The discourse surrounding sex work in Amsterdam has evolved, reflecting shifting approaches by municipal authorities and stakeholders. Currently, a proposal for an "erotic center" seeks to relocate...Show moreThe discourse surrounding sex work in Amsterdam has evolved, reflecting shifting approaches by municipal authorities and stakeholders. Currently, a proposal for an "erotic center" seeks to relocate sex work from the Wallen district to address issues of over-tourism and congestion. However, this proposition has ignited controversy, as sex workers voice concerns about safety, social networks, and potential workspace loss. Researchers and activists advocate for recognizing sex work as tangible heritage to preserve its history and narratives. Despite initiatives of activists and advocates to document and safeguard the sector's history through the website www.sekswerkerfgoed.nl and the Prostitution Information Center, academic exploration of sex workers' experiences and sex work heritage in the Netherlands remains limited. Narratives from sex workers of color, migrant sex workers, and marginalized voices are often overlooked. Media portrayals often perpetuate stigmatization and negative stereotypes about sex work. The life stories of Nicolina Sant and Aaïcha Bergamin, two sex workers from the 20th century, offer valuable insights into Dutch sex work. Their narratives encompass diverse perspectives, encompassing ethnic backgrounds, cultural nuances, gender, and sexuality. Incorporating these stories enriches historical research on sex work, fostering a deeper comprehension of the industry and its intersections with urban life. Using the concept of urban citizenship, which emphasizes self-identity and recognition, challenges conventional notions tied to nationhood. Sex workers' claims to citizenship impact urban planning and city politics, influencing the socio-spatial fabric of the city, and reorienting research on sex workers to focus on agency rather than victimhood. Analyzing the stories of Aaïcha and Nicolina through this lens reflects on the idea of sex work as heritage while supplying an intersectional perspective to sex work history in the Netherlands.Show less
In recent years, the Western world has experienced a heightened interest in addressing troublesome heritage, especially with the rise of global anti-racism movements. In relation to the public...Show moreIn recent years, the Western world has experienced a heightened interest in addressing troublesome heritage, especially with the rise of global anti-racism movements. In relation to the public space it means that monuments that are connected to racial oppression often have become the target of iconoclastic acts of activists. An example of such a contested monument is the statue of James Marion Sims. Instead of attacking the actual statue, which is usually done in iconoclastic acts, artist Doreen Garner responded to the controversies surrounding Sims by harming a replica of his statue in her performance Purge (2017). This research paper investigates how the usage of this replica problematizes the existing definitions of iconoclasm and to what extent it can shed a different light on iconoclastic practices. To answer this question, anthropological theories on voodoo will be used, as the creation of a representation with the purpose of harming it, reminds of voodoo practices. By investigating the concept of iconoclasm in relation to voodoo, this research reveals the significant overlap between voodoo and iconoclasm, as both concepts function on the basis that a representation is targeted for its similarities with the referent.Show less
This thesis aims to assess the risks of the consequences of climate change for the preservation of the archaeological remains of Roman maritime villas (ca. 200 BC-500 AD) on the coast of South...Show moreThis thesis aims to assess the risks of the consequences of climate change for the preservation of the archaeological remains of Roman maritime villas (ca. 200 BC-500 AD) on the coast of South-Latium, Italy and the surrounding cultural landscape. This will be done using the relatively new methodology “Cultural Vulnerability Index”(CVI) tool for heritage which is a valuesbased, rapid risk-assessment methodology developed for cultural and natural world-heritage (Day et al., 2019, p. 5). The CVI assessment first evaluates which key values are relevant forthe heritage, and after, how these values will be affected by different climate hazards. After which, the adaptive capacity of the community is taken into account, to better assess, what the impact on the community will be. The final outcome is a three point scale judgement of the vulnerability of the heritage values to the relevant climate hazards. The main advantages of the CVI methodology is that it balancesscience and practice into one structured and rapid methodology. The methodology is adjusted to fit the current study which assesses non-world heritage sites. Moreover, the current study is performed fully remotely using a spatial, GIS-based risk-assessment model as input for the CVI assessment. The model operates for different climate hazards, on different scales, for a rapid assessment. Because of its layered character, it can be easily adjusted to fit additional climate hazards or wider scales and other research areas. The model is constructed using only open data and open software. The risk-assessment model shows that even in a low-impact future climate scenarios, different climate hazards pose a serious threat to the Roman maritime villas. The CVI assessment shows that the key values of the heritage are highly vulnerable for climate hazards that are relevant for the study area. This study has shown that the CVI methodology can also be applied to non-world heritage sites. It has also shown that the CVI assessment can be carried out remotely, using a riskassessment model. The risk-assessment model can be complementary to the CVI-assessment as it provides better insight into the future course of climate hazards A limitation of the remote CVI assessment is that it affords a less detailed picture of the current state of the heritage. Finally, this study’s result reflect positively on the developments within the open science movement, proving that open data and open software can fruitfully be employed for heritage management.Show less
Casa do Fernandez or Ilojo Bar was a National Monument in the heart of Lagos Island, Nigeria. It was built by the returnees who came back from Brazil to Africa, the homeland that the Transatlantic...Show moreCasa do Fernandez or Ilojo Bar was a National Monument in the heart of Lagos Island, Nigeria. It was built by the returnees who came back from Brazil to Africa, the homeland that the Transatlantic Slave Trade had taken their forefathers away from. Although it was a National Monument and should have been protected under Nigerian heritage law, it was illegally demolished on 11 September 2016. How could this prime example of Brazilian-style architecture have been destroyed in broad daylight? This thesis uses Casa do Fernandez as a case study to explore the challenges of preserving built heritage in Nigeria. In the process, it tries to figure out why there is so little knowledge about the history of a building declared a National Monument over sixty years ago. The story of the monument turns out to be different than always assumed. After researching the building’s history, the focus is turned to heritage: the way the present interacts with the past. Could the way Casa do Fernandez has been defined as heritage have something to do with its sad end? The thesis argues that the rigid definition of Casa do Fernandez as strictly Afro-Brazilian heritage detached the site of its cultural meaning to other groups in society and sowed the seeds of the eventual demise of the National Monument. It is a plea for a wider and more inclusive interpretation of this heritage-site in particular and of heritage in general.Show less
The lingering dispute between Cambodia and Thailand over the ancient Temple of Preah Vihear has still not been resolved. This may seem strange from the point of view of international law. In 1962,...Show moreThe lingering dispute between Cambodia and Thailand over the ancient Temple of Preah Vihear has still not been resolved. This may seem strange from the point of view of international law. In 1962, the International Court of Justice made a ruling on this issue, which should have resolved the dispute between the two countries. The ongoing dispute is, in fact, an indicator of the more comprehensive problem of demarcation of the past. The origins of the Preah Vihear Temple border conflict date back to colonial times and the subsequent decolonization period. During those times, both Cambodia and Thailand made efforts to augment their territorial sovereignty and to promote nationalism. The conflict thus created unfortunately continues to this day. The temple dispute has always been ready to erupt under the right circumstances if it suited Thai and Cambodian politicians. Moreover, the negative images and memories between Thailand and Cambodia have never ceased to exist, but are instead carefully maintained for political purposes. Such perspectives make it highly unlikely that the Preah Vihear issue will be resolved any time soon. Thai and Cambodian leaders have become stuck in a cycle of distrust about border issues that has been going on for many decades. The Preah Vihear dispute shows just how fragile Thai-Cambodian relations really are. The painful historical background, along with nationalist sentiments in the unfinished development of nation-building in both countries, is thwarting the formation of good relations. Preah Vihear, the temple on the border, has remained at the center of bilateral anxiety. This place of consecration has thus become a bone of contention.Show less
This thesis is concerned with the influence of nationalism, disneyization, and disneyfication on the representation of history and heritage in the Korean historical TV drama Mister Sunshine....Show moreThis thesis is concerned with the influence of nationalism, disneyization, and disneyfication on the representation of history and heritage in the Korean historical TV drama Mister Sunshine. Through an examination of the storyline, costumes, and historical accuracy this thesis has tested the different theories.Show less
This thesis focuses on the past, present and future of hawker centres in Singapore. Hawker centres are essentially communal dining spaces that allow Singaporeans from different ethnic backgrounds...Show moreThis thesis focuses on the past, present and future of hawker centres in Singapore. Hawker centres are essentially communal dining spaces that allow Singaporeans from different ethnic backgrounds to enjoy a wide range of hawker foods for an affordable price. Singapore’s hawker culture has been able to exist alongside Singapore’s rapid urban development, beginning with street food sold by itinerant hawkers and transformed into hawker centres. Over the years these hawker centres have become more than just dining spaces and have become an indispensable part of Singapore. Changes in Singapore’s near future have triggered questions about the continuity of the hawker trade and the preservation of traditional dishes. Taking matters in their own hands, Singapore has nominated hawker culture for UNESCO’s Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity as they believe this is an intrinsic part of Singaporean identity and should be preserved and passed down to future generations. The aim of this thesis is to study the meaning of hawker culture in contemporary Singapore by discussing three periods of time, while discussing food as intangible heritage and its contribution to identity and belongingness.Show less
On September 12, 2015, an indigenous tribe, the Kaviyangan married their ancestral pillar to the president of the National Taiwan University (NTU). The pillar Muakaikai was taken from its tribe by...Show moreOn September 12, 2015, an indigenous tribe, the Kaviyangan married their ancestral pillar to the president of the National Taiwan University (NTU). The pillar Muakaikai was taken from its tribe by the Japanese colonizer to the anthropology museum of NTU during the colonial period (1895-1945). As a national treasure, Muakaikai bares the colonized history of its tribe and the possibility of a new cooperative approach between the museum and the source community. Although the authorized heritage discourse still guides the practices of heritage in Taiwan nowadays, the Kaviyangan resisted it with their traditional cultural practice, and eventually came up with an innovative way of dealing with Muakaikai’s repatriating issue. In the heritagization process of Muakaikai, the Kaviyangan people not only built a long-term relationship with the museum but also strengthened their collective identity and intimacy to the tribe.Show less
The Chumash are an indigenous group who formed a complex material culture around 8,000 BP when they began to permanently settle. They settled in SW California and created a material culture which...Show moreThe Chumash are an indigenous group who formed a complex material culture around 8,000 BP when they began to permanently settle. They settled in SW California and created a material culture which revolved around a shell-bead industry and specific ceremonial practices which were governed by a strict socio-political order that was in place until colonialists arrived in the 1700s. From the Early Period (12,000 BP) to the Mission Period (200 BP) the sociopolitical organisation changed dramatically, but how did this happen? This study represents how migratory patterns were crucial in how material culture changed for the Chumash within this timespan. Furthermore, this study examines the migratory patterns of the Chumash through three case studies – The shell-bead industry, ceremonial events and missionisation. The shell-bead industry case study demonstrates how the Chumash on the mainland moved to certain areas in the latter periods in order to gain further autonomy over the industry which was centrally governed by the Chumash on the Channel Islands. Further examination looks at several sites on the Channel Islands which also demonstrated movements, but in those cases was shown as being a motive to increase production. Ceremonial events display how the Chumash temporarily moved into areas for specific reasons and gives another angle to the complex concept of migration which contains many different avenues such as forced, voluntary, permanent and temporary. Missionisation shows how colonial contact forced the Chumash into moving from their villages to specific areas which the colonisers created such as Missions and ranches. The periods of pre and post-contact demonstrate two different types of centralised control: The Chumash elite and the Spanish colonisers. These two groups are important to distinguish during discussion as they reflect differing ideals and thus migratory methods. Using Naismith’s rule of walking, energy expenditures were calculated for each case study and therefore greater insight can be made into exactly why or how people were willing to undertake these movements. Applying this rule using GIS, maps were made of the respective case studies that visually represent the distances that the Chumash voluntarily or forcibly made. Additionally, the theme of centralised control is viewed alongside migratory patterns to examine if migration is reflective of it or not. By investigating each of these case studies an overview of differing migratory patterns that the Chumash undertook can be compared with each other and a clear conclusion can be drawn that they were all linked to centralised control. By using this case study, further research can be made into other past indigenous groups and their retrospective movements pre and post-contact. The brief comparison in the conclusion to other historical sites and to modern day migration also demonstrates that these types of studies can be used when discussing present issues, whereby we can learn from the past and how we choose to study and participate in migration movements.Show less
In this thesis I question the role of photographs in relation to Dutch national identity, regarding traditional costumes specifically. I set forth how sentiments of Dutch (national) identity can be...Show moreIn this thesis I question the role of photographs in relation to Dutch national identity, regarding traditional costumes specifically. I set forth how sentiments of Dutch (national) identity can be expressed, questioned, challenged or reinforced through photography. In doing so, I lay bare contrasts between national and local cultural expressions, between othering and elevating people, between feelings of distance and unification, between past and present. The case studies on which I build this research concern two photo series of inhabitants of Marken – a former Dutch island, now a peninsula – photographed by Cas Oorthuys and Jimmy Nelson. In this research the focal point is the argument that a Dutch national identity is reinforced through their photographs of people in Marken traditional costumes. This reinforcement is achieved through constructing identities and by invoking symbolic and indexical relations of nostalgia, idealization, pride, ‘Dutchness’ and heritage.Show less
In the following thesis, the following research question was analyzed What kind of images and representations regarding women were depicted through monuments in Flanders after (and during) the...Show moreIn the following thesis, the following research question was analyzed What kind of images and representations regarding women were depicted through monuments in Flanders after (and during) the First World War and why such depictions came to the existence? Through the means of the MCDA analysis, it was concluded that women are represented in the gendered terms in the literal and figurative terms. Women’s “feminine” traits and biological preconditions justify the notions of nationhood and the reasoning of the nation to enter the war, neglecting more accurate representation of the history and role of the women in the war.Show less
