In this task, we ask you to rewrite a sentence in simple English without changing its general meaning. Essentially, you want to make the sentence easier to read by using simpler words, utilizing more straightforward sentence structures, and omitting non-essential information etc.

The essence of antiquarianism is a focus on the empirical evidence of the past , and is perhaps best encapsulated in the motto adopted by the 18th-century antiquary Sir Richard Colt Hoare , " We speak from facts , not theory . "
It may be better explained by the motto adopted by the 18th-century antiquary , Sir Richard Colt Hoare , " We speak from facts not theory " .