The Past in the Past: The Significance of Memory and Tradition in the Transmission of Culture

Edited by Mercourios Georgiadis & Chrysanthi Gallou

City: Oxford

Year: 2009

Publisher: Archaeopress

Series: BAR S1925

Description: Paperback, 119 p., b/w ill., 29,5x21 cm

Abstract

The present volume is the outcome of a session held at the 12th European Archaeological Association conference at Krakow in Poland, in September 2006, titled The Past in the Past: The Significance of Memory and Tradition in the Transmission of Culture. In the papers presented in this session as well as in the chapters presented in this volume there were three central concepts, which were very closely linked and interrelated, memory, tradition and identity. It became apparent that there were various ways in which they were perceived and consciously exploited within different societies. The purpose of this volume is to present several studies related to these issues and highlight different dimensions. The aim is not to cover all of these aspects, but to offer fresh views with up-to-date approaches on specific examples which follow different theoretical and thematic paths. The papers in this volume are chronologically diverse, covering prehistory, the classical period, the Middle Ages and as well as modem times, and are presented in this order. Spatially, they are concentrated in the Aegean and Scandinavia, offering different geographical contexts. The first six chapters examine how the past is used in the past, while the last two are concerned with how the past is used within present societies.

Contents

Mercourios Georgiadis & Chrysanthi Gallou, ‘Introduction’ [1-4].

Helene Whittaker, ‘Memory and Cultural Values in the Middle Helladic Period. Some preliminary thoughts’ [5-15].

Kathryn Soar, ‘Old Bulls, New Tricks: The reinvention of a Minoan Tradition’ [16-27].

Mercourios Georgiadis, ‘The East Aegean-Western Anatolia in the Late Bronze Age III: What do the tombs tell us about memory, tradition and identity?’ [28-42].

Melanie Wrigglesworth, ‘Memories of place. Bronze Age rock art and landscape in West Norway’ [43-56].

James Roy, ‘Living in the mountains. Arkadian identity in the classical period’ [57-66].

Pandelis Constantinakos & Metaxia Papapostolou, ‘The formation of female Identity in Ancient Sparta through Kinetics’ [66-70].

Magdalena Naum, ‘Memories, practice and identity. A case of early medieval migration’ [71-86].

Anna Simandiraki & Trevor Grimshaw, ‘The Branding of Minoan Archaeology™’ [87-104].

Charlotta Hillerdal, ‘Material Identity – Archaeology and National Identity’ [105-119].