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Mary Beaudry to Cornelius, CONTEMP-HIST-A. show details 6:13 pm (1 minute agoCornelius, it is our loss that you will not be attending the SHAs in Albuquerque, New Mexico. You would no doubt love it! I for one (not really for one, I know many share my opinion), am not all about the material and the past. One could never have been a student of Jim Deetz and feel that way. Jim sensitized us all to the archaeology of the here and now, of the materiality of the immaterial. (I realize this may be politically incorrect to say in the new era of denying materiality, which followed so closely if not rather rudely upon the recognition of same.) Sad to say, Cornelius, I think you misjudge the likely interests of the vast majority of American historical archaeologists. There is still a rather absurd clinging to "first," "earliest" and so forth, with a strangely un-anthropological interest in archaeological (if not material) analysis of contemporary culture. Sad, sad, to think that all that is Jamestown is somehow more important than the archaeology of so many other lives and times, especially those of the most recent past. Your contributions to our comprehension of same are much appreciated! all best, mary b.- Show quoted text - On 6/4/07, Cornelius Holtorf <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > > Hi! > > Jodi and Dave's SHA session outline below is beautifully phrased and the > session will no doubt become a big event, attracting many great papers. > > But as the 'cut-off' date for something becoming archaeological now seems > to have reached ten minutes ago, I wonder how long it will take until > archaeologists are finally ready to study the present of the here&now! Do > archaeologists really always have to study the past (how ever long ago)? > > And do archaeologists really always have to study the 'material world'? As > far as I am concerned, archaeology can be defined at least as much by a set > of particular research questions and methodological approaches as by a set > of data (material culture) and subject matter (the past). Many of these > questions and approaches may not be unique to archaeology, but > archaeologists do have a significant contribution to make. > > 'Material histories' will always be a part of archaeology but I am not so > sure that this focus can still serve to define the essence of a discipline > that - as this session shows - is increasingly struggling with old > boundaries. > > Just a thought. > > (And no, I will not be attending that SHA conference.) > > Cornelius > > ----- > Cornelius Holtorf > * from January 2008: Högskolan i Kalmar * > Institutionen för arkeologi och antikens historia, Lunds universitet > http://web.comhem.se/cornelius > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Jodi Barnes <[log in to unmask]> > Date: Monday, June 4, 2007 9:12 pm > Subject: CFP: The Archaeology of Ten Minutes Ago -- SHA 2008 > > > Dave Gadsby and I are interested in organizing a session on > > archaeologies of > > the contemporary past for the 2008 SHA meetings. We are seeking > > papers that > > consider the challenges and benefits of archaeologies of the > > recent past. > > > > *The Archaeology of Ten Minutes Ago: Material Histories of the > > BurgeoningPast and the Vanishing Present* > > > > The contemporary material world changes at a breathtaking rate. > > Landscapesrise and are transformed in a matter of a few years, and > > whole cities can be > > nearly destroyed in a matter of days. Rural and urban spaces are > > continuallyoccupied, abandoned, and re-configured. Developers and > > consumers destroy and > > transform "historic" buildings, landscapes and archaeological > > sites even as > > the contemporary demand for spaces fluctuates. * *It is becoming > > increasingly important to understand how changes in the recent > > past are > > connected to contemporary conditions. As archaeologists consider the > > significance of the material culture of the 20th century, we work > > at the > > perilous and unstable border between past and present. > > > > Through a series of case studies we hope to ask: Why should > > archaeologistsconcern themselves with the very recent past? What > > do we have to contribute > > to the topic that other disciplines thus far have not? Should > > archaeologiesof recent history attempt to bound or define the > > domain that we call the > > past? If so, where do the boundaries lie, and how do we > > conceptualize them > > in a way that is useful for the discipline? And how does > > engagement with the > > recent past affect the archaeologist's relationship with contemporary > > communities, rights-holders and stakeholders? > > > > Please submit 100 word abstracts to Jodi (* [log in to unmask]* > > ) or Dave > > ([log in to unmask]). > > > > > > -- > > Jodi Barnes > > Doctoral candidate, Anthropology > > American University > > Washington, DC 20016 > > [log in to unmask] > > > > -------------------------- > > contemp-hist-arch is a list for news and events > > in contemporary and historical archaeology, and > > for announcements relating to the CHAT conference group. > > ------- > > For email subscription options see: > > http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/archives/contemp-hist-arch.html > > ------- > > For CHAT meetings see: > > http://www.bris.ac.uk/archanth/events/chat.html > > -------------------------- > > > > > > -------------------------- > contemp-hist-arch is a list for news and events > in contemporary and historical archaeology, and > for announcements relating to the CHAT conference group. > ------- > For email subscription options see: > http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/archives/contemp-hist-arch.html > ------- > For CHAT meetings see: > http://www.bris.ac.uk/archanth/events/chat.html > -------------------------- > -- Mary C. Beaudry, PhD, RPA, FSA Professor of Archaeology & Anthropology Department of Archaeology Boston University 675 Commonwealth Avenue Boston, MA 02215-1406 tel. 617-358-1650 -------------------------- contemp-hist-arch is a list for news and events in contemporary and historical archaeology, and for announcements relating to the CHAT conference group. ------- For email subscription options see: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/archives/contemp-hist-arch.html ------- For CHAT meetings see: http://www.bris.ac.uk/archanth/events/chat.html --------------------------