Archaeologies of Memory

As in the present, past peoples commemorated, constructed, and manipulated their past for their own social and political ends. Archaeologists can use a variety of evidence to study social memory and to recover past ideas about what the more distant past was like. Archaeologies of Memory is a groundbreaking text that presents a coherent framework for the study of memory in past societies. This unique collection of new essays brings together contributions from both anthropological and classical archaeologists. Essays, drawn from a variety of cultures and time periods, engage a number of common themes, such as issues of authority and identity, and the role memory plays in their creation and transformation. Archaeologies of Memory is an accessible investigation into the central issues in the study of memory and provides an engaging introduction to this controversial subject.

Preface. Notes On Contributors. 1. Archaeologies Of Memory: An Introduction: Ruth M. Van Dyke And Susan E. Alcock (Colorado College; University Of Michigan). Part I: Memory Studies With Access To Texts:. 2. Echoes Of Empire: Vijayanagara And Historical Memory, Vijayanagara As Historical Memory: Carla M. Sinopoli (University Of Michigan). 3. Memory’s Materiality: Ancestral Presence, Commemorative Practice And Disjunctive Locales: Lynn Meskell (Columbia University). 4. Memory Tattered And Torn: Spolia In The Heartland Of Byzantine Hellenism: Amy Papalexandrou (Independent Scholar). 5. Glories Of The Past In The Past: Ritual Activities At Palatial Ruins In Early Iron Age Crete: Mieke Prent (University Of Amsterdam). 6. Concrete Memories: Fragments Of The Past In The Classic Maya Present (500–100 AD): Rosemary A. Joyce (University Of California, Berkeley). Part II: Memory Studies In Prehistory:. 7. Creating Memory In Prehistory: The Engraved Slate Plaques Of Southwest Iberia: Katina T. Lillios (Ripon College). 8. Memory, Mounds, And The Mississippian Argument Against Structure: Timothy R. Pauketat And Susan M. Alt (University Of Illinois, Urbana–Champaign). 9. Memory And The Construction Of Chacoan Society: Ruth M. Van Dyke (Colorado College). Part III: Caveats And Commentaries:. 10. The Familiar Honeycomb: Byzantine Era Reuse Of Sicily’s Prehistoric Rock–Cut Tombs: Emma Blake (Stanford University). 11. The Translation Of Time: Richard Bradley (University Of Reading). Index.

Ruth M. Van Dyke is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Colorado College. She directs archaeological research in Chaco Canyon and in the Four Corners region of the American Southwest. She has recently published work in the Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, Kiva and American Antiquity. Susan E. Alcock is John H. D’Arms Collegiate Professor of Classical Archaeology and Classics at the University of Michigan. Her publications include Graecia Capta: The Landscapes of Roman Greece (1993), Pausanias: Travel & Memory in Roman Greece (co–editor, 2001), Empires: Perspectives from Archaeology and History (co–editor, 2001), and Archaeologies of the Greek Past: Landscape, Monuments and Memory (2002).

“In this exciting and interpretively timely volume, archaeology and social theory intersect to explore the materialization of memory. Drawing on diverse case studies, from historical and prehistoric contexts across the globe, contributors expand dimensions for critical understandings of ‘the past in the past.” Wendy Ashmore, University of California, Riverside <!––end––> “Memory is a locus of struggle over identity, authority, and power. This collection represents the first serious attempt in archaeology to examine this struggle. As such, it is a path–breaking volume that all archaeologists need to read and contemplate.” Randy McGuire, Binghamton University “The distinguished editors, an anthropological archaeologist and a Classical Greek archaeologist, have gathered a formidable team to explore memorizations over a vast span of time, space, and cultures, from the Old World to the New, and from prehistory right up to the present.” Paul Cartledge, University of Cambridge "This is an excellent book which acheives what it sets out to do – to place memory more firmly on the research agenda of contemporary archaeology." Journal of Field Archaeology, Vol. 29, 2002–2004