Interpreting the Early Modern World - (Contributions to Global Historical Archaeology) by Mary C Beaudry & James Symonds (Hardcover)

About the Book

Based on a session at the 2005 Society for Historical Archaeology meeting, this book discusses theories and practices that inform interpretive archaeology both sides of the Atlantic, and includes commentary by well-known names in interpretive archaeology.

Book Synopsis

Interpretive archaeology - meaning the interpretation (social science as opposed to hard science) of archaeology and archaeological artifacts - has predominantly been the realm of prehistoric archaeologists. Many historical archaeologists are participating in this disciplinary shift from processualism to post-processualism and interpretation, but to date few have called their work interpretive archaeology.

This volume is based on a session at the Society for Historical Archaeology meeting in 2005. The organizers - now editors - brought together historical archaeologists from both the UK and the US working in the same areas (industrial landscape, monuments, etc.) but because of their country-based training, their work arises out of differing intellectual traditions. The chapters in each section do not stand in isolation; rather, the authors exchange ideas about what each other has written. They construct dialogues about theories and practices that inform interpretive archaeology on either side of the Atlantic, ends with commentary by two well-known names in interpretive archaeology in the UK and in the States.

From the Back Cover

Although historical archaeologists often explore similar themes, the intellectual traditions in the United States and the United Kingdom lead to differing interpretations of these themes. The contributions to this innovative volume provide a bridge between a US-based archaeologist and a UK-based archaeologist on the themes of landscape studies, urban archaeology, memory and memorialization, gender studies, the lives of industrial workers, and archaeological biographies. The chapters are not meant to stand in isolation, but rather provide a dialog between both groups. This work explores the strengths of interpretive historical archaeology in the US and the UK, as well as compare and contrast differing approaches. It aims to foster debate and productive collaborations between historical archaeologists from different geographic regions. It will of interest to UK and US-based archaeologists, as well as those performing interpretive historical archaeology in other regions who will benefit from the insights it provides.

Review Quotes

[The volume] is concerned with the practice of interpretive archaeology on historical period sites, and how approaches differ between the Americas and the British Isles...the organization of this book, which presents one paper from either side of the Atlantic for each theme, allows for comparisons of approaches and ideas. Herein lies the strength of the volume: it is a composite piece, both self-reflective and critical....Together, these chapters demonstrate various challenges, in addition to the importance of developing a context-specific archaeological framework for site selection. This call for contextual research is furthered by Beaudry, who argues in her chapter that the experience of women cannot be wholly determined through the identification of 'female' objects, such as thimbles and bodkins. Her approach thereby challenges the use of norms when making archaeological interpretations...

Beaudry and Symonds' collection is a very readable, well-structured volume, and represents the potential of collaborative transnational research for understanding the recent past.
Katherine Fennelly, Post-Medieval Archaeology, 42/2, 2012