Activist Archaeology Research Papers

This project sees archaeology and art as a political tool for disrupting conventional, politically loaded narratives of the past. Rather than producing institutionally safe narratives conventionally certified as truth, archaeologists... more

Excavations at the archaeological site of Enkomi began in the early 19th century. The excavations initiated by antiquarians from Western Europe, who were interested mainly in Classical antiquity and were enthusiastic in Mycenaean remains.... more

Excavations at the archaeological site of Enkomi began in the early 19th century. The excavations initiated by antiquarians from Western Europe, who were interested mainly in Classical antiquity and were enthusiastic in Mycenaean remains. The first archaeologists who published those excavations were influenced by the Colonialist and Nationalist ideas of their time. Therefore those ideas are reflected in their finds from Enkomi. Another problem is the heritage management of this site, in particular, the factor that encourages public engagement at an archaeological site. In the Cypriot environment, there are two main political and cultural identities, the “Turkish Cypriot” and the “Greek Cypriot”. This problem is the consequence of the first issue. Specifically, the archaeological site of Enkomi has been neglected in terms of preservation or heritage development because it was always related to the idea that it was the first site which was “colonised” by Mycenaeans – Greeks. As a result, the TRNC (Turkish Republic of North Cyprus) did not put a lot of effort to preserve the site because it was out of their political interest. Also, another reason that Enkomi was neglected was the attitude of creating passive archaeological parks in Southern Europe. In order to deal with this complex problem, this project aims to find a sustainable heritage plan for the archaeological site of Enkomi. To achieve this, I will first discuss the history of research of Enkomi including the nationalistic approaches and colonial approaches in Enkomi as well as the current condition of the site. The second part of the thesis aims to explain the Archaeology and Heritage in Cyprus in the modern context. Thus, it presents a narrative of the history of the island and the ideologies that resulted from and developed throughout the conflict history of the island. Then, I will describe the results of modern history on heritage activities at Enkomi. The third part of the current project provides a heritage plan for Enkomi. The example of the plan gives an idea of how specialists can construct a new harmonic reality in a conflict environment through public archaeology. Through this research, I will analyse the issues that are typical for sites with problems like ancient Enkomi in order to develop a sustainable solution for a heritage project with archaeological sites with similar problems as ancient Enkomi. The sustainable management of the site will try to incorporate experts (archaeologists, heritage managers, etc.) and the public (=not archaeologists or related professions) by adopting a perspective which will try to benefit these different stakeholders. This plan aims to contribute to a common Cypriot identity through archaeology and heritage.

We provide a critical response to Andrew Martindale and Natasha Lyons’ 2014 special section on Community-Oriented Archaeology (Canadian Journal of Archaeology Volume 38, Issue 2), discussing the authors’ definitions, interpretations, and... more

We provide a critical response to Andrew Martindale and Natasha Lyons’ 2014 special section on Community-Oriented Archaeology (Canadian Journal of Archaeology Volume 38, Issue 2), discussing the authors’ definitions, interpretations, and motivations around archaeology and community. By not defining archaeology in terms of how it is most commonly practiced, we argue the collective work misses the mark, with serious consequences for descendent communities. We show how Community-Oriented Archaeology appropriates the challenge posed to archaeologists to make their discipline relevant and responsive to Indigenous communities; instead, the authors foreground archaeology itself and reaffirm the privilege of non-Indigenous archaeologists, especially academic archaeologists. By considering what is excluded and taken-for-granted, we examine the special section in terms of selection bias and revisionist history. We suggest Community-Oriented Archaeology coopts aspects of Indigenous, critical, and radical discourses to legitimize the institution and practice, in the process forgetting what is at stake for Indigenous peoples. Rather than focusing on the needs of archaeology and archaeologists, we emphasize the interests of Indigenous communities and address uncomfortable truths about institutional racism and systemic inequality. As the editors had hoped, Community-Oriented Archaeology makes us “squirm,” but not for the reasons they intended. // Nous offrons une réponse critique à Andrew Martindale et Natasha Lyons sur leur section spéciale de 2014 concernant l’archéologie axée sur la communauté (Journal canadien d’archéologie volume 38, numéro 2) en évaluant les définitions, interprétations et motivations des auteurs à propos de l’archéologie et la notion de communauté. En évitant de définir l’archéologie par la façon dont elle est la plus souvent pratiquée, nous soutenons que le travail collectif manque la cible, non sans conséquences pour les communautés descendantes autochtones. Nous démontrons comment l’archéologie axée sur la communauté s’approprie le défi lancé aux archéologues de rendre leur discipline pertinente et sensible aux communautés autochtones; à la place, les auteurs mettent à l’avant-plan l’archéologie elle-même et réaffirme le privilège des archéologues non-autochtones, particulièrement des archéologues académiques. En considérant ce qui est exclus et pris pour acquis, nous examinons cette section spéciale sous les plans du biais en sélection et d’histoire révisionniste. Nous suggérons que l’archéologie axée sur la communauté combine des éléments de discours autochtones, critiques et radicaux pour légitimer l’institution et sa pratique, en oubliant dans le processus ce qui est en jeu pour les peuples autochtones. Plutôt que de se concentrer sur les besoins de l’archéologie et des archéologues, nous mettons l’emphase sur les communautés autochtones et adressons les inconfortables vérités sur le racisme institutionnel et l’inégalité systémique. Comme les éditeurs l’avaient espéré, l’archéologie axée sur la communauté nous met dans l’embarras, mais pas pour les raisons dont ils en avaient l’intention.

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- by Richard M Hutchings and +1
  Marina La Salle
- •
- 14
  Archaeology, Anthropology, Cultural Heritage, Heritage Studies

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- by Quetzil Castañeda and +1
  Quetzil E Castaneda
- •
- 32
  Anthropology, Tourism Studies, Cultural Heritage, Research Ethics

Though it was announced with great fanfare in 1846, the reporters and activists who first celebrated the Adirondack land grant experiment initiated by abolitionist Gerrit Smith quickly revealed their growing pessimism over its fate. When... more

The 2008 American presidential election led some to believe that an era of possibility had finally dawned. But change remains elusive, and questions about how to advance social justice causes persist in the age of Obama. Critical... more

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This is a first-hand participant-observer account of the 'bike bloc' project conducted by activist-art collective the Laboratory of Insurrectionary Imagination during the 'Reclaim Power' protests against the COP-15 Climate Summit in... more

An overview of activist issues and related projects in archaeology-page proofs, final version varies slightly

Αν μου έλεγε κάποιος πριν από δεκαπέντε χρόνια ότι θα καταπιανόμουνα με ένα βιβλίο για τη θάλασσα, θα το εκλάμβανα ως ένα διασκεδαστικό ανέκδοτο. Γεννήθηκα και μεγάλωσα στην καρδιά του θεσσαλικού κάμπου, οι γονείς μου προέρχονται από... more

Αν μου έλεγε κάποιος πριν από δεκαπέντε χρόνια ότι θα καταπιανόμουνα με ένα βιβλίο για τη θάλασσα, θα το εκλάμβανα ως ένα διασκεδαστικό ανέκδοτο. Γεννήθηκα και μεγάλωσα στην καρδιά του θεσσαλικού κάμπου, οι γονείς μου προέρχονται από αγροτικές οικογένειες και η σχέση μου με τη θάλασσα υπήρξε πάντα καθαρά επιφανειακή: μπάνια, ηλιοθεραπεία και φρέσκο ψαράκι με καλή παρέα σε ταβερνάκια το καλοκαίρι. Τίποτα περισσότερο, τίποτα λιγότερο. Από πού κι ως πού λοιπόν αποφάσισα να εκδώσω αυτό το βιβλίο; Η απάντηση βρίσκεται στη σπηλιά του Κόλπου της Κοιλάδας. Αλλά ας πάρουμε τα πράγματα από την αρχή.
Η δουλειά μου και το πάθος μου είναι η αρχαιολογία. Κοντά τρεις δεκαετίες τώρα προσπαθώ να αποκαλύψω τα μυστικά των ανθρώπων που έζησαν στον ελλαδικό χώρο πριν από χιλιάδες χρόνια, μελετώντας ό,τι άφησαν πίσω τους. Η ειδικότητά μου είναι τα προϊστορικά πέτρινα εργαλεία. Το 1997 ξεκίνησα στο Αρχαιολογικό Μουσείο του Ναυπλίου τη μελέτη ενός μέρους των εργαλείων που ανακαλύφθηκαν κατά τη διάρκεια των αρχαιολογικών ανασκαφών στη σπηλιά του Κόλπου της Κοιλάδας στη νότια Αργολίδα — το σπήλαιο Φράγχθι όπως το λέμε εμείς οι αρχαιολόγοι. Οι ανασκαφές διενεργήθηκαν στη δεκαετία του 1960 και ‘70 από αμερικανούς κυρίως αρχαιολόγους υπό τη διεύθυνση του καθηγητή Τόμας Τζάκομπσεν (Τhomas Jacobsen). Έφεραν στο φως μία σημαντική προϊστορική ακολουθία που καλύπτει την Ύστερη Παλαιολιθική, τη Μεσολιθική και τη Νεολιθική περίοδο (περίπου 40.000-4.000 π.Χ.). Τα καλοκαίρια κατά τη διάρκεια των ανασκαφών, οι αρχαιολόγοι έμεναν στο μικρό ψαροχώρι Κοιλάδα στην άλλη πλευρά του κόλπου. Στις ανασκαφές απασχολούνταν ντόπιοι εργάτες.

If someone had told me fifteen years ago that I would publish a book about the sea, I would have taken it as a joke. I was born and raised in the heart of the Thessalian plain, my parents come from families of farmers, and my relationship... more

I am one of the archaeologists involved in the study of Franchthi Cave, an important prehistoric site in southern Greece excavated in the 1960s and 70s. A few years back, I went to the fishing village of Kilada to conduct a... more

This dissertation investigates the ideology of Pacific Spirit Regional Park, an urban forest adjacent to the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. Using the tools of archaeology and anthropology, I analyse the history,... more

This dissertation investigates the ideology of Pacific Spirit Regional Park, an urban forest adjacent to the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. Using the tools of archaeology and anthropology, I analyse the history, landscape, performance, and discourse of the park to understand Pacific Spirit as a culturally-constructed place that embodies an ideology of imperialism. Central in this dynamic is the carefully crafted illusion of Pacific Spirit as a site of “nature,” placed in opposition to “culture,” which naturalizes the values that created and are communicated through the park and thereby neutralizes their politics. They remain, however, very political. The park as nature erases the history and heritage of the Indigenous peoples of this region, transforming Pacific Spirit into a new terra nullius—a site to be discovered and explored, militaristic themes that consistently underlie park programs and propaganda. These cultural tropes connect to produce a nationalistic settler narrative wherein class ideals of nature and community are evoked in the celebration of Canada’s history of colonialism and capitalist expansion—paradoxically, the very processes that have caused the fragmentation of communities and ecosystems. The park as nature also feeds into the portrayal of this space as having been saved from development and, as such, an environmental triumph. In this context, the park is viewed as escape from the psychological trauma and alienation of city living and is celebrated and revered as a sacred place. This portrayal enables the forgetting of injustice and promotes a collective amnesia through the creation of a fairy-tale version of reality. The result is to disperse emotion and energy that otherwise could be mobilized against capitalism to prevent ongoing global ecological devastation. The ideology of the Pacific Spirit as nature therefore constitutes social violence by rewriting both the past and present of this land and its peoples, thereby hindering recognition of and rebellion against power. Pacific Spirit is thus a hegemonic space that reproduces colonial relationships and naturalizes capitalism. Exposing the park as a cultural place and illuminating the ideology that it perpetuates may be a crucial first step towards disrupting power through the creation of counter-narratives.

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Applied archaeology can take many forms. A relatively recent trend in the discipline is with the application of archaeology to present-day social issues, known as activist archaeology (also called “action” archaeology). This is different... more

Activist Archaeology

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