 Writing Merrifield 's obituary for The Independent newspaper , the Museum of London archaeologist Peter <unk> described The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic as " a masterly study of an unusual subject . " The importance of Merrifield 's book was discussed by the <unk> Brian <unk> , an independent researcher who authored a 2004 academic paper entitled " The archaeology of counter @-@ witchcraft and popular magic " . Being published in the Beyond the Witch Trials anthology , edited by the historians Owen Davies and Willem de <unk> , <unk> recounted that The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic was the " notable exception " to a trend in which archaeological studies of magic were restricted to small journals , magazines and newspaper articles . 
