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Call for papers
ASA09: Anthropological and archaeological imaginations: past, present
and future - Bristol, UK, 6-9 April 2009
Convenors:
Istvan Praet (Cambridge University) [log in to unmask]
Paolo Fortis (University of St Andrews) [log in to unmask]
Short Abstract
This panel investigates the 'archaeological encounter' from the
perspective of so-called indigenous people. We examine the apparent
paradox that Amerindians often envisage ancient things - not unlike
contemporary shamans and archaeologists - as inherently dangerous but
also as potentially helpful.
Long Abstract
The use of archaeological artefacts by shamans and all kinds of
ritual experts is rife; ethnographers have documented this remarkably
consistent predilection for ancient things all over the world, albeit
often only in passing. In the Americas, the toolkit of shamans may
consist of obsidian projectile points, flint axes, pre-Columbian
figurines and pottery but also of fossil remains and bones of
Pleistocene animals. Such artefacts are often conceived of as endowed
with a specific 'potency' or 'power', just like those who manipulate
them. The idea appears to be extremely widespread and is not
necessarily restricted to what is conventionally classified as
'archaeological': living entities and specific features of the
environment can also be imbued with such ancestral powers. For
example, Chachi shamans maintain that their paraphernalia of old
potsherds, statuettes, aromatic herbs and polished rocks were
originally made by uyala, powerful cannibals, while they themselves
are often perceived as latently dangerous and are indeed sometimes
referred to as 'man-eaters'. What is more, those who purposefully
search for that kind of things are often envisaged in strikingly
similar terms; Chachi people sometimes suspect latter-day
archaeologists to be sorcerers keen on human flesh. This panel, which
is by no means restricted to those specializing in Amerindian
peoples, aims to examine such indigenous categorizations of the
'archaeological encounter' and seeks to spark a discussion on what
counts as 'ancient' and on how it influences the contemporary lives
of people like the Chachi.
Paper proposals must be submitted online at:
http://www.nomadit.co.uk/asa/asa09/panels.php5?PanelID=527
The deadline for proposing a paper is 6 February 2009. For further
information on submitting an abstract visit:
http://www.theasa.org/conferences/asa09/papers.htm
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