Session: #353

Theme & Session Format

Theme:
1. Archaeologists and Archaeology Here and Now
Session format:
Regular session

Title & Content

Title:
Ethics, Conflict Archaeology and Society in the 20th and 21st Centuries
Content:
In recent years, the importance of ethics has been increasingly debated in many subfields of archaeology. In this session we aim to advance discussions that concern ethics in regard to the study of 20th- and 21st-century violence, injustices and repression. There have been innumerable episodes of conflict worldwide, ranging from wars to state-led terror and dictatorship. These conflicts have been characterised by physical, structural and symbolic violence against individuals, as well as acts of violence directed against the identity and livelihoods of groups. Their tactics have included the targeted destruction of material possessions, homes, entire settlements, agricultural land, and cultural heritage perceived as constitutive of particular groups’ identities.
Studying the material dimensions of violence, repression and persecution opens up ways to trace the production of injustices and immoral actions in the recent past and present. However, the practice of such research also presents distinctive ethical challenges. For example, at the intersections of archaeological work and contested heritage and memory discourses, scholars may encounter resistance, rejection, or even violent opposition to their work. In many places worldwide the heritage of conflicts, their scholarship, representations and commemorations are themselves platforms for contemporary divisions and violent contestation. We welcome papers that either discuss interpretative approaches towards material remains of 20th- and 21st-century violence and/or engage with the ethical dimensions of archaeological practice, e.g. dissonant heritage, handling of human remains, contesting and contested narratives, and varying attitudes towards the material remains of recent conflict.
Keywords:
ethics, conflict archaeology, society, contemporary archaeology, heritage, public archaeology
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:

Organisers

Main organiser:
Barbara Hausmair (Austria) 1
Co-organisers:
Claudia Theune (Austria) 2
Gabriel Moshenska (United Kingdom) 3
Affiliations:
1. University of Innsbruck/Department of Archaeologies
2. University of Vienna/Department of Prehistory and Historical Archaeology
3. University College London/Institute of Archaeology