In 2004, an excavation of a tumulus in Rembeç, Albania, uncovered several small metal finds. The finds mainly consist of earrings, rings, buckles, beads and knives, which are generally dated...Show moreIn 2004, an excavation of a tumulus in Rembeç, Albania, uncovered several small metal finds. The finds mainly consist of earrings, rings, buckles, beads and knives, which are generally dated between the 7th and 9th century based on the ceramic goods from the same archaeological context. By comparing these metal items to other similar finds from the southern Balkan and Greece, I have determined that the finds likely hold a Slavic connection. The earrings are similar to earrings found in Croatia, Bulgaria and along the Pindus mountains, reaching into southern Albania and Greece. One ring type found at Rembeç is similar to a set of rings from a female grave from the Slavic cemetery in Argolis, Greece, but the ring type was also found in Central European female Slavic graves. What makes the locations of the items similar to Rembeç’s metal finds so interesting, is that they all in some manner relate to the movement of Slavic groups. The Slavs had close connections with the Avars who moved into Croatia, and the Bulgars. These connections may have led to the development of a similar jewellery style which the Slavs then spread during their migration into Albania and Greece. Specifically the finds along the Pinuds mountains and in Argolis illustrate how Slavic groups may have moved along the mountain range, reaching locations like Rembeç, Rehova and Përmet in Albania, but also Evrytania, Phtiotis and Argolis in Greece. Here, they may have either settled, or traded the Slavic earrings with local populations. My research concerns itself with the concept of “identity creation”, which can be illustrated by the spread of these finds. Slavic influence at Rembeç is highly likely, but this does not have to include a permanent Slavic presence. It can also illustrate how those who used these items placed a certain value on these items, using them to communicate their sense of “self” to those around them. These people buried at Rembeç used these “Slavic” items to construct their identity, and in doing so they became an intrinsic part of their outward presentation that they were included as grave goods after their deaths.Show less
Roughly from the beginning of the common era and the late fourth century, the area that now makes up the Netherlands functioned as a frontier zone of the Roman Empire. Its border was the Rhine,...Show moreRoughly from the beginning of the common era and the late fourth century, the area that now makes up the Netherlands functioned as a frontier zone of the Roman Empire. Its border was the Rhine, with the South of the river the territories under Roman rule, while the area to the North was part of an area called Germania by the Romans. The current North-Western Netherlands, consisting of the provinces of Noord-Holland, Friesland and partly Groningen, was the living area of a Germanic people or tribe named the Frisii. For a long time, local peoples at the borders of the Roman Empire have been regarded as a matter of secondary importance in not only the archaeology of the Roman Period but also in the museum context. While various reasoning lay at the basis of this, a crucial factor is the early 19th century concept of romanisation, which disregarded autonomy, authority, and self-identification of those who have been ascribed to the Germanic peoples over ‘being Roman’. In this thesis, as a focused case in the context of the previously mentioned, an exploration is made of the representation of the Frisii. Two questions stand central in this: ▪ How are the Frisii represented in museums in the North-Western Netherlands? ▪ Why are the Frisii (not) represented? These main research questions are subsequently divided into a set of sub-questions, focussing on various aspects of the representations. The study was conducted by analysing three different museums: The Rijksmuseum van Oudheden (RMO) in Leiden, Huis van Hilde museum (HvH) in Castricum, and Archeologisch Museum Baduhenna (AMB) in Heiloo. As the living area of the Frisii has been ascribed to both the western and northern Netherlands and the study focuses on the western area, the Fries Museum (FM) in Leeuwarden was chosen as a comparative case study location. These locations were subjected to a thorough investigation, consisting of exhibition and (online) content analyses. Literature research on the background contexts and interviews with professionals from some of the organisations were conducted additionally. The reasoning for the latter was to better understand the motives behind (not)representing the Frisii and the here for chosen methods. As the study indicated, the representation of the Frisii at these locations varied in presentation methods and communicated narratives, underlining different approaches to Roman history, including Roman-centred, presented perspectives versus more autonomous ones. Various motives to represent the Frisii were identified, including the formation of regional identity and the substantiation of national history frames. In this, various forms of archaeological representations, didactic and non-didactic, are used to bring forth the presented narratives. In addition to these (re)presentations, a disarray of terminology was identified and discussed. This study explores all the issues previously mentioned and hopes to create a starting point for critically analysing the representation of local or ‘Germanic’ peoples in the Dutch Museum context, working towards the (re)presentation of a more inclusive Roman history of the Netherlands to the museum public.Show less
The destruction of many of the great Near Eastern and Aegean states at the hands of the sea peoples during the 12th century B.C.E. has long been a contentious topic subject to controversy and...Show moreThe destruction of many of the great Near Eastern and Aegean states at the hands of the sea peoples during the 12th century B.C.E. has long been a contentious topic subject to controversy and speculation. Due to the absence of decisive archaeological evidence as to the identity of the sea peoples, countless researcher has speculated about the sea peoples’ identity on the basis of the archaeological and historical evidence that was thus far available. These sources of evidence are, however, far from decisive as evidenced from the countless competing theories regarding the identity of the sea peoples and the part they played in the destruction of the great states that defined the Near East and the Aegean during the 12th century B.C.E. In this thesis, I will investigate how the application of ancient DNA studies may help us to broaden our insight into the sea peoples’ identity and origin. The limitations and opportunities of ancient DNA analysis will be outlined and the prospects it provides will be highlighted. The available DNA studies of interest will be examined and studied to shed new light on the identity of the sea peoples the role thy played in the wide dynamics of the 12th century Aegean.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
open access
In central Nicaragua pre-Hispanic archaeological remains are visible throughout the rural landscape that is presently inhabited by farmers. However, no research has been done on whether these...Show moreIn central Nicaragua pre-Hispanic archaeological remains are visible throughout the rural landscape that is presently inhabited by farmers. However, no research has been done on whether these contemporary inhabitants perceive a continuity between the producers of the pre-Hispanic archaeological remains and themselves, nor how this is influenced by top-down national narratives on heritage and identity. Nevertheless this has important consequences for the way that heritage management projects could be effectively managed. Therefore, this thesis explores the role of the pre-Hispanic past in the construction of identity of the present-day inhabitants of rural central Nicaragua, and how national narratives on heritage and identity are related to this. Through anthropological methods including participant observation and structured and unstructured interviewing with the inhabitants of rural central Nicaragua, the role of the pre-Hispanic past in their construction of identity is investigated. Through literature research, the different ways in which the national narratives ascribe the role of the pre-Hispanic past in the formation of national Nicaraguan identity is explored. As such, this thesis can provide important information for future heritage management project.Show less
Roman Provincial Coinage in the Eastern provinces is an interesting phenomenon on which a specific identity is displayed. This will both look back at a (Hellenistic) past and a (Roman) present....Show moreRoman Provincial Coinage in the Eastern provinces is an interesting phenomenon on which a specific identity is displayed. This will both look back at a (Hellenistic) past and a (Roman) present. This thesis will focus on the coinage of 3 Provincial cities (Corinth, Amphipolis and Pergamom) and how this relates to their relationship with Rome.Show less
The aim of this thesis is to determine where individual CM 72B, buried at El Chorro de Maíta, Cuba, originates from. Characteristics as intentional cranial and dental modification, isotopic levels,...Show moreThe aim of this thesis is to determine where individual CM 72B, buried at El Chorro de Maíta, Cuba, originates from. Characteristics as intentional cranial and dental modification, isotopic levels, and burial position indicate a non-local origin. This thesis focuses on cultural characteristics of the osteological remains and the burial of CM 72B. These cultural characteristics are part of the identity of an individual. Thus based on these markers it is possible to find a certain group of people that share these characteristics with CM 72B, and therefore share the same group-identity as this individual. The cranial modification of CM 72B (fronto-occipital parallel modification) occurs on a large scale in Mesoamerica, mainly the Maya lowland region. The dental modification of CM 72B is consistent with types A4 and C2 or C3 of a modification chart made by Romero Molina, that categorizes Mesoamerican dental modification into a standard typology. This type of modification mainly occurs in the coastal areas of the Yucatán peninsula and in Post-Classic Lamanai. The oxygen, carbon, and strontium isotopic values of individual CM 72B fall outside the local range of El Chorro de Maíta. This indicates a non-locale origin. CM 72B is buried prone with flexed legs to the back. This type of burial occurs on a large scale in Lamanai and Ambergris Caye (Both in Belize). By combining the areas where these characteristics occur altogether the possible origin of CM 72B could be Lamanai or on Ambergris Caye. CM 72B was probably taken during Spanish slave raids that occurred along the Belizean coast. The site San Pedro (Ambergris Caye) is the only known place along the Belizean coast where the prone burial practice still occurred during the contact period. San Pedro is located on the Caribbean sea side of Ambergris Caye it would have been an easy target for the Spanish Slave raiders. Therefore it could be that CM 72B was taken from San Pedro by the Spaniards and then taken to Cuba and forced to be part of the encomienda system.Show less
Since the very beginnings of archaeology as a science graves have fascinated archaeologists and have proven to be important sources of information. The approaches used to study graves however, have...Show moreSince the very beginnings of archaeology as a science graves have fascinated archaeologists and have proven to be important sources of information. The approaches used to study graves however, have often not included the personal, intimate aspects of death, nor the persons in the past involved. Also, funerary practices are often set apart from other aspects of society, and the interconnectedness of the individual with society neglected. The concept of personhood can be used to bridge this divide that has formed within archaeology between people and society, as it enables the investigation of the persons in the past through their relationships. This study aims to explore the relationships of the Late Neolithic inhabitants of Tell Sabi Abyad with their social, cultural, material and natural environments. The main focus lies on the grave goods, a not yet studied aspect of the Late Neolithic cemeteries at the site, as they can be regarded elements of identity and personhood of the deceased, but also of the living community. The cemeteries at Tell Sabi Abyad, dated to ca. 6400-5800 BC, hold tremendous potential to add to the emerging image of death and burial during the Late Neolithic in the Near East. Owing to the presence of secure chronological control, extensive documentation and an unusually large burial sample, we are able to investigate practices surrounding death and burial from a bottom-up approach. Within the present research, it becomes clear that the Late Neolithic cemeteries at Tell Sabi Abyad, Operation III, offer ample opportunity to go further than the mere analyses of social complexity and the creation of typologies of burial practice, and to investigate aspects of mortuary behavior related to the person. As deduced from the burial record, personhood at Tell Sabi Abyad seems to have been experienced in terms of both relational and individual identities. Within the grave good assemblages we see expressions of the wide variety of relationships held by the prehistoric inhabitants of the site. These relationships range from supra-regional, to the most intimate of relations, such as those between mother and child.Show less
The famous archaeological site of Bamiyan in present day Afghanistan, besides portraying grand achievements of culture and religion, was also the foci for trans migration around the Hindu Kush...Show moreThe famous archaeological site of Bamiyan in present day Afghanistan, besides portraying grand achievements of culture and religion, was also the foci for trans migration around the Hindu Kush region. Between the 5th and 8th centuries, Bamiyan and other adjacent archaeological sites in Central Asia, were connected by a highly developed network of trade. The visual culture of Bamiyan, aside from the two Great Buddhas, suggests there was a necessity to represent ideology and power of the social elite in symbolic ways. At Bamiyan, frescos depict many figures with different type headdresses or crowns. The depiction of these crowns is also found in other archaeological sites and on coins distributed throughout present day Central Asia and China. The details of a headdress or crown suggest characteristics of the social or political identities of the individual or group depicted. The similar type crowns found on figures in other geographical contexts may indicate a degree of interaction between Bamiyan and other religious and trade centers.Show less
This thesis aimed to provide an answer to the question: “What was the Scandinavian influence on the burial rites practised in Britain between 800-1200 AD?” A background has been established by...Show moreThis thesis aimed to provide an answer to the question: “What was the Scandinavian influence on the burial rites practised in Britain between 800-1200 AD?” A background has been established by examining the situation in Anglo-Saxon Britain and Scandinavia alike. The situation was quite complex in the British Isles. The Christian Anglo-Saxons still practised funerary rites outside cemeteries and graves often still contained small amounts of grave goods. The situation in Scandinavia was also very complex because the Scandinavians themselves maintained a large scale of varied burial practices in which local variation and identity played important roles. The answer to the research question is thus not simple to give. While there are several graves in Britain that show a remarkable amount of Scandinavian influence, other graves are more ambiguous. The influence of the Scandinavians seems to be limited to first and maybe second generation of settlers in the ninth and tenth centuries AD. However, the concept of social persona can help us recognize the complex of identities represented in deviant burials and find their place in the funerary record of Britain.Show less
The interactions among two or more cultures have always had a great importance for what concerns archaeology, since the influences these have had on material culture have often triggered intrinsic...Show moreThe interactions among two or more cultures have always had a great importance for what concerns archaeology, since the influences these have had on material culture have often triggered intrinsic processes within the society. As a consequence, a new tradition would have been created where it is not possible anymore to recognise what is a foreign element and what is an autochthonous one. In the case of the Japanese archipelago, the relations between the Kyūshū island, the Chinese Han empire and the southern part of the Korean Peninsula led to a material culture which shows the different natures these relations had. Furthermore, these relations triggered some socio-political processes which led to a political hierarchy which reflected especially on the development of the mortuary architecture of the mounded tombs typical of the Kofun Period (250-710 AD). This thesis aims to analyse the nature of the interactions between Kyūshū and the Korean Kingdom of Paekche, as well as the influences these interactions had on the mortuary architecture of the Late Kofun Period (475-710 AD). The phenomenon of the decorated tombs will be taken as specific case study of a shared element between the two cultures. The discussion of the data gathered specifically for this thesis, regarding 21 sample sites from Fukuoka and Kumamoto prefectures, attempts to show how through the decorated tombs it is possible to gain new information regarding the Late Kofun society in Kyūshū, and how interactions not always lead to a complete adoption of foreign element. Using literary analysis and Barnes’ (2007) similar research regarding the two previous phases of the Kofun Period, preliminary results show evidence that the interactions between Ky¬ūshū and southern Korea during the late Kofun Period were not as one-sided as is often believed. The Late Kofun decorated tombs appear to be neither merely a copy of Korean examples, nor a completely indigenous innovation, but rather a combination of the two. Where the differences in decoration show a distinct separate identity base on long previous traditions, the similarities in architecture show evidence of “Peer Polity Interaction”, a theory expounded by Renfrew (1986) and evidenced for the earlier two periods in Barnes’ (2007) research.Show less
This thesis is based on primary field work that has been conducted on the Island of Saba in the Lesser Antilles. The physical construction of the first modern exhibition on Saba’s history was...Show moreThis thesis is based on primary field work that has been conducted on the Island of Saba in the Lesser Antilles. The physical construction of the first modern exhibition on Saba’s history was carried out on the island in January 2013. This exhibition has been brought into fruition through co-operation between the author and a team from the Archaeology Faculty at Leiden University. The exhibition attempted to raise an awareness of the history of the island and recent archaeological research within the local community and tourists alike. The outcome of the field work has resulted in documentation of the project and the process of putting the exhibition together within this study. Further primary research took an interview-based approach in an attempt to understand the local community’s connection with the exhibition’s content, their interest in the island’s past and if they feel a need for it to be displayed on the island. It forms an initial analysis of the community’s opinion on these issues and an understanding of present community identity and their identification with the island’s history. This author’s research is supported and built upon through secondary sources that explore the concepts of identity and the community within the museum world. The aim of this study is to form an understanding of the past and present museum work on Saba, the need for further museum projects on the island and the community’s interest, involvement and identification with the history and archaeology of their island.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
open access
2015-01-19T00:00:00Z
Until recently ‘The archaeology of Judaism’ actually meant the archaeology of Judaism for no later than Late Antiquity. Recently, only the archaeology of Judaism for the medieval period in Europe...Show moreUntil recently ‘The archaeology of Judaism’ actually meant the archaeology of Judaism for no later than Late Antiquity. Recently, only the archaeology of Judaism for the medieval period in Europe has been developing, but almost no attention has been paid yet to the archaeology of Judaism in the Islamic World. Although much seems to be known about Judaism in the Islamic World, when taking a closer look, actually all this knowledge is based on textual sources such as the rabbinic literature and the documents from the Cairo Genizah. Apart from that, there have been specialist studies, focussing on specific objects, or architectural features from more recent times, mainly from an art historical approach. This thesis for the first time aims to give a general overview of all the available material and architectural features that could be associated with Judaism in the Islamic World and the wider diaspora and reconsiders the grounds on which the association of this material with Judaism has been made. It examines what contribution archaeology could make to the knowledge of Judaism, thereby paying attention to some issues related to the social responsibility archaeologists have towards society and presenting the most promising fields for future research.Show less
Since the turn of the century, there has been a notable increase in the popularity of depictions and exhibitions featuring Japanese prehistoric figurines, better known as dogū. These artefacts from...Show moreSince the turn of the century, there has been a notable increase in the popularity of depictions and exhibitions featuring Japanese prehistoric figurines, better known as dogū. These artefacts from the Jōmon Period (about 15.600 to 3200 years BP) with a supposed ritual purpose increasingly show up in and outside of archaeology. In this paper I look for a possible explanation for this recently heightened interest. This is done by asking two questions: 1. Where are dogū present, and 2. how can this be explained? Going from Japan’s identity and the nature of their connection with the past, in this paper I look for the ulterior motives and goals behind the presence of dogū where they are most often seen: museums, art, popular culture/media. The first part, an analysis of dogū in Japan, shows that Japan’s view of its Jōmon past has changed since World War II. Out of nationalism a link is created with a past in which Japan was supposedly still unique and pure. Dogū reflect this and have thus come to represent Jōmon heritage. Good characteristics and aspects are selectively emphasized. In this way a generalizing story is created, that unfortunately negatively impacts the diversity that existed in the past. On the other hand, the mysticism and mysterious nature of dogū are a source of inspiration for artists and popular media such as anime, manga and videogames. The second half investigates the presence of dogū in the West, which can be largely attributed to several researchers who publicize across country borders and have brought dogū to Western museums. A case study of the ‘Power of Dogū’ and ‘Unearthed’ exhibitions offers insight into the goals behind this kind of exhibition. The Jōmon period and its dogū are used to represent the cultural traditions of Japan. In the debate on world heritage too dogū are used to promote the Jōmon period, as evidenced by my case study of a debate on Jōmon heritage in Paris.Show less
