Convened By
Halit Dundar Akarca (Turkey), John Schofield (UK) and Takehiko Matsugi (Japan)
Theme Details
The second statute of the World Archaeological Congress states that the Congress is based ‘on the explicit recognition of the historical and social role, and the political context, of archaeological enquiry, of archaeological organisations, and of archaeological interpretation’. Archaeologists from around the world are deeply concerned about the possibility of war between the USA, Iraq (and associated countries). This theme emerges from that concern. At this time, Washington DC seems a particularly appropriate setting for presenting a range of views on archaeology and war.
Sessions within this theme will focus on the archaeology of war in both the past and the present, including the destruction and preservation of cultural heritage, the politics of doing archaeology in war-torn zones, the uses of the past in situations of conflict and the aftermath of war on the construction of identities through material remains.
Sessions
A Fearsome Heritage: Diverse Legacies Of The Cold War 1946-89
Organized By
John Schofield (UK) and Wayne Cocroft (UK)
Session Details
Session rationale
Following the end of World War II came the Cold War, in which the conflicting ideologies of East and West led to escalations in the arms race, and increased militarisation around the globe. In the years 1946-89 this was a world in which the three minute warning was a constant threat and the shadow of the mushroom cloud an enduring image.
At WAC4 in 1999 a session on modern military remains described some of this legacy: nuclear test sites in the Nevada Desert and giant radar installations in Alaska. But the legacies of the Cold War went far beyond military installations, embracing or influencing many aspects of popular culture, science and technology, architecture, landscape and people’s perceptions of the world; of their locality (where they lived close to military installations) and of the future. Many of course believed there would be no future, a belief that grew at times of international crisis.
What happened at and around Greenham Common, UK, where Ground-Launched Cruise Missiles (GLCMs) were stored, represents a microcosm of the international scene: at the time, military personnel, local residents and protestors all co-existed in a world of active opposition. After the ending of the Cold War the heritage sector became involved in the site, as did local businesses, alongside those with ecological and popular cultural (especially artistic) interests. Art has been inspired by the monuments that remain at Greenham Common, as have stories and poems. Now a planning application has been submitted for a peace garden, as a memorial by the protestors for the local community.
This session will attempt to document and deconstruct these diverse interests, we hope through a variety of media though with the emphasis on short presentations summarising more substantive web-based contributions. We aim to include representations from peoples displaced by the location of nuclear testing grounds, from artists and writers inspired by the events or architecture of the Cold War, from social historians examining its influence on the local scene, and from those charged with finding a new use for what are often massive and functional remains. We will also examine what archaeology can contribute to understanding the Cold War and all that it entailed. Geopolitically we aim to engage interests from both sides of the former Iron Curtain, as well as from neutral countries. By exploring diversity in this way we hope to demonstrate the strong influence of the Cold War on modern culture and on perceptions of the world we now live in; a kind of critique on modern life at a time when a return to arms looks increasingly likely.
Presentations
‘Cood Bay Forst Zinna’
Angus Boulton The Berlin Wall: Border, Fragment, Void, Memory
Polly Feversham and Leo Schmidt
Archaeology Of Dissent: Landscape And Symbolism At The Nevada Peace Camp
Colleen M. Beck, Harold Drollinger (Desert Research Institute, Las Vegas) and John Schofield (English Heritage) Cold War on the Domestic Front
Victor Buchli (Department of Anthropology, University College London)
Fast Attacks & Boomers: A Museum Presentation Of Cold War Military History
Barton C. Hacker (Smithsonian Institution, USA) Defining the National Archaeological Character of the Cold War
Wayne D Cocroft (English Heritage, UK)
Shaping Military Women Since World War II
Margaret Vining (Smithsonian Institution, USA) Out to the Waste: Spadeadam and the Cold War
Louise K Wilson
A ConSPIracy Cantata
Yannis Kyriakides Greenham Common – the conservation and management of a Cold War archetype
Veronica Fiorato (West Berkshire Council, UK)
Session Time
Day Monday Date 23rd June
Time 9AM-1PM & 4-6PM Room Pryzbyla B
Preserving The Cultural And National Heritages Of Afghanistan
Organized By
Philip Kohl (USA) and Rita Wright (USA)
Session Details
Contact Details
Philip L. Kohl, Department of Anthropology, Wellesley College,
Wellesley, MA
Rita Wright, Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, NY
For more than two decades the rich archaeological remains of Afghanistan have been subject to different forms of destruction: plundered for the antiquities market; obliterated by incessant fighting; and even deliberately demolished by governmental decrees. This symposium examines the historical practice of archaeology in Afghanistan, discussing the recent tragic destruction of the multiple cultural and national heritages of Afghanistan and examining the reemergence of the looting of sites and the trading of antiquities that is currently underway. Its principal focus is on the future: how to build a sense of pride and identification in Afghanistan’s Islamic and pre-Islamic pasts; how to preserve and, in some cases, restore Afghanistan’s monuments; and how to strengthen and create the necessary state and regional institutions to protect these heritages. Questions to be addressed and debated include: the appropriate auspices under which future archaeological research programs should be undertaken; and the needs and sources of financial support essential to stop the looting and to conserve the country’s archaeological sites and architectural monuments. The benefits and costs of ultimately developing responsible and financially beneficial forms of archaeological tourism will also be discussed.
Presentations
Session Time
Day Sunday Date 22nd June
Time 9AM-1PM Room Pryzbyla B
Archaeology And War I: From The Past To The Present
Organized By
Eric Cline (USA)
Session Details
Organized by:
Eric H. Cline, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Ancient History and Archaeology
Department of Classical and Semitic Languages and Literatures
The George Washington University
345 Phillips Hall, 801 22nd St. NW
Washington, D.C. 20052
Tel: (202) 994-0316
Fax: (202 994-2156
Email: ehcline@gwu.edu
Web Page: http://home.gwu.edu/~ehcline
FORMAT: SHORT PRESENTATIONS & DISCUSSION
War and warfare has played a pivotal role throughout much of human history. The rich material record generated by such conflict has resulted in some of the most spectacular archaeological sites in the world (the Great Wall of China, castles and forts), as well as a multitude of ‘ordinary’ sites. Studying the archaeology of war and warfare provides us with an opportunity to:
• Understand how conflict has shaped human history.
• Reflect on the variety of ways in which human beings react and respond to war and cope with its aftermath.
• Recognise the repetitiveness of warfare and study the social and economic factors which give rise to it.
• Understand how warfare has affected the practice of archaeology in the recent historic past.
• Reflect on the social and political values invested in these remains today.
Presentations
Orphan Heritage: Issues In Managing The Heritage Of The Great War In Northern France
Jon Price (Senior Lecture, Cultural Management, University of Northumbria at Newcastle, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom)
Russian Archeological Expeditions in The Occupied Regions of Turkey During the WWI
Halit Dundar Akarca (Center for Russian Studies, Bilkent University, Ankara, Turkey)
Tahangarh: An Archaeological Survey Of A Pre-modern Fort
Vinod Kumar Singh (Centre of Advanced Study, Department of History, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh (U.P.) India)
WWII archaeology in the Pacific Theater: Examples from Kwajalein Atoll, Corregidor and Wake Islands
Carl Kuttruff (Louisiana State University, 621 Albert Hart Drive, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA) and Gregory L. Fox
The Archaeology Of Armageddon
Eric H. Cline (Department of Classical & Semitic Languages & Literatures, The George Washington University,Washington, D.C., USA)
Warfare and Population Pressure in the Past: Myths and Reality
Steven A. LeBlanc (Peabody Museum, Harvard University, USA)
The Defense Of Tikal: Strategic Architecture In The Maya Lowlands
Jay E. Silverstein (U.S. Army Central Identification Laboratory, Hawaii), David Webster (Department of Anthropology, The Pennsylvania State University, USA), Horacio Enrique Martínez (Proyecto Miraflores II, Colonia Landivar, Guatemala) andTimothy Murtha (Department of Social Sciences,State University of New York, USA)
Ancient Fortresses of Azerbaijan
Aida Akbar gizi Memmedova (Azerbaijan National Science Academy, Institute of Ethnography and Archaeology)
Session Time
Day Wednesday Date 25th June
Time 9AM-1PM Room Pryzbyla B
Archaeology And War II: From The Present To The Future
Organized By
Nils Anfinset (Norway)
Session Details
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Presentations
Archaeology In A Sacred And Contested Area. Excavations In The Jericho Region 2002.
Nils Anfinset (Department of Archaeology, University of Bergen, Norway)
Landscapes of War and the Promotion of National Traditions and Myths
Brooke S. Blades (The Ottery Group, Inc., Strafford, PA, USA and New York University, New York, NY, USA)
Jerusalem Besieged: Ancient Conflicts, Modern Propaganda
Eric H. Cline (Assistant Professor of Ancient History and Archaeology, Department of Classical and Semitic Languages and Literatures, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C, USA)
War and the breakdown of social order
Robert Layton (University of Durham, UK)
The Effects Of The Warfare On The Practice Of Archaeology In Colombia
Wilhelm Londono (Universidad del Cauca, Colombia) The Aesthetics & Ethics of Archaeology: Lithuania
Elaine Smollin (Research Affiliate, New York University, USA)
Session Time
Day Wednesday Date 25th June
Time 4-6PM Room Pryzbyla B
Cultural Material Preservation During Conflict And Post-War Redevelopment
Organized By
Claire Smith (Australia), Takehiko Matsugi (Japan) and Heather Burke (Australia)
Session Details
Throughout history, the preservation and appropriation of material culture have been major considerations during periods of armed conflict. While the loss of human life far outweighs any material considerations, survivors must later deal with the major losses of national heritage, sacred sites and cultural identity. As part of 20th and 21st century rebuilding processes, material culture preservation has been an important source of national pride and cultural unity as well as an important political tool. But in some instances, preservation has also superceded quality of life considerations and it is a subject fiercely debated among politicians, archaeologists and citizens.
Should material culture preservation be a priority for nations as they work through the peace-keeping and rebuilding processes? Or would funding earmarked for preservation be better spent on things such as schools, roads and public health? Does the UN, through UNESCO, impose Western ideals of a material past on other cultures? To what lengths should we go to preserve cultural material during periods of armed conflict, or is the very idea of preserving material culture while destroying lives too absurd to consider?
All these questions must be addressed by nations as they face the reality of modern warfare, especially as it relates to development and rebuilding. This session will address these and related issues in an international climate that invites views from all sides of the arguments.
Presentations
Afghanistan’s Cultural Heritage: An Exceptional Case
Juliette van Krieken-Pieters “Picture Not Found”. Reports on the pillaging of Iraq’s antiquities in leading German print- and online-media
Diane Scherzler (Suedwestrundfunk, Germany)
Thinking Of Past, Ethnically Mixed Communities, And Sustainable Development
Tsoni Tsonev (Institute of Archaeology, Sofia, Bulgaria) Cultural Heritage Preservation in Post-War Settings in Central America
Frederick W. Lange (Professor of Anthropology and Archaeology, Universidad Tecnologica de El Salvador, Fulbright Scholar (1999-2001) Public Education for Cultural Heritage Preservation)
Casualties Of War: The Destruction Of Iraq’s Cultural Heritage As A Result Of U.S. Action During And After The Gulf War
Marion Forsyth Unprotected Global Cultural Heritages in War: Rescuing historical monuments of Iran
Jafar Mehrkian
Is Restoration The Ultimate Solution For Gaining Lost Values? Restoring The World Heritage Site Of The Temple Of The Tooth Relic In Sri Lanka Destroyed By Terrorists
Gamini Wijesuriya
Session Time
Day Thursday Date 26th June
Time 9-11AM Room Pryzbyla B
Identity In The Ruins Of War?: Cultural Heritage, War And Social Identity
Organized By
Lyn Leader-Elliott (Australia) and Takehiko Matsugi (Japan)
Session Details
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Presentations
Island Fortress: Heritage And The Model Occupation Of Jersey, Channel Islands
Christine Finn (Research Associate, The Institute of Archaeology, University of Oxford, 36 Beaumont Street, Oxford OX1 2PG UK) War Memorials, Identity and Belonging in the Barossa Valley, South Australia
Lyn Leader-Elliott (Cultural Tourism, Flinders University, SA, 5001, Australia)
The Historical Trajectory To Kamikaze
Takehiko Matsugi “Kamikaze” and the formation of the image of “Fanatic Orientals”
Tomoyo Nakao (Okayama University, Japan)
War-Related Sites In Japan — Archaeological Researches And Citizens’ Movement To Preserve Cultural War Heritage In Recent Years(1990-2003)
Shumbu Jubishi (Professor of Yamanashi Gakuin University, Japan and President of Japanese National Network For Preservation of War-Related Sites)
Session Time
Day Thursday Date 26th June
Time 11.30AM-1PM Room Pryzbyla B