eNewsletters
Volume 37 April 2011
Editors: Shoshaunna Parks and Marisol Rodriguez Miranda
shoshiparks@hotmail.com; marirodz@gmail.com
1. Executive News
In many places around the world 2011 has been a tumultuous year. The activities of the World Archaeological Congress have reflected this. In the past few months we have issued statements regarding world events in Japan, Bangladesh and Uganda and we have been actively involved in working with other archaeological organisations to protect cultural heritage in Egypt and Libya.
Disaster in Japan
The extent of the disaster in Japan has been truly shocking. We have extended our sympathy to our Japanese colleagues and to all people of Japan who have been affected by the recent disaster caused by the earthquake, tsunami and the consequent explosions of the nuclear plant. We are greatly saddened by the loss of life and destruction.
The WAC Inter-Congress held in Osaka in 2006 gave many WAC members a chance to visit Japan and become friends with Japanese archaeologists. Our Japanese friends are in our thoughts, not only though the period of the disaster itself but also through the recovery. As Japanese people come to terms with the situation we hope we may be able to help in some small way.
Threat to the Uganda National Museum
WAC has issued a statement about the planned demolition of the Uganda Museum to build a 60-storied Trade Center. The museum was founded in 1908 as the custodian of Uganda’s Heritage. We have argued that the museum building itself should be seen as a national monument that should be preserved.
We are concerned that this demolition will impact on the 102-year history of one of the oldest cultural institutions in Uganda and the oldest in Eastern Africa, which has been serving as an education and research centre for a century. The Museum displays Uganda’s Indigenous culture, archaeology, history, science, and natural history, with unique visual and material samples of Uganda’s multicultural past. While WAC has been informed that a two-storey section of the trade centre will be given to the Museum, there is no further information on the capacity of this new building to display the current collections, or on how the relocation will be conducted, where and in what conditions would the collections and libraries be stored during the construction of the new trade centre, the impact of these relocation on the preservation of the collections or, more importantly, about the social and cultural impact of closing a this national Museum to the public.
WAC was also informed that the relocation of the collections could cause displacement and damage, as there is a need for the detailed labelling and registration of some material.
We urged the Ugandan government to re-evaluate the impact of such development in the life, culture and heritage of their country, and encourages them to find an alternative location for the new building, while keeping the current Museum in its current location.
Destruction of Cultural Heritage in Bangladesh
WAC has issued a statement concerning the ongoing destruction of the cultural heritage of Mahasthan or Mahasthangarh area (Bangladesh), considered the earliest and the largest urban archaeological site in Bangladesh and one of the most prominent ‘urban citadel sites’ in South Asia.
In 2010 Mahasthangarh was listed as one of 12 worldwide sites most “On the Verge” of irreparable loss and destruction, citing insufficient management and looting, at a report released by Global Heritage Fund named Saving our Vanishing Heritage: Safeguarding Endangered Cultural Heritage Sites in the Developing World. The historical and cultural significance of this endangered archaeological and heritage site is well supported by the results of the continuing series of archaeological excavations intermittently conducted since 1928-1929 within the fortified city and at the numerous mounds located in the surroundings. The site dates to the 3rd century BC and the fortified area was in use until the 18th century AD.
WAC condemns the ongoing destructions and acts of vandalism occurring at this site, mainly caused by development pressures, insufficient management and by illegal diggings aiming the looting of valuable artefacts. These activities are prohibited according to the constitution of Bangladesh. So WAC urges the concerned authorities of the Government of the Peoples’ Republic of Bangladesh to ensure the preservation and protection of this unique, invaluable and irreplaceable archaeological and cultural heritage against the current threats of looting, vandalism and development.
Protection of Cultural Heritage in Egypt and Libya
Along with other major archaeological organisations, WAC has been monitoring the situation in both Egypt and Libya. In both countries WAC has been extremely concerned about the potential damage and looting of archaeological sites and museum collections and the subsequent illegal trade of antiquities.
In Egypt, cultural heritage was protected during the first stage of unrest, but there have been serious problems subsequently. We are particularly interested in providing ICOMOS with information about Memphis and its necropolis – the Pyramids Fields from Giza to Dahshur / Ancient Thebes and Necropolis / Nubian Monuments from Abu Simbel to Philae / Abu Mena / Saint Catherine area.
In Libya, a number of sites are under threat from civil unrest and military action. The Archaeological Institute of America and the US Committee of the Blue Shield have been active in seeking support from the international community to protect sites and antiquities in this region. An online map indicating the extent of Libyan cultural sites can be found here:http://tinyurl.com/4jlcl96
Many of these sites are located in areas of unrest, though no damage has been reported so far. We have urged both sides involved in this conflict take into account appropriate strategies to protect Libya’s cultural heritage, and to keep military operations away from the immediate surroundings of cultural heritage sites.
Finally, we hope for better news for the next issue of this newsletter.
Regards,
Claire Smith, for the Executive
Noticias Ejecutivas
En muchos lugares del mundo, el 2011 ha sido un año tumultuoso. Las actividades del Congreso Arqueológico Mundial han reflejado esto. En los últimos meses se han emitido declaraciones sobre los acontecimientos del mundo en Japón, Bangladesh y Uganda, y hemos participado activamente en el trabajo con otras organizaciones para proteger el patrimonio arqueológico cultural de Egipto y Libia.
Desastre en Japón
La magnitud del desastre en Japón ha sido realmente impactante. Hemos ampliado nuestra solidaridad a nuestros colegas japoneses y a todas las personas de Japón que han sido afectadas por el reciente desastre causado por el terremoto, los tsunamis y la consiguiente explosión de la central nuclear. Nos sentimos muy tristes por la pérdida de vidas y la destrucción.
El Inter-Congreso de WAC celebrado en Osaka en 2006 dio a muchos miembros la oportunidad de visitar Japón y hacerse amigos de arqueólogos japoneses. Nuestros amigos japoneses están en nuestros pensamientos, no sólo durante el período del desastre en sí mismo sino también a través del de recuperación. Mientras los japoneses llegan a estabilizarse en la situación esperamos que seamos capaces de ayudar de alguna manera aunque sea pequeña.
Amenaza para el Museo Nacional de Uganda
WAC ha emitido una declaración acerca de la prevista demolición del Museo de Uganda para construir un Trade Center de 60 pisos. El museo fue fundado en 1908 como el custodio del patrimonio de Uganda. Hemos argumentado que el edificio del museo debería ser visto en sí mismo como un monumento nacional que debe ser preservado.
Nos preocupa que esta demolición tendrá un impacto en la historia de 102 años de una de las más antiguas instituciones culturales en Uganda y la más antigua de África Oriental, que ha estado sirviendo como un centro de educación e investigación durante un siglo. El museo muestra la cultura indígena de Uganda, la arqueología, la historia, la ciencia y la historia natural, con muestras únicas visual y material del pasado multicultural. Mientras que a el WAC le ha sido informado que una sección de dos plantas del centro comercial se le dará al Museo, no hay más información sobre la capacidad de este nuevo edificio para mostrar las colecciones actuales, o sobre cómo el traslado se llevará a cabo, cuando y en qué condiciones las colecciones y bibliotecas se almacenarán durante la construcción del nuevo edificios; el impacto de estas reubicaciónes en la preservación de las colecciones o, más importante aún, sobre el impacto social y cultural del cierre de este Museo nacional al público.
El WAC también fue informado que el traslado de las colecciones podría provocar desplazamiento y daños, ya que existe una necesidad de un etiquetado y registro detallado del material.
Hemos urgido al gobierno de Uganda a re evaluar el impacto de esta acción en la vida, la cultura y el patrimonio de su país, y los alentamos a buscar una ubicación alternativa para el nuevo edificio, mientras se mantiene el actual Museo en su ubicación actual.
Destrucción del patrimonio cultural en Bangladesh
El WAC ha emitido una declaración en relación a la continua destrucción del patrimonio cultural de Mahasthan o área Mahasthangarh (Bangladesh), considerado el primero y el mayor sitio arqueológico urbano de Bangladesh y uno de los más prominentes ciudadelas urbanas en el sur de Asia.
En el 2010 Mahasthangarh fue catalogado como uno de los 12 sitios más “ Al borde” de la pérdida irreparable y la destrucción en todo el mundo “, citando el manejo insuficiente y el saqueo, en un informe publicado por Global Heritage Fund llamado Salvando el Patrimonio que se desvanece: Salvaguardando los sitios Culturales Amenazados en el Mundo en desarrollo. La importancia histórica y cultural de este sitio arqueológico y el patrimonio en peligro de extinción está bien fundamentado en los resultados de la continua serie de excavaciones arqueológicas llevadas a cabo desde 1928-1929 intermitente dentro de la ciudad fortificada y en los numerosos montículos situados en los alrededores. El sitio data del siglo 3 AC y el recinto fortificado estuvo en uso hasta el siglo 18 AD.
El WAC condena la destrucción en curso y los actos de vandalismo que ocurren en este sitio, causados principalmente por las presiones del desarrollo, el pobre manejo y por excavaciones ilegales dirigidas a la expoliación de objetos valiosos. Estas actividades de acuerdo con la Constitución de Bangladesh están prohibidas. Así el WAC urge a las autoridades competentes del Gobierno de la República Popular de Bangladesh a que garanticen la preservación y protección de este patrimonio arqueológico y cultural único, valioso e insustituible contra las actuales amenazas de saqueo, el vandalismo y el desarrollo.
Protección del patrimonio cultural de Egipto y Libia
Junto con otras importantes organizaciones arqueológicos, el WAC ha estado monitoreando la situación en Egipto y Libia. En ambos países el WAC ha estado extremadamente preocupado por los posibles daños y el saqueo de sitios arqueológicos y colecciones de los museos y la posterior comercialización ilegal de antigüedades.
En Egipto, el patrimonio cultural fue protegido durante la primera etapa de los disturbios, pero ha habido problemas graves más adelante. Estamos particularmente interesados en proveer a ICOMOS con la información acerca de Memphis y su necrópolis – los campos de pirámides de Giza hasta Dahshur / antigua Tebas y la Necrópolis / Monumentos de Nubia de Abu Simbel en Philae / Abu Mena / área Saint Catherine.
En Libia, algunos sitios se encuentran bajo amenaza debido a disturbios civiles y la acción militar. El Instituto Arqueológico de América y el Comité de EE.UU. del Escudo Azul han estado activos en la búsqueda de apoyo de la comunidad internacional para proteger los sitios y antigüedades en esta región. Un mapa en línea que indica los lugares de interés cultural de Libia de se puede encontrar en: <http://tinyurl.com/4jlcl96 <http://tinyurl.com/4jlcl96> <http://tinyurl.com/4jlcl96 <http:/ / tinyurl.com/4jlcl96>>>. Muchos de estos sitios están ubicados en zonas de disturbios, aunque no se han reportado daños hasta el momento. Hemos instado a las dos partes implicadas en este conflicto a tener en cuenta las estrategias adecuadas para proteger el patrimonio cultural, y a mantener las operaciones militares fuera de las inmediaciones de los sitios de patrimonio cultural.
Por último, esperamos tener mejores noticias para el próximo número de este boletín.
Saludos,
Claire Smith, para el ejecutivo
2. News Items
GLOBAL HERITAGE NETWORK (GHN) ENABLES WORLDWIDE COLLABORATION TO SAVE OUR MOST SIGNIFICANT AND ENDANGERED CULTURAL HERITAGE SITES
GHN is comprised of a geospatial and documentary database employing Google Earth, satellite imagery and mapping of cultural heritage sites in the world’s poorest countries, while the GHN Community is a growing social network of professionals that enables discussion and contribution of up-to-date threats documentation and conservation efforts at those sites. Also incorporated is an expanding online library of heritage preservation related literature.
“GHN is an exciting new tool encouraging more efficient networking between individuals and teams dedicated to cultural heritage preservation,” said Dr. Ian Hodder, Professor and former Director of the Stanford Archaeology Center. “I’ve found in my conservation work in Turkey that preserving ancient sites requires the support and involvement of a community to be successful. People want to visit and learn about ancient cultures, and we can ensure they will be there in the future if we raise awareness to the public, collaborate with peers and expand our resources and communication through GHN.”
GHN Sites: http://ghn.globalheritagefund.org/
GHN Community: http://globalheritagenetwork.ning.com/
GHN Library: http://ghn.globalheritagefund.org/library.php
RED DE PATRIMONIO MUNDIAL (GHN) PERMITE LA COLABORACIÓN MUNDIAL PARA SALVAR NUESTROS SITIOS CULTURALES MÁS SIGNIFICATIVOS Y PATRIMONIO EN PELIGRO DE EXTINCIÓN
La GHN se compone de una base de datos geoespaciales y documentales que emplea Google Earth, imágenes satelitales y cartografía de los sitios del patrimonio cultural en los países más pobres del mundo, mientras que la Comunidad GHN es una creciente red social de profesionales que permite el debate y la contribución actualizada de la documentación de las amenazas y esfuerzos de conservación de esos sitios. También se ha incorporado una colección documental en expansión en línea relacionado a la conservación del patrimonio.
“El GHN es una herramienta nueva y emocionante fomentando la creación de redes más eficientes entre las personas y equipos dedicados a la preservación del patrimonio cultural “, dijo el Dr. Ian Hodder, catedrático y ex director del Centro de Arqueología de Stanford. “He encontrado en mi trabajo de conservación en Turquía que la preservación de sitios antiguos requiere el apoyo y la participación de una comunidad para tener éxito. La gente quiere visitar y aprender sobre las culturas antiguas, y podemos asegurar que van a estar allí en el futuro si creamos conciencia entre el público, colaborarmos con sus compañeros y ampliarmos nuestra comunicación y recursos a través de GHN “.
GHN Sitios: http://ghn.globalheritagefund.org/
GHN Comunidad: http://globalheritagenetwork.ning.com/
GHN Bibliotecas: http://ghn.globalheritagefund.org/library.php
UNESCO ACCOUNT TO STOP THE DESTRUCTIONOF THE BAMYAN BUDDHAS
For the first time the account is published here on how UNESCO tried to stop Omar Mulah from willingly destroying the Buddha’s in the Bamyan valley.
On March 2, 2011 UNESCO organized an international forum Towards Cultural Rapprochement and Tolerance on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the destruction of the Buddha statues in the Bamyan valley, Afghanistan. The program showed a list of interesting speakers. Especially the afternoon session on the Doha Statement (2001) and the UNESCO Declaration concerning the Intentional Destruction of Cultural Heritage (2003) was without a doubt surprising. Mr Mounir Bouchenaki, the former assistant director-general of Culture at UNESCO and presently the director-general of ICCROM, delivered his account on the actions UNESCO undertook once they heard of the planned destruction of the Buddha statues by the Taliban.
In the end the UNESCO mission to rescue the statues did not bring the desired result. However, the account clearly shows the way UNESCO can operate, how quickly they can act and what kind of people they can convince to take action. Indeed, UNESCO did all in their power to try and stop the blast of this important Buddhist heritage in Afghanistan.
To read the full account, click here.
CUENTA LA UNESCO CON DETENER LA DESTRUCCIÓN DE LOS BUDAS DE BAMYAN
Por primera vez se publica aquí el relato de cómo la UNESCO trató de detener a Mulah Omar destruir a propósito el Buda en el valle de Bamiyán.
El 02 de marzo 2011 la UNESCO organizó un foro internacional Hacia Acercamiento cultural y la tolerancia con motivo del 10 º aniversario de la destrucción de las estatuas de Buda en el valle de Bamiyán, Afganistán. El programa mostró una lista de oradores interesantes. Especialmente la sesión de la tarde en la Declaración de Doha (2001) y la Declaración de la UNESCO relativa a la Destrucción Intencional del Patrimonio Cultural (2003) fue, sin duda, sorprendente. El Sr. Mounir Bouchenaki, ex subdirector general de Cultura de la UNESCO y en la actualidad Director General del ICCROM, dio su versión de las acciones que la UNESCO realizó una vez se enteraron de la planificada destrucción de las estatuas de Buda por los talibanes.
Al final, la misión de la UNESCO para rescatar las estatuas no trajo los resultados deseados. Sin embargo, el relato muestra claramente la forma en la UNESCO puede funcionar, la rapidez con que puede actuar y a qué tipo de personas puede convencer a tomar acción. En efecto, la UNESCO hizo todo lo posible para tratar de detener la explosión de este importante patrimonio budista en Afganistán.
Para leer el relato completo, diríjase al
A NEW COLLABORATIVE TOOL IN SERVICE OF CULTURE AND CONFLICT
By Laurence Lepetit
http://www.cultureconflictcooperation.com/
Inspired by the idea that heritage can play a significant role in peace building efforts, we are interested in engaging directly with the interrelationship between heritage, identity and ethnicity in the global context of conflict and its resolution. We decided to create an accessible and open space dedicated to the promotion of dialogue and cooperation among cultural heritage professionals and other actors and stake holders involved in conflict areas.
UNA NUEVA HERRAMIENTA DE COLABORACIÓN AL SERVICIO DE LA CULTURA Y LOS CONFLICTOS
Por Laurence Lepetit
www.cultureconflictcooperation.com
Inspirado en la idea de que la herencia puede jugar un papel importante en los esfuerzos de consolidación de la paz, estamos interesados en participar directamente con la interrelación entre el patrimonio, la identidad y la etnicidad en el contexto global de los conflictos y su resolución. Hemos decidido crear un espacio abierto y accesible dedicado a la promoción del diálogo y la cooperación entre profesionales del patrimonio cultural y otras personas y partes interesadas envueltas en las áreas de conflicto.
PALAEOPHONICS, THE CONCERT WHERE ARCHAEOLOGY AND MUSIC MEET
Edinburgh, 27th May 2011
www.palaeophonics.co.uk
The first of its kind, this unique public event will world-premiere works of interdisciplinary research and artistic collaboration between archaeologists, composers and artists from across Britain, Europe and the Americas. This concert which includes live performances, audio-visual works and installations explores the mutual contribution of music, performance and archaeology to our knowledge and experience of sound and music of lost and distant pasts. The event will be followed by a reception and a workshop on 28th May. We also seek to develop the Palaeophonics after the concert through more collaboration for future events, including more community outreach and engagement. For more information about the concert or getting involved, please go to: www.palaeophonics.co.uk or contact Farès Moussa (co-director of Palaeophonics) via email: F.K.Moussa@sms.ed.ac.uk
WOMEN’S AND GENDER AFRICANIST ARCHAEOLOGY NETWORK (WAGAAN)
November 4 2010, Dakar
On November 22, 2010, 26 people (almost all women) participated in a meeting of the Women’s Africanist Archaeology Network. The network has been in existence since 2006, and was formed by an initial meeting, facilitated by Alinah Segobye (https://mailman.rice.edu/mailman/listinfo/waan-l). But as activity on this list has been very low, despite wide interest at the Calgary meeting, a face to face discussion about the network seemed timely at the Calgary meeting of the Society for Africanist Archaeologists (SAfA). An email list has existed since then and is open to all interested persons (it can be joined here.)
Discussions ranged over a number of topics, summaries grouped by topic are provided here:
Name and Function
One of the main discussions of the meeting was over whether the group is a network only for women, or about gender issues more generally. Another issue raised over the function of the network was whether it should exist mostly for networking, or to share research. The question of whether we should separate out ‘women’s’ and ‘gender’ generated quite a lot of discussion. Including gender was thought to signal a more inclusive group, one which did not solely focus on women’s issues, but was attuned to wider gender and sexuality issues in Africanist archaeology, including those related to research questions and findings.
But women’s issues clearly require the support of a network. Some African participants commented that there is a difference in perception on field projects between African women, African men, and Europeans. African women face particular problems in often being expected to do ‘women’s work’ and thus having to cook, clean etc. after a day of fieldwork. This is something that it is of vital importance to the network; thus it was decided that the network should remain titled a ‘women’s’ network so as to signal our support for issues that may be important specifically for female archaeologists. Research in gender was also significant to many present. To reflect this and to ensure the inclusionary nature of the network to all genders and sexual orientations, it was unanimously resolved to change the name of the network to the ‘Women’s and Gender Africanist Archaeology Network’ (WaGAAN). The name of the mail-list will be changed to reflect the name change. An important issue was also that of ensuring that the network has, at a minimum, a bilingual (French and English) output so that Anglophone and Francophone participants can share in all communications.
Women’s Issues
It was felt the network could help support many issues specific to women, e.g. through:
– Advice specifically for women participating in or running fieldwork projects in Africa
– Research collaborations; some felt that it could be difficult in particular to develop fieldwork collaborations if one was a woman.
Networking
We also discussed ways to make the network more active. One straightforward way of action in this direction will be for members to begin to utilize the mail list more; this could include finding room-mates for conferences, fieldwork placements for students, and the sharing of research. Having a more active network, which will include networking meetings at conferences, was thought to be a good way to further all of the aims of the network.
Future Outcomes
We broadly agreed on several outcomes that we would like to see over the next few years. In the longer term, many members hoped that we might have our own website. This could include a private section, in which a map or database might show the location of members, and where opportunities for mentoring and for fieldwork could be shared. Many members were keen to provide mentoring opportunities. Also in the longer term, a regular newsletter could be envisaged.
In the immediate, certain specific points of action are proposed. The next SAfA meeting (Toronto, 2012) is our next significant target, with informal networking, developing the network, and promoting research on gender were the main goals.
Please make sure to sure that you are a member of the email list for the network by signing up at:
https://mailman.rice.edu/mailman/listinfo/waan-l
RESEAU AFRICAIN DES FEMMES ARCHEOLOGUES POUR LE GENRE
4 novembre 2010
Le 4 novembre 2010, à Dakar, Sénégal 26 personnes, dont une majorité de femmes, ont participé à la réunion du Réseau Africain des Femmes Archéologues pour le Genre (RAFG). Ce réseau existe depuis 2006, suite au colloque de la Society of Africanist Archeologists (SAFA) tenu à Callgary et qui a été animé par Alinah Segobye. Il s’en est suivit une liste des adresses mails de ces adhérents, cependant malgré l’intérêt manifesté lors de cette réunion, ces activités sont restés négligeable. Une discussion de vive voix semblait être tout indiquée !
Nom et Fonction
L’un des questions débattu fut si le réseau devrait être réservé aux femmes ou être un réseau qui s’intéresse de manière plus globale au genre. Une deuxième question a concerné la fonction même du réseau, si celui-ci devrait être un moyen de réseau-tage ou comme instrument de partage de la recherche ? La distinction entre « Femme » et « Genre » suscita beaucoup de discussion. L’adoption du terme « genre » car celui ci ne concerne pas les femmes uniquement, mais est aussi inclusive de tous les débats en archéologie africaine sur le genre et la sexualité ainsi que des problématiques et résultats des recherches. Toutefois, la question des femme a certainement besoin d’un soutien de réseau. Certains des participants africains mentionnèrent l’existence de perceptions différentes quant au travail du terrain fait par des hommes africains, des femmes africaines, ou par des occidentaux de manière générale. Les femmes africaines font face à des problèmes particuliers comme l’attente de la part des collègues qu’elles accomplissent des tâches dites « féminines » comme la préparation des repas ou le ménage à la fin d’une journée sur le terrain. Etant donné l’importance de cette question, le choix s’est porté sur le « réseau des femmes » afin de mettre en évidence notre soutien pour les questions spécifiques aux femmes archéologues. Une autre question d’importance soulevée est d’assurer que ce réseau ait, au minimum, une plateforme bilingue (Français, Anglais) pour qu’Anglophones et Anglophones puissent partager leurs travaux.
Questions de la femme
Le sentiment partagé durant cette réunion était que le réseau était en mesure de soutenir bien des questions spécifique aux femmes, par exemple :
– Fournir des informations quant à la participation ou à la gestion du travail de terrain en Afrique ;
– Recherche et collaboration, étant donné que certains pensaient qu’il était difficile de développer des collaboration de terrain lorsqu’on est une femme.
Reseau-tage
Une manière assez simple de rentre le réseau plus actif serait que ces membres commencent à l’utiliser d’avantage pour poster des messages, que ce soit des opportunités pour partager des chambres lors des colloques, l’annonce de places disponibles dans les équipes de terrain ou le lancement de nouvelles recherches. Une membre a essayé de poster une annonce à la liste, ce mal fonctionnement sera rectifié.
Lorsque ce réseau deviendra plus actif, il va inclure aussi les rencontres concernant le reseau-tage pendant les colloques et il semble être un moyen efficace d’encourager les objectifs du réseau. 2
Perspectives D’Avenir
Il y a eu un consensus sur les points d’action pour les quelques années à venir, à savoir :
Sur le long terme, plusieurs membres ont exprimé le souhait d’avoir notre propre site-web. Celui-ci pourrait inclure une section privée où un carte qui indiquerait localisation des membres, et les opportunités de supervision ou de recherche sur le terrain pourrait être partagés. Nombre de nos membres se sont déclaré prêts à servir de mentor. Sur le long terme, une lettre d’information pourrait être envisagée. Sur le court terme, certaines actions concrètes sont proposées.
3. New publications by WAC members
ANTHROPOLOGICAL EXPERT OPINIONS: ITS IMAGINARIES AND REALITIES IN FEDERAL PROCESSES IN MEXICO
Published by Manejo Cultural
This is a manual where the author Msc. José Israel Herrera, analyses how federal judges take the opinion of anthropologists into consideration when a Mayan person appears in court. This book can be read online for free through the month of April 2011 at:
http://www.emcsac.com/emcsac/Bienvenida.html
The author Israel Herrera is PhD Candidate in Legal Anthropology at the University of Amsterdam and expert in Mayan law. Contact information: jisrael5@gmail.com
PERITAJE ANTROPOLÓGICO EN JUDICIAL FEDERAL
Publicado por Manejo Cultural
Manejo Cultural AC, publicó el libro: Peritaje Antropológico, sus realidades e imaginarios como prueba judicial federal”. Este es el primer libro sobre metodología, análisis y crítica del Peritaje Antropológico en México en el que se analizan casos relacionados con la etnia Maya Peninsular en el que se le ha dado seguimiento a la evolución, procesos y dinámicas de esta prueba judicial. El libro puede ser leído online en el mes de abril en:
http://www.emcsac.com/emcsac/Bienvenida.html.
El autor Israel Herrera es Candidato a Doctor en Pluralismo Jurídico por la Universidad de Amsterdam, Abogado con Posgrado en Antropología Social, experto en derecho Maya. Contacto: jisrael5@gmail.com.
THESES ON ATACAMAN CROSS-BORDER RELATIONSHIPS AND COLONIAL MYTHS AVAILABLE FOR FREE ON PDF
Raúl Molina Otarola is making his doctoral thesis in anthropology, “Collas and Atacameños on the Atacaman Plateau and Desert and the Valley of Fiambala: Their Cross-border Relationships (Northern Catholic University-University of Tarapacá, 2010),” available to WAC members and the scientific community. The thesis approaches social articulation, economy, culture, history, and customs through ethnographic work in these areas. It analyses the travel routes and processes of ethnification in these regions of Argentina and Chile. Molina Otarola studies the social networks of family relationships, friendship, and compadrazgo as sustainers of relationships and cross-border exchanges. He critiques the nation-state that disconnect pre-existing indigenous relational space and shows how the majority of Andean studies fail to see these relationships and networks among territorial spaces. He invites an analysis based on the circulation sphere to understand trans-mountainous mobility and re-envisions anthropological studies principally centered in spheres of material production and symbolism, proposing that approach has impeded the understanding of indigenous relationships beyond national borders imposed in recent centuries.
Molina Otarola is also interested in sharing his Master’s Thesis in Geography from the University of Chile entitled “Geography and Colonial Imaginaries of the Unpopulated Desert of Atacama.” He approaches the invention and geographical description of the Great Depopulation and analyses from the work of chronicler Jeronimo de Vivar how successors of the colonial centuries impoverished the knowledge and description of the depopulated desert owing to the failure of Spanish chroniclers to travel back to this space.
To request a PDF of either manuscript, write the author at: raul.otarola@gmail.com.
TESIS DE RELACIONES TRANSFRONTERIZOS Y MITOS COLONIALES DISPONIBLES POR PDF GRATIS
Raúl Molina Otarola, pone a disposición de los interesados, miembros del WAC y la comunidad científica, su tesis doctoral en antropología; “Collas y Atacameños en la Puna y el Desierto de Atacama y el Valle de Fiambala: Sus relaciones Transfronterizas”( Universidad Católica del Norte-Universidad de Tarapacá, 2010). A través de un trabajo etnográfico aborda las articulaciones sociales, económicas, culturales, historicas y consuetudinarias entre estas regiones. Analiza las rutas y los viajes, y los procesos de etnificación en estas regiones de Argentina y Chile. Estudia la redes sociales del parentesco, la amistad y el compadrazgo como sostenedores estas relaciones e intercambios transfronterizos. Efectúa una critica a los estados-nacionales que desvinculan el espacio indígena relacional preexistente y muestra como la mayoria de los estudios andinos carecen de una mirada que relacione y vincule estos espacios territoriales. Invita a un análisis basado en la esfera de la circulación para entender la movilidad trancordillerana, y renueva la mirada por sobre los estudios antropológicos centrados principalmente en la esfera de la producción material y simbólica, planteando que ello ha impedido entender las relaciones indígenas más alla de las fronteras nacionales impuestas en los siglos recientes.
Además, ofrece compartir la tesis de Magister en Geografia de la Universidad de Chile, denominada; “Geografia e Imaginarios Coloniales del Desierto-Despoblado de Atacama”. Esta trata de la invención y descripción geográfica del Gran Despoblado y analizada a partir del cronista Jeronimo de Vivar, como en los siglos coloniales venideros se empobrece el conocimiento y la descripción del desierto-despoblado debido a que este espacio no vuelve a ser transitado por los cronistas hispanos.
Para solicitar una copia PDF, escribir al autor: raul.otarola@gmail.com
Rock Art of the Caribbean
By Michele H. Hayward, Lesley-Gail Atkinson, and Michael A. Cinquino
2009. The University of Alabama Press, Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
This volume contains information on the rock art of the region solicited for several topics (history of research, number and types of rock art, research and conservation status) from investigators in the Greater Antillean islands of Bahamas, Cuba, Jamaica, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands, as well as several islands in the Lesser Antilles. Complementing the wide-spread, in depth aerial coverage, are two chapters that outline a method to document petroglyphs via three-dimensional laser scanning and a final section that brings together the volume’s and other authors’ data while assessing the current status of Caribbean rock art.
Contemporary Archaeologies: Excavating Now
Edited by Cornelius Holtorf and Angela Piccini
221 pp., numerous figures
Second Edition 2011
Frankfurt am Main etc: Peter Lang.
ISBN 978-3-631-61142-5 pb.
More information including Table of Contents and ordering details click here
Origins of Agriculture in Western Central Asia: an Environmental-Archaeological Study
By David R. Harris
Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010
ISBN 978-1-934536-16-2, US$65.00, £42.50
David Harris has been a member of WAC since its origin and was closely involved, with Peter Ucko and others, in its creation. He participated in the first Congress in Southampton, and have attended all the subsequent Congresses.The seeds of the research described in the book were sown at the first WAC Congress in 1986 when the late Professor V. M. Masson, then Director of the Institute of the History of Material Culture in Leningrad, discussed with Peter Ucko the idea of developing collaborative field projects in the Soviet Union. One of these was to resume excavations, previously undertaken by Masson, at the early Neolithic site of Jeitun (Djeitun) in southern Turkmenistan in order to obtain direct evidence of the antiquity of agriculture at the site. Harris first visited Jeitun in 1989 and, with a team of British, Russian and Turkmen archaeologists, continued work there through the 1990s. He also carried out surveys elsewhere in Turkmenistan, and was able to demonstrate unequivocally that agropastoralism, based on wheat, barley, goats and sheep, was practised at Jeitun from 6,000 cal. BCE.
The book includes contributions from 14 specialists, with detailed descriptions of the field and analytical work and also chapters on the present and past physical environments of Turkmenistan and adjoining areas, the history of archaeological research in the region, the main Mesolithic and Neolithic sites, and archaeological and genetic evidence for the areas of origin of the crops and domestic animals present in the Neolithic. It concludes with two chapters of general interpretation and synthesis.
Remote Sensing for Archaeological Heritage Management
Edited by David C. Cowley
EAC Occasional Paper 5; Occasional Publication of the Aerial Archaeology Research Group No. 3
Remote sensing is one of the main foundations of archaeological data, underpinning knowledge and understanding of the historic environment. The volume, arising from a symposium organised by the Europae Archaeologiae Consilium (EAC) and the Aerial Archaeology Research Group (AARG), provides up to date expert statements on the methodologies, achievements and potential of remote sensing with a particular focus on archaeological heritage management. Well-established approaches and techniques are set alongside new technologies and data-sources, with discussion covering relative merits and applicability, and the need for integrated approaches to understanding and managing the landscape. Discussions cover aerial photography, both modern and historic, LiDAR, satellite imagery, multi- and hyper-spectral data, sonar and geophysical survey, addressing both terrestrial and maritime contexts. Case studies drawn from the contrasting landscapes of Europe illustrate best practice and innovative projects.
Language: English with abstracts in French and German
2011.
312 pp., with 218 illustrations in full colour throughout
ISBN 978 963 9911 20 8
http://www.archaeolingua.hu
Corpus Signorum Imperii Romani (CSIR) – Corpus der Skulpturen der römischen Welt
Bestandteile von römischen Grabbauten aus Aquincum und dem Limesabschnitt im Stadtgebiet von Budapest
Edited by Chr. Ertel
Language: German
2010.
216 pp. with illustrations
ISBN 978 963 9911 18 5
ISBN 9630576422
http://www.archaeolingua.hu
The Celts
By Wolfgang Meid
“The Celts” – who were they? Did they really exist, or are they, as some archaeologists seem to believe, a mere scientific construct, a fictitious entity? The basis of this misapprehension is the fact that it is not possible to diagnose Celticity by archaeological means alone. “Celtic” is, in the first instance, a linguistic concept, and disregarding this linguistic foundation must lead to an impasse. It is the proven relationship of the so-called “Celtic” languages and their derivation from a common ancestor which justifies this scientific concept.
Language: English
2011.
182 pp. with illustrations
ISBN: 978 3 85124 228 7
http://www.archaeolingua.hu
4. Conferences and Opportunities
“I Know Where I’m Going”: Remote Access to World Heritage Sites from St Kilda to Uluru
23-24 November 2011- Edinburgh (UK)
Call for Papers
At a time of economic crisis and environmental threat, countries everywhere are addressing the dual challenge of protecting and preserving their natural and cultural heritage while maximising its economic value. This two-day international conference will focus on the potential of new technologies to create high-quality, remote-access, visitor experiences for World Heritage Sites and other sites of cultural, historical and natural significance where remote access is desirable or necessary.
The conference has three main aims:
a- To showcase the new technologies available: including the 3D laser scanning of St Kilda WHS as part of the Scottish Ten project to create exceptionally accurate digital models of Scotland’s five UNESCO World Heritage Sites and others worldwide, in order to better conserve and manage them (http://www.scottishten.org/). A number of other forms of digital mapping & scanning, as well as other technologies will also be demonstrated.
b- To debate the benefits and challenges these new technologies present. This applies not only to issues of preservation, conservation, interpretation, education, but also to the benefits and pitfalls of virtual access to sensitive sites and the economic benefits of tourism promoted thus.
c- To encourage site managers worldwide – particularly within the UNESCO World Heritage Sites network – to consider the benefits & impact these new technologies could have for their own sites, allowing them to investigate these further and clarify issues of acquisition, installation, costs etc.
In addition to papers on the central theme of remote-access, we now invite papers and presentations which address key questions and particularly welcome empirical contributions grounded in national and regional contexts.
For more information go to http://inspace.mediascot.org/beholder/iknowwhereimgoing. Submissions and inquiries are through: rawhsc11@gmail.com . The deadline for submissions is now 3rd May 2011. On submission of an abstract, authors should receive an email confirming receipt of their submission.
Contact
Isabelle Uny
Project Manager & UK National Commission for UNESCO (Scotland)
Email:rawhsc11@gmail.com
Website:http://inspace.mediascot.org/beholder/iknowwhereimgoing
Mobile: +44(0) 777 380 8912
Important Dates
Submission of title and abstract: 3rd May, 2011 Notification of acceptance: 25th May, 2011 Deadline for early-bird registration: 15 July, 2011 Registration deadline: 11 November, 2011 Remote Access to World Heritage Sites Conference: 23 & 24 November, 2011
International conference: Deer and People – Past, Present and Future
University of Lincoln, 8-11 September 2011
To submit a paper proposal for the following session please download a form and submit via the website, sending an additional copy to reynoldsFM1@cardiff.ac.uk or mulvilleja@cardiff.ac.uk by the 30th of April:
Website link
Thinking About Deer: Beliefs, Concepts and Worldviews
Reynolds Ffion1 , Mulville Jaqcui2
1 School of History, Archaeology and Religion, Cardiff University, UK, reynoldsFM1@cardiff.ac.uk
2 School of History, Archaeology and Religion, Cardiff University, UK, mulvilleja@cardiff.ac.uk
This session focuses on how humans articulate their beliefs, concepts and worldviews through the diverse and often complex relationships they may develop with the deer species. Papers will discuss how deer are used to express concepts, how deer materialise beliefs, the role of the deer within ritual and the interplay between qualities such as image, material and performance. We invite papers that, drawing on these multi-disciplinary challenges, seek to develop integrated and theoretically informed approaches that deal with the social, ritual and spiritual aspects of the human:deer relationship. These may relate to the dynamic relationship between deer-environment-humans in anthropological, art historic, archaeological and cultural heritage studies or build on recent theoretical developments in animal biography, animism, shamanism, non-human agency and cultural ecology.
The purpose of this session is to consider these issues, in both past and present contexts, and to establish whether analogous interpretative frameworks are used between those working with prehistoric, historical or modern societies, and between those working in different geographical contexts. How easy is it to identify social, ritual or spiritual aspects of deer in the archaeological record? How much similarity is there across different societies in the treatment of deer that have been made special or are considered taboo? Can concepts such as animism, totemism or shamanism help or hinder our search for spiritual and ritual human:deer association? How has the deer species been depicted in art? How has deer exploitation and use changed through time and can we tell if deer were being socially and ritually used for specific purposes? What insights can be gained about the religious paradigms and social systems of societies which have developed intricate and deep relationships with deer? Have such beliefs and concepts persisted into the 21st century, and what kinds of relationships do ‘real’ modern day groups have with deer? This session hopes to move interpretation beyond gross functionalist explanations that ultimately divorce human interaction with deer use and provide a base for working from wider social, symbolic, cognitive, religious and phenomenological contexts.
Our Future’s Past: Sustainable Cultural Heritage in the 21st Century
First call for papers
The American University of Rome in collaboration with the British School at Rome will host a conference 24-26 November 2011 on the topic of sustainable cultural heritage. Papers are invited from all interested parties including (but not limited to) heritage professionals, academics, special interest groups, independent researchers, cultural tour companies and NGOs.
Proposals for papers and/or panels should be sent to heritageconf@aur.edu by 25th April 2011.
We are aiming to get a broad range of participation and would be particularly interested in papers on the negative impacts of heritage on local communities.
Asia-Pacific Rock Art Conference 2011
Friday 16 September – Sunday 18 September
Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia
The ANU Rock Art Research Centre is pleased to announce the first annual Asia-Pacific Rock Art Conference: rock art studies and management in Australia, Asia and the Pacific to be held over three days in September 2011. This conference is part of a collaborative initiative to provide greater opportunities for rock art specialists, Indigenous community members, rock art managers, and others, to regularly come together and discuss their work. Contributions are not restricted to just the Asia-Pacific region and we welcome colleagues from around the globe.
For further information please visit:
http://rsh.anu.edu.au/rockart/index.php/conferences
We look forward to seeing you in Darwin,
APRA Conference Organising Committee 2011
5. News from other archaeological associations
(used with permission)
5 (a) SALON
Salon 252: 28 March 2011
Academics accuse Government of forcing them to study the ‘big society’
The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) has been accused by UK academics of setting aside significant amounts of funding for research into the ‘big society’, in contravention of the so-called Haldane principle, named after the 1918 Haldane committee report: this established the principle that researchers rather than politicians should decide where research funds should be spent.
According to a report in the Observer, the AHRC has been told that research into the ‘big society’ is non-negotiable if the current level of funding (£100m a year) is not to be cut. The report also says that the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has produced a revised version of the Haldane principle; this states that research bodies must work to the Government’s national objectives, even if ministers do not themselves specify individual research topics.
A Department for Business, Innovation and Skills spokeswoman insisted, however, that the AHRC itself had proposed ‘big society’ research as a strategic priority. ‘Prioritisation of an individual research council’s spending within its allocation is not a decision for ministers’, she said.
Professor Colin Jones, President of the Royal Historical Society, says: ‘In a way, the AHRC should be congratulated for securing a good settlement in a difficult spending round, but there is something slightly ignoble about making the “big society” a research priority. It is government money. They have the right to spend it on what they want, but there is a degree of anxiety about the strings being put on. They are being strengthened, which could be dangerous for independent research.’
Labour MP and historian Tristram Hunt says he intends to raise the issue in parliament, saying ‘it is disgraceful that taxpayers’ money is being spent on this bogus idea’.
World Heritage Sites
Eleven new sites have been added to the UK’s tentative list of World Heritage Sites at the recommendation of the independent expert panel chaired by our Fellow Sue Davies, which was given the task of sifting nominations and coming up with a shortlist. Two sites — the Twin Monastery of Wearmouth—Jarrow and Darwin’s Landscape Laboratory, Kent — are already on the tentative list.
They will now be joined by:
· Chatham Dockyard and its Defences, Kent, England
· Creswell Crags, Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire, England
· England’s Lake District, Cumbria
· Gorham’s Cave Complex, Gibraltar
· The Island of St Helena, South Atlantic Ocean
· Jodrell Bank Observatory, Cheshire, England
· Mousa, Old Scatness and Jarlshof, Shetland, Scotland
· The Slate Industry of North Wales
· The Flow Country, Scotland
· The Forth Rail Bridge, Scotland
· The Turks and Caicos Islands, West Indies
First humans in North America
Researchers at Texas A&M University announced last week that they had found the first ‘unequivocal proof for pre-Clovis occupation of America’, in the form of pre-Clovis stone tools, found in sediments that, using luminescence dating, are estimated to be between 15,500 and 13,200 years old. Until now the oldest firmly dated human material found on the continent of America comes from the Clovis site, in New Mexico, and is around 13,000 years old. These sediments are also stratigraphically earlier than the Clovis layers at the same site.
The newly dated material comes from the Buttermilk Creek Complex at the Debra L Friedkin site, about 40 miles north west of Austin, in Texas. Michael Waters, who led the research team, described the 15,528 chert artefacts found at the site as consisting mostly of ‘chipping debris from the making and re-sharpening of tools, but over fifty are tools. There are bifacial artefacts that tell us they were making projectile points and knives at the site. There are expediently made tools and blades that were used for cutting and scraping.’
Waters does not believe that the tools, which are noticeably different from Clovis technology, are necessarily the work of a different people. ‘This discovery provides ample time for Clovis to develop. People [from the Buttermilk Creek Complex] could have experimented with stone and invented the weapons and tools that we now recognise as Clovis.’ He does, however, believe that ‘it is now time to abandon once and for all the ‘Clovis First’ model and develop a new model for the peopling of the Americas’.
Several sites, including two in Wisconsin, one in Pennsylvania and one in Oregon, have already produced stone tools that have been given pre-Clovis dates, but in each case the dating has been problematical; equally, the dating of stone tools from Monte Verde, Chile, to 14,100 to 14,600 years ago, has been contested. The cumulative evidence suggests however, that humans were living in the Americas some time before the Clovis tradition emerged.
Salon 251: 14 March 2011
Losing chunks of DNA made us human
A revolution in thinking about the human genome is likely to come about as a result of the paper published last week in the journal Nature, showing that what makes us uniquely human may have more to do with parts of the genome that are active in chimpanzees but inactive in humans. In other words, the differences lie not in what we have gained, in the form of extra DNA, but rather of what we have lost along the path of evolution.
The paper, published by a team at Penn State University, says that it is difficult to see major differences when comparing the human and chimpanzee genome; where the differences lie is in the part of the genome that regulates which genes are active and when. Crucially, chimpanzees have control mechanisms that limit the growth of brain cells which is not active in humans; losing that DNA allowed parts of the human brain to expand in ways that conferred an evolutionary advantage.
Body hair and penile sensitivity are two further examples of the key differences between humans and chimpanzees. The latter development is thought to have paved the way for more intimate and monogamous relationships: highly sensitive penises are apparently more common in animals that face intense competition for mates, and where females are likely to mate with many males in rapid succession. The loss of penile sensitivity may have allowed paved the way for more complex relationships and social structures.
Philip Reno, one of the co-authors of the study, says: ‘There are going to be many different features that make humans unique and I don’t think we’re close to describing all the links between genes that make us different from chimpanzees; we are just getting the initial picture.’
Salon 250: 21 February 2011
Events in Egypt: eyewitness accounts
Despite early fears that the events of the anti-Mubarak demonstrations that began in Egypt on 25 January 2011 might lead to the widespread looting of Egypt’s rich heritage, it now looks as if the scale of the damage was limited: Zahi Hawass, Minister of State for Antiquities Affairs, has been issuing a a series of statements, from which it appears that many of the objects thought to have been stolen from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo have since been found hidden or discarded in the grounds of the museum, and others have been returned after having been found abandoned in the streets around the museum. Even so, some seventy objects have been damaged and others are still missing (pictures of which are being circulated to police and art dealers around the world), while looting has also been reported at a handful of tombs in the Nile valley.
It could have been so much worse, as two eyewitness accounts testify. The first, from Zahi Hawass himself, describes what happened on 28 January 2011 when ‘about a thousand people began to jump over the wall on the eastern side of the museum into the courtyard … they entered the gift shop and stole all the jewellery and escaped; they thought the shop was the museum’. Ten people are then reported to have entered the museum itself by breaking the glass skylights and using ropes to get in … they broke thirteen display cases and threw the contents on the floor, but, says Hawass, worse looting was prevented by volunteers who came to make sure the museum remained safe and intact, and who surrounded the building to prevent illegal entry.
The second account comes from our Fellow Heinrich Härke, who happened to be in Cairo for the fourth ‘Medieval Nomads’ (MeN 4) conference from 25 to 30 January 2011. Here is his story. ‘The conference was organised (as usual) by our Hungarian colleagues, but this time held in the Culture and Press Office of the Hungarian Embassy in Cairo … because Hungary had some money to burn during its EU Presidency. No learned papers were rudely interrupted, but the trouble started on our first excursion day, Friday 28 January. When we came back from the Gizeh pyramids, our bus had the greatest problems getting us to our various hotels because the first battles between demonstrators and police (with petrol bombs and teargas grenades being used already) blocked the main roads into the town centre. In the evening, one of the epicentres of the demonstrations was the western access to Tahrir Bridge, about 600 metres from my accommodation in the Russian Cultural Centre. So we went there, had a look, sniffed the teargas, and talked to the demonstrators who always wanted to know “What does the West think of this?”
‘Next morning, Saturday 29 January, the first item on our excursion schedule was the Egyptian Museum on Tahrir Square. Not knowing anything of what had happened on the square the night before (internet and mobile telephone networks had been shut down by the government on Friday evening), two Russian colleagues and I tried to get there. The taxi driver looked doubtful, but he got us across the bridge before he had to turn back. We struggled on, past burnt-out police lorries and tanks, until we spotted the low red building of the Egyptian Museum next to the burning Mubarak party HQ, under the barrel of the combat tank blocking access from the bridge to Tahrir Square. The museum courtyard was packed with police, and soldiers with armoured personnel carriers posted outside. I played dumb (never difficult for a German) and asked if the museum was closed. A civilian in a pinstripe suit rushed up to confirm that it was closed “today”, but he asked us “Do come again”. I assured him that we would. An Egyptian Army colonel strode past at that moment and greeted us, in passing, in impeccable Queen’s English: “Hello! How do you do?”
5 (b) African Diaspora Archaeology Network
Launch of Website for Slavery Memorial Important Step Forward, Says Ban
By United Nations News, posted online February 1, 2011
http://www.un.org/
February 1, 2011 — Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today lauded the launch of a website for the permanent memorial honouring the victims of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade, calling it an important step forward in making the memorial a reality at the United Nations Headquarters complex.
The memorial is a reminder that millions of Africans were violently removed from their homelands, ruthlessly abused and robbed of their dignity, Mr. Ban said in a message delivered on his behalf by Kiyo Akasaka, the Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, at the inauguration of the website.
“The memorial will also remind the world of the bravery of those slaves, abolitionists and unsung heroes who managed to rise up against an oppressive system and end the practice,” the Secretary-General said, adding that it will also serve as a call to action against contemporary manifestations of slavery.
Mr. Ban noted that the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade in the 19th century did not eradicate the practice globally. Slavery continues to manifest itself in such exploitative practices as serfdom, debt bondage and forced and bonded labour; trafficking in women and children, domestic slavery and forced prostitution, including of children; sexual slavery, forced marriage and the sale of wives; child labour and child servitude, Mr. Ban said.
Ambassador Raymond Wolfe of Jamaica is heading efforts to erect the memorial, while a committee of interested States is also participating in the trust fund set up in 2009 to pay for the construction. An estimated $4.5 million is needed if the memorial is to be erected by 2012.
Lanzamiento del Sitio Web de la esclavitud hacia adelante Memorial paso importante, dice Ban
Por Noticias de las Naciones Unidas, publicado en línea 01 de febrero 2011
http://www.un.org
01 de febrero 2011 – El Secretario General Ban Ki-moon, elogió hoy el lanzamiento de un sitio web para el monumento permanente en honor a la víctimas de la esclavitud y la trata transatlántica de esclavos, diciendo que era un paso importante para hacer realidad el monumento en a Sede de las Nacionesel El monumento es un recordatorio de que millones de africanos fueron sacados violentamente de su tierra natal, cruelmente maltratados y despojados de su dignidad, dijo el Sr. Ban en un mensaje leído en su nombre por Kiyo Akasaka, por el Secretario General Adjunto de Comunicaciones e Información Pública , en la inauguración del sitio web.
“El monumento también le recordará al mundo la valentía de los esclavos, los abolicionistas y los héroes anónimos que lograron levantarse contra un sistema opresivo y poner fin a la práctica “, dijo el Secretario General, quien agregó que también servirá como un llamado a la acción contra las manifestaciones contemporáneas de la esclavitud.
Ban señaló que la abolición de la trata transatlántica de esclavos en el siglo 19 no erradicó la práctica a nivel mundial. La esclavitud sigue manifestándose en prácticas de explotación tales como la servidumbre, la servidumbre por deudas y trabajo forzoso y , la trata de mujeres y niños, la esclavitud doméstica y la prostitución forzada, incluso de niños, la esclavitud sexual, matrimonio forzado y la venta de esposas, el trabajo infantil y la servidumbre infantil,
El Embajador Raymond Wolfe, de Jamaica, dirige los esfuerzos para erigir el monumento, mientras que un comité de los estados interesados también participa en el fondo fiduciario creado en 2009 para pagar la construcción. Un estimado de $ 4.5 millones es necesario si el monumento se pretende erigir en el 2012.
NOAA, Partners, Launch New Website Highlighting African-American Maritime Heritage
By National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Posted online February 1, 2011 by NOAA
NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, in partnership with Murrain Associates, Inc., and the National Association of Black Scuba Divers (NABS), today launched Voyage to Discovery, a new website and education initiative highlighting untold stories of African-Americans and the sea. Aimed at everyone from students to adults, the Voyage to Discovery website offers feature stories, interviews, and videos about African-American seafaring achievements since the period of pre-Civil War to today. Information about marine careers will also be available.
The website is part of a broader NOAA initiative to build public awareness about the legacy of African-American maritime heritage and engage a broad spectrum of Americans in the stewardship of the country’s coastal and ocean resources through education, archaeology, science and underwater exploration. Daniel J. Basta, director, NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, said the Voyage to Discovery education initiative honors African-Americans’ deep connection to the sea and highlights the continuing, historic role of the ocean in the security, stability and prosperity of the nation.
“Minorities are the fastest growing population in the country, but are vastly underrepresented in science and technology fields,” Cottman said. “In order for the U.S. to maintain its competitive edge, the future workforce will need to draw on the minds and talents of all its citizens.” As far back as the American Revolution, blacks have been involved in virtually every aspect of maritime work. Despite an uncertain and sometimes dangerous racial climate, blacks worked as skippers and captains as well as whalers, lobstermen and fishermen. They also managed lighthouses, steered paddleboats and warships, along with owning sea industry businesses. The Underground Railroad used ships to spirit slaves to freedom, and black mariners helped shaped the identity of free black communities.
The National Association of Black Scuba Divers was established in 1991 to foster camaraderie among black divers and to address the unique problems and concerns of the African-American community. The organization has more than 2,000 members across the country and internationally. Membership is open to anyone regardless of race, color, gender, physical challenges or diving agency affiliation.
Murrain Associates Inc. is a management consulting firm with a focus on strategic planning, project evaluation, community development, health services planning, assessment and management. Murrain Associates consists of three members of the National Association of Black Scuba Divers who have shared experiences in marine biology, marine archaeology, slave ship exploration, history, law, journalism and marketing. NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict changes in the Earth’s environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources
Seizing Freedom: Archaeology of Escaped Slaves at Camp Nelson, Kentucky
By W. Stephen McBride and Kim A. McBride
The booklet Seizing Freedom: Archaeology of Escaped Slaves at Camp Nelson, Kentucky, which is reprinted here, tells the story of African American women and children who escaped slavery in Kentucky during the Civil War and entered the U.S. army depot of Camp Nelson. The women and children, along with their husbands and fathers, began entering Camp Nelson in large numbers during the spring of 1864, as the men were attempting to join the U.S. Army. The men were successful in this venture and were emancipated upon joining one of the eight United States Colored Troop regiments organized at Camp Nelson. The women and children, however, who were generally the wives and children of the enlisting soldiers, were initially not successful in attaining their freedom, but many did stay within camp, at least in temporary encampments. It took the tragic November 1864 expulsion of the women and children from Camp Nelson, in which 102 died, to force the federal government to finally emancipate them (in March 1865) and create a more permanent refugee camp, known as the “Home for Colored Refugees.”
Archaeological excavations were conducted at both a pre-expulsion refugee encampment and at the “Home for Colored Refugees,” and provide new insights into the lives of these women and children. In particular, the archaeology illustrates differences in the women and children’s conditions, adaptations, and autonomy in the encampment versus the “Home” and in different settlement situations within the “Home.” This booklet was funded by a grant from the National Park Service’s National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program that also funded archaeology, archival research, and a museum exhibit on these women and children. The exhibit is at Camp Nelson Civil War Heritage Park, which is located near Nicholasville, KY (see campnelson.org for more information).
Next Issue: June 2011
Shoshaunna Parks and Marisol Rodríguez-Miranda
shoshiparks@hotmail.com; marirodz@gmail.com