The lost photos: archaeothanatology applied to photo documentation from the 1960s reveals new data about Mesolithic burials, Sado valley, Portugal

The Mesolithic shell middens in Portugal aggregate some of the largest and earliest burial grounds known, around 8000 years old, arranged and maintained by populations with an exclusive hunting, fishing, and foraging lifestyle. The archaeological material is housed in museums and consists of artefacts, field documentation (written, graphic) and more than 300 human skeletons. This archaeological assemblage is exceptional due to its quality and antiquity, but its early excavation introduces several challenges to the modern research. Here we present an analysis of the burials in the shell middens of Arapouco and Poças de S. Bento in the Sado valley, Portugal following the principles of archaeothanatology to reconstruct past ritual practices as responses to death. Our analysis was based on unpublished photographs from the 1960s and our aims were 1) to identify the nature of the deposits (primary, secondary); 2) to describe the space of decomposition of the cadaver (filled, empty, mixed); 3) to reconstruct the initial position of the cadaver in the feature; 4) to reconstruct the grave features, such as size and shape; 5) to detect the initial presence of perishable materials deposited along with the cadaver, such as structures behind the bodies, or wrappings of the body at the time of disposal; 6) to clearly define the deposits containing more than one individual; 7) to identify post-depositional manipulations of the cadaver. The method, which emerged in the context of field archaeology lays great emphasis on the field situation and it has been argued that assessment of the material may not be possible if key observations are not documented in situ. Despite the limitations, we demonstrate with this case study that archaeothanatology is a robust and reliable method to assess, study, and retrieve new data from the extensive archaeological assemblages of human remains available in museums.N/

A future for archaeology : in defense of an intellectually engaged, collaborative and confident archaeology

Through a critical review of inter- and transdisciplinarity in archaeology, this paper examines the power relationships within archaeology with regards to collaborators within and beyond the academy. By making a case for an archaeology that openly collaborates across disciplines and knowledge sys- tems, but also more firmly articulates itself and its value, the paper makes a case for an engaged and problematising archaeology for the future

2006. Nilsson Stutz, L. Setting it Straight. A re-analysis of the Mesolithic Barum burial according to the principles of Anthropologie ‘de terrain.’

The Mesolithic burial from Barum in Northeastern Scania has long been a subject of academic controversy regarding both the age of the burial and the sex assessment of the remains. A less public discussion has taken place regarding the initial position of the body in the burial. In this article, the documentation of the burial is analyzed in detail according to the taphonomic principles of anthropologie ‘de terrain’ and a reconstruction is proposed based on the results

More than Metaphor. Approaching the Human Cadaver in Archaeology.

Developments in body theory have had a strong impact on archaeology in recent years, but the concept of the body has tended to remain abstract. The term “body” is often used as a synonym for self or person, and the remains of bodies and body parts have often been approached theoretically as signs or symbols. While this has emphasized the importance of the body as a cultural construct and a social product, archaeologists have tended to overlook the equally important biological reality of the body. Bodies are more than metaphors. They are also biological realities. Maybe this becomes especially obvious at death, when the embodied social being is transformed into a cadaver, continuously in a state of transformation due to the processes of putrefaction and decomposition. In this transition, the unity of the mindful body and the embodied mind breaks down, and cultural and social control over the body can no longer be exercised from within, but instead has to be imposed from the outside. This article explores the friction between the culturally and socially produced body and the body as a biological entity at death. Through an approach that focuses both on the post mortem processes that affect the cadaver – and that can be seen as an ultimate materialization of death – and the practical handling of the dead body by the survivors, the author suggests a way toward an integrative and transdiciplinary approach to death and the dead body in archaeology

Cautionary Optimistic : A reply

Repsonse to comments on keynote.</p

Legislating multivocality : drawing on the NAGPRA experience

There is a general consensus today within archaeology and anthropology that we need to reach outside of the disciplinary boundaries and make archaeology and anthropology relevant for people outside o f the profession. Multivocality - whether as an abstract theoretical concept, or a practical reality- isbecomingmorethanabuzz-word,andisprogressivelyinfluencing policies and practices. This situation is especially evident in parts of the world where archaeology and anthropology historically were associated with colonial powers and colonial strategies. In several instances it is also in these parts of the world that we today see the most far-reaching changes in new policies, and where legislation is used to provide a process for multivocality involving especially indigenous peoples in order to fundamentally change the way archaeology and anthropology are practiced. As these issues are becoming increasingly global, it is reasonable to assume that all archaeologists, anthropologists, museum professionals etc, will need to discuss the possible strategies available in dialogue with each other and with other stakeholders. As we continue this discussion we can draw on the experiences in other parts of the world in order to formulate our strategies. This article critically examines an example of one such legislative effort, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) passed in the United States in 1990

Fires and Seeds. : Considerations for a decolonized Mesolithic archaeology.

The world is on fire, and European archaeologists are starting to feel the heat. With the war in the Ukraine, the rise of polarizing politics and global authoritarianism, and the climate emergency pushing us closer to the tipping point of planetary destruction, we cannot help but to feel deeply affected. In the face of these challenges, we want to act, but what we do as archaeologists can sometimes seem trivial and insignificant. Even worse, a critical examination of our disciplinary history can lead us to conclude that we are complicit in the injustices and even partially responsible for the current situation