The Otherness of Objects? The Material Turn and Historical Archaeology

Summary

The material turn in archaeology – and in humanities in general – has led to a new interest in the non-verbal and non-signifying aspects of the material world. Instead of discussing meaning of objects, issues such as longterm durance and agency of objects have come into focus. Consequently, many archaeologists have turned away from the textual metaphor to a recognition of the otherness of materiality. However, this material turn has above all taken place in a dialogue with modern ruins and remains, and not in relation to historical archaeology in a broader sense. The aim of this paper, therefore, is to critically discuss some challenges of the material turn for historical archaeology in general.

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This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• Difference in Archaeological Theory and Practise

Keywords

Spatial Coverage