Magic has been a much-debated topic over the last centuries. This thesis discusses the disappearance and return of magic in academic discourse and evaluates it through a theoretical framework for...Show moreMagic has been a much-debated topic over the last centuries. This thesis discusses the disappearance and return of magic in academic discourse and evaluates it through a theoretical framework for scientific inquiry. Finally, it aims to evaluate the use of magic as an interpretative theme in archaeology. The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw many new theories and approaches to the subject. Influential anthropologists and sociologists released theories that were mainly based on evolutionist ideals. The rejection of these ideals, the problematic classification of witchcraft, sorcery and magic, and its adoption in modern media contributed to the disappearance of magic in academic discourse. In archaeology, these changes can be seen by studying Palaeolithic art. The return can be seen from 1990 to 2010 by its adoption in more archaeological research. These studies primarily focussed on the Mediterranean and failed to incorporate materiality fully. The full return of magic can be observed in the 2010s when publications specifically focused on the materiality of magic over a larger geographical and cultural area. This return resulted from a paradigm shift in anthropology where magic was now studied from a magical Worldview or consciousness instead of a rational Western worldview. An increase in material culture studies with the adoption of object agency and recognising the marginalisation of magic also contributed to the return. Object agency also contributed significantly to recognising the importance of portable artefacts in Palaeolithic art. The rise of material culture studies, its adoption of Latour’s Actor-Network Theory, and the shift in anthropology can be explained as two paradigm shifts vital for the return of magic in academic discourse. Magic can serve as a quality of practices and materials that can highlight certain features of materiality, potency, and verbal or ritual performance that would otherwise have gone unnoticed. Magic is a tool to understand ancient practices and materials better. Archaeology has much to contribute to studying magic through material studies and archaeological contextsShow less
Bachelor thesis | Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology (BSc)
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This bachelor thesis focuses on the novel integration of robots within Japanese Buddhism. It does so by zooming in on the integration and assignment of different roles to three robots.
Around the 12th century AD in Japan, a cultural transition takes place on the northern island of Hokkaido: Okhotsk culture and Satsumon culture (approx. 6th to 12th century AD) come to an end as...Show moreAround the 12th century AD in Japan, a cultural transition takes place on the northern island of Hokkaido: Okhotsk culture and Satsumon culture (approx. 6th to 12th century AD) come to an end as Ainu culture emerges. The Okhotsk people, focused strongly on exploitation of marine resources, originated on the island of Sakhalin and migrated south to Hokkaido and along its northeastern coast. The Satsumon people on the other hand, lived mostly in riverine settlements on the southern half and inland of Hokkaido. They practiced agriculture of wheat, barley and millet, as well as salmon fishing. This cultural transition is not yet well understood. I will focus on the role of Okhotsk culture in this process. How did interaction and exchange of Okhotsk people with Satsumon culture impact its decline and the transition to proto-Ainu culture on Hokkaido? To investigate this issue, Peer Polity Interaction theory is applied. Within this framework, eight different types of interaction are defined: competition, competitive emulation, warfare, transmission of innovation, symbolic entrainment, ceremonial exchange of valuables, flow of commodities, and language and ethnicity. This theory avoids insinuating dominance of one group over the other, and allows for the incorporation not just of material culture but also symbolic aspects. Using the English sources available, 32 Okhotsk sites have been examined for evidence of interaction and exchange with Satsumon culture according to these categories. The existing theories about the decline of Okhotsk culture involving migration, trade and warfare have been analyzed, and then reevaluated based on the results of the Peer Polity Interaction approach. Evidence of Satsumon pottery at Okhotsk sites, iron goods and import of bear cubs all points to a larger reliance on trade and exchange than previously assumed, to the detriment of Okhotsk production. This increased interaction allowed for symbolic entrainment to occur, leading to a more widespread adoption of an early form of the bear sending ceremony. This ritual is known ethnographically from later Ainu culture, but not Satsumon culture which is said to be its main ancestor. This research aims to contribute to our understanding of interaction between marine hunter-gatherers and agricultural people.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
open access
The field of analyzing the ritual traditions found in societies around the globe has long been an area of fruitful study in both archaeology and anthropology. Besides reflecting on some significant...Show moreThe field of analyzing the ritual traditions found in societies around the globe has long been an area of fruitful study in both archaeology and anthropology. Besides reflecting on some significant reconceptualizations relevant to the investigation of ritual, the aim of this thesis is to approach visual imagery as a way of investigating ritual conventionality. In this effort, the compatibility of Roy Rappaport’s model of investigation will be tested on several examples from the archaeological site of Yaxchilan. Working from a theoretical framework focusing on the mental ordering of surroundings manifested in ritual forms, this thesis will explore the value of further interdisciplinary research of the system involving constructed world visions and ritual performance.Show less
In this thesis the Classic Maya city of Aguateca is reconstructed using Unity3D. This city, which had a very short lifespan, was nevertheless the home to a royal family which came from the nearby...Show moreIn this thesis the Classic Maya city of Aguateca is reconstructed using Unity3D. This city, which had a very short lifespan, was nevertheless the home to a royal family which came from the nearby city of Dos Pilas when the situation for them appeared to have become more hostile. The walls that were later built in Aguateca and are also shown in the 3D model are evidence of the hostility in the area. The main features in the 3D model are the Main Plaza, the Palace Group and the Causeway that connects the two. The Main Plaza is separated from the Causeway and Palace Group by a deep chasm. This model was created to serve as a scene in which kingship ritual was probably performed to bind the populace of the city to the reigning king. This thesis follows the article on ritual performance by Inomata (2006) in regards to this theory. While the ritual itself is not given form in the scene, various preliminary conclusions based on the visibility in the scene indicate a high probability for such rituals to have taken place.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
open access
Perception of time is a constituting pillar in the Maya worldview. The Maya calendar system, which has been in use for thousands of years, however, is currently under threat by a variety of...Show morePerception of time is a constituting pillar in the Maya worldview. The Maya calendar system, which has been in use for thousands of years, however, is currently under threat by a variety of developments. This research master thesis focuses on the contemporary practices and beliefs related to the Maya calendar in Mexican and Guatemalan Maya communities by analyzing ethnographies published between 1889 and 1982. The aims are firstly to analyze the forms in which the traditional time perception has continued over time, and secondly to examine how changes in the field of Maya research have affected the specific ethnographic investigations on the Maya calendar. The main part of this thesis includes a literature study on three entangled topics which all have influenced how scholars currently look at the Maya calendar. Firstly, a synthesis of the different ethnographic works is provided, in which the different forms of Maya calendar systems in Mexico and Guatemala are discussed. The Maya calendar has played an important role in Maya archaeology and anthropology. This thesis provides the first overview of ethnographic research since a doubtful publication dating from 1952. The goal of synthesizing the ethnographies is to provide new insights in the variety of contemporary practices and beliefs related to time among the Maya. Secondly, based on this inventory, this thesis examines the changing ethnographic approaches towards this topic. By examining the assumptions, interpretations and approaches in the light of their time, it becomes clear how we have come to our current view on the Maya calendar system. Thirdly, this thesis looks into cultural continuity and how rituals contribute to the continuation of calendar systems and their related worldviews. Due to the decreasingly traditional way of life, more research into this topic is very much needed. Additional to the literature research and a small-scale ethnographic fieldwork has been performed among the Yucatec Maya of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, focusing on the perception of time based on environmental observations and related rituals. The empirical data that were collected during this fieldwork are presented in the final part of this thesis.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
open access
2014-01-01T00:00:00Z
The interpretations of unusual burials in archaeology are often highly tentative. A focus on the context-bound meaning of a specific mortuary ritual can prevent archaeologists from gaining a more...Show moreThe interpretations of unusual burials in archaeology are often highly tentative. A focus on the context-bound meaning of a specific mortuary ritual can prevent archaeologists from gaining a more conclusive understanding of the data at hand, and limit the value of such interpretations. The meaning behind these acts is very difficult to derive, especially in prehistoric periods. In order to allow for a more profound interpretation, a systematic approach was chosen for in the investigation of the unusual burials of the Late Neolithic cemetery at Tell Sabi Abyad, Syria. The unusual burials were not studied in isolation but as part of the statistical analysis of the entire buried population. This enabled the singling out of cases that were (statistically) significantly different to the rest of the population, and the examination of their divergence in multiple aspects. Focusing on the behavioral aspect of ritual, rather than on its meaning, made it possible to study the trends of mortuary practices visible in the cemetery. The analysis revealed the formation of groups within the unusual burials, that make up a large segment of the buried population. The interpretation of the results of this study suggests that 'unusual burial' is not external to, but part of the normative death rites and ritual life at Late Neolithic Tell Sabi Abyad.Show less
