‘Own It!’ Reflections On The Value Of Indigenous Archaeological Ethnography As Community Engagement

Summary

Current debate in public archaeology has repositioned archaeologists as members of the community, rather than specialists distinct from the public. Although this moves away from privileging archaeological perspectives of the past towards a more dialogical engagement with communities, in practice the motivations and agendas of specialists and public with respect to the archaeological resource are not easily reconciled. An archaeological ethnography example from Crete explores the tensions between the ancient past in Greece, collectively owned by the state, but inaccessible to the wider community, and the recent past, largely articulated through privately owned traditional resources, but considered a collective responsibility of the community. It is argued that the latter model fosters a more inclusive construction of the past by creating a sense of ‘ownership’ of the archaeological project which is critical in breaking down the barriers between specialist and indigenous knowledge and demonstrating the impact of archaeology in society.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Paper / Report Submission (General Sessions) 2018   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2018

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Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

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PaperId(s): 528