Book excerpt: The 27 papers in this volume have been developed from presentations made at an international wetlands archaeology conference held in Gainsville, Florida in December 1999. The theme of the conference was: The Significance of the Survival of Organic Materials from Archaeological Contexts. Individuals from seventeen countries spoke about shipwrecks, bog bodies, cenotes of sacrifice, art styles, perishable technologies, palynology, wetlands management, conservation methods, and updates on famous sites. Time periods ranged from the early Pleistocene to a few hundred years ago. As the international composition of the delegates (including a large number of North American scientists) indicates, wetland archaeology has emerged in recent years as a unique discipline facing unique difficulties which are encountered on both sides of the Atlantic.