating tumuli around Knap Hill in Wiltshire, England

Finds

 * Hormuzd Rassam excavates the clay tablets which will be deciphered as Epic of Gilgamesh
 * Winter 1853–54 – Archaeologist Ferdinand Keller identifies the remains of the Meilen–Rorenhaab site, first of the prehistoric pile dwellings around Lake Zurich to be located.

Births

 * June 3 – Flinders Petrie, English Egyptologist (d. 1942)
 * December 26 – Wilhelm Dörpfeld, German architect and archaeologist (d. 1940)

Deaths

 * June 8 – Howard Vyse, English soldier and Egyptologist (b. 1784)
 * Charles Masson, British explorer of Buddhist sites (b. 1800)