Theme:
4. Persisting with Change: Theory and Archaeological Scrutiny
Session format:
Regular session
Title:
Continuity and Change in Ritual Landscapes Dynamics: Reuse and Transformation of Prehistoric Ritual Places
Content:
The ritual monuments of prehistoric Europe symbolically structured the landscapes in which they were built, for several millennia. How did later prehistoric communities perceive these monuments? Did they respect and reuse the ritual sites of their ancestors? Did these places retain their sanctity or were they simply transformed into areas of secular settlement, thus losing their original sacredness? Awareness of the original ritual purpose of these monuments, which remain clearly visible in many parts of the European landscape, was certainly passed down in oral tradition. In this session we aim to investigate the development and perception of ritual sites and landscapes by successive generations of prehistoric farmers. Combining modern archaeological and scientific methods, it is possible to analyse and reconstruct how these monuments were reused and altered and, in some cases, destroyed, by later generations. We want to explore both continuity and change at these monuments and how they may have been perceived long after they were built. Archaeological evidence found at some monuments, reveals that they continued to function as arenas of ritual and social interaction. At others, the evidence shows that their original spiritual function was terminated. We believe that the new data provided by both remote sensing and interdisciplinary research, leads us towards a better understanding of prehistoric monuments and landscape dynamics, from the Neolithic to the present day.
Keywords:
Ritual landscape, Prehistoric monuments, Reuse of monuments, Landscape dynamics, Europe
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:
Main organiser:
Jan Turek (Czech Republic) 1
Co-organisers:
Petr Krištuf (Czech Republic) 2
Agnieszka Przybyl (Poland) 3
Ana Vale (Portugal) 4
Affiliations:
1. Center for Theoretical Study, Charles University, Prague
2. Department of Archaeology, Umiversity of West Bohemia in Pilsen
3. Institute of Archaeology, University of Wroclaw
4. Faculdade de Letras da Universidade do Porto
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