Eight Human Skulls In A Dung Heap And More

The study of ritual practice in the past is an accepted part of archaeological research these days. Yet, its theoretical basis is still not fully mature. This book aims at making a contribution to the study of ritual practice inthe past by assembling a theoretical framework, which is tailored to the needs of archaeology, and which helps to identity and interpret the remains of rituals in thepast. This framework is applied in a special archaeological region: the coastal area of the northern Netherlands, a former salt marsh area. In the past, people lived here on artificial dwelling mounds, so-called terps. Preservation conditions are excellent in this wetland area. This study makes use of the well-preserved remains of rituals in terps, to examine the role of ritual practice in the societies of the pre-Roman and Roman Iron Age in this area.

The study of ritual practice in the past is an accepted part of archaeological research these days. Yet, its theoretical basis is still not fully mature. This book aims at making a contribution to the study of ritual practice in the past by assembling a theoretical framework, which is tailored to the needs of archaeology, and which helps to identity and interpret the remains of rituals in the past. This framework is applied in a special archaeological region: the coastal area of the northern Netherlands, a former salt marsh area. In the past, people lived here on artificial dwelling mounds, so-called terps. Preservation conditions are excellent in this wetland area. This study makes use of the well-preserved remains of rituals in terps, to examine the role of ritual practice in the societies of the pre-Roman and Roman Iron Age in this area.

From a modern-day perspective, it may seem odd that people should have chosen to dwell in the open salt-marsh landscape along the Wadden Sea coast. While the beauty of the salt marshes is widely acknowledged, the idea of living there seems to suggest struggle and misery. Yet the salt-marsh settlers, dwelling on their settlement mounds or terps, did not just ‘survive' or ‘get by', but actually managed to live a good life, by embracing this marshy world and its peculiarities. This collection of papers focuses on foraging, farming and food preparation in the context of the salt-marsh environment. The various contributions celebrate the career and work of Annet Nieuwhof, who has been an inspirational colleague and great friend to many of us. She passionately embraced terp research, always actively stimulating cooperation across disciplines as well as national borders. Reflecting some of Annet's wide-ranging interests, the present volume is dedicated to her in friendship and gratitude.

A key publication on the British Museum's approach to the ethical issues surrounding the inclusion of human remains in museum collections and possible solutions to the dilemmas relating to their curation, storage, access management and display.

A powerful and innovative argument that explores the complexity of the human relationship with material things, demonstrating how humans and societies are entrapped into the maintenance and sustaining of material worlds Argues that the interrelationship of humans and things is a defining characteristic of human history and culture Offers a nuanced argument that values the physical processes of things without succumbing to materialism Discusses historical and modern examples, using evolutionary theory to show how long-standing entanglements are irreversible and increase in scale and complexity over time Integrates aspects of a diverse array of contemporary theories in archaeology and related natural and biological sciences Provides a critical review of many of the key contemporary perspectives from materiality, material culture studies and phenomenology to evolutionary theory, behavioral archaeology, cognitive archaeology, human behavioral ecology, Actor Network Theory and complexity theory