Overlooking Things Small and Large in the Rush to Global Inference
Mary C. Beaudry and James Symonds
We seek to explore the interplay between local and global contexts and scales of analysis in the archaeology of comparative colonialism. It is a simple matter to see the imprint of colonialism if one begins from the perspective of the colonial/imperial power: first there are broad, cross-cutting patterns of colonial expansion; second, different nations had distinct and distinctive approaches to colonization to the extent that some, like the Dutch East India Company/Dutch West India Company, literally had “kits” for colonizing that resulted in an unmistakable material signature around the globe. Neither of the above alter the fact that “the colonial experience” differed from one place to another. And this last is the most interesting part of the story even if it is far more difficult to tease out. Our point is that local scale provides the necessary context(s) for global inferences and that de-contextualized global inferences are not particularly useful and may gloss important cultural information.
papers:
Author 1 Author 2 Title
Allison The Old Kinchega Homestead
Beaudry Albion’s many seeds: Transplanting British regional identities
Fletcher Materiality, modernity and the role of historical archaeology
Symonds Diaspora and identity: ‘Becoming Worlds’ and Nineteenth century emigration from the Outer Hebrides of Scotland to Nova Scotia
Terrell An historical archaeology of the Sephardic Jewish Diaspora
Yentsch Timewarps and the Archaeological Interpretation of a Georgia Rice Plantation