#archaeology discourse

[gay-david-tennant]

discourse? nonono, in this house you get DISK HORSE

[un-pearable]

people in the archaeology subreddit digging up the corpse of indiana jones again for the annual discourse. somehow seem to have forget the most important scene in the film if you’re critiquing his status as an academic

[clearancecreedwatersurvival]

Reminder that people who have been in one high control group tend to end up joining other high control groups (including the guy who developed the BITE model).

Reminder internet movements/communities/pipelines often become high control groups.

Reminder that online communities that demand you at all times police yourself and everyone else around you, and/or sell you a worldview of complete nihilism where people not in the in group are evil or stupid and only you the people in the group Know The Truth and embody Goodness because what the group believes is the only correct way to be Are High Control Groups and if you find yourself in one you should consider getting the fuck out of there.

If it walks like a cult and quacks like a cult, it’s probably a fucking cult.

Flat-earthers/Q-anon/Atlantean/ancient alien conspiracy theorists (all of which are rooted in anti-semitism and most of which originated with the Nazi party) are high control groups, and most of the people in those communities are also in fundie Christian cults.

The ‘rationalists’ who push shit like the imminent evil ai which must be protected against and simulation theory and a Lot of Eugenics and also that one extremely notorious Harry Potter fanfic back in the day are high control groups.

Terfs are a high control group, and so are the community which is basically their inverse: the black-pilled part of the manosphere/incels. Once again most people in those groups are also in or formerly from fundie Christian cults. In the case of terfs, some people in the community genuinely believe that they are progressive and feminist which I find very darkly funny given that the entire terf movement has been proved to be intentionally created and spread by, you guessed it, the same fundamentalist Christian evangelical death cultists who are trying to seize governmental power and proposing anti trans bathroom laws and bans to anything remotely sexual or divisive in internet spaces.

Multi-level-marketing companies form high control groups out of their ‘sales rep’ consumer bases who don’t realize that 96% of them will never make a profit and they’re not supposed to, because they are actually the company’s market. And yes, mlms are incredibly popular with people who are also in a fundie cult, which is why they’re the most popular in the United States in Utah.

And the anti-shipping community is also a high control group which has found extreme purchase in algorithmic rabbitholes on tiktok and twitter. And it’s pretty apparent that most people in that community are either currently in some sort of repressive Christian religious environment or formerly so, given how many of them keep telling people to burn in hell for disagreeing with them.

[cryptvokeeper]

I don’t remember if I’ve made this exact post before but in case I didn’t people in the Pokémon irl tag you are my favorite people on this site

[icelogged]

it is my time to carry the cross that once dug into the backs of british looking white girls who took lofi selfies in the 2010s ♡

[dykesynthezoid]

“Those historical costuming community weirdos” people on here will say, bc they cannot fathom that someone with formal education as a dress historian might… shockingly… actually know more about historical dress than they do. You know, as an expert. And it’s wild bc it’s ppl who will decry anti-intellectualism in one breath and then demean studied female historians in the next, all bc they??? Presented a piece of clothing history that contradicted your specific layman’s misconceptions????

That’s not to say these historians don’t have their own bias and may interpret the facts of dress history a certain way; but that’s the case in any professional field. There’s always some variation in perspectives and interpretations. That doesn’t change the fact that those professionals still have a much better understanding of the issue than you do as a layman. Also the way people talk about these women is very frequently misogynistic as hell, but I guess that isn’t surprising. Would prefer if it didn’t come from so many people who proclaim to be feminists though

[chronicanthropologic]

Anthropologist here. I worked in an anthropology lab during my undergrad. We had a collection that we were working on returning to the country it was stolen from. Who was it stolen by? Art students who went grave robbing on a study abroad trip. Not anthropologists. There are codes of ethics and codes of conduct as well as several acts and laws in place to ensure that things like this do not happen. These codes are constantly updated as well. All of the collections I worked on were artifacts or pottery donated to us or things that our professional archaeologists were actively working on during their own research and digs. Nothing was being stolen, it was being documented and typography guides were being made. Everything was numbered, photographed, and kept track of so we knew things were accurate. Please do not mistake looters for professional archaeologists and anthropologists. Our job is to do no harm.

[wardentabriis]

It's always so funny to me to see people rail against RPF from a moral high ground like...y'all know historical fiction has existed for millenia, right? I'm very curious when the cutoff is for them

[phoenix-joy]

Author & Timestamp: Sarah Kuta for Smithsonian Magazine, April 30, 2024.

Note: this is an emotive topic and it is not one I feel qualified to give an opinion on yet. My sharing of this extract and link neither supports nor argues against any particular viewpoint, it's simply to take note of a conversation that I feel is important.

Extract:

[T]he Chau Chak Wing Museum at the University of Sydney [has] removed fragments of mummified bodies from public display. Museum staffers also plan to rename the “Mummy Room” to more accurately and respectfully reflect mummification’s significance in ancient Egyptian culture.

[...]

Egyptologist Melanie Pitkin, [...] a senior curator of antiquities and archaeology [at Chau Chak Wing], is leading the charge to rethink how the museum displays and interprets its Egyptian collection.

[...]

“For hundreds of years, body parts in museum collections have been treated as objects,” says Pitkin in a statement.  “We have become so accustomed to seeing them on show that we often forget they once belonged to living people.”

For now, the remains are being kept in the museum’s “closely monitored collection store” while curators work to “implement better practices with Egyptian communities and authorities,” according to the statement. In the display, the museum replaced the unwrapped body parts with ancient Egyptian funerary portraits from coffin lids and masks. Curators are also exhibiting a painted portrait from the Roman era.

[Two] completely wrapped, mummified bodies [...] along with 3D visualizations based on CT scans of the remains. The CT scan data of another mummified body [...] also remains on view.

[...]

“In renaming the room, we’d like to focus more on the transformation of the body into an eternal being [...], rather than the body itself,” Pitkin says [...]. “We also encourage visitors to critically reflect on the ethical complexities museums face when caring for human remains.”

[...]

“[Modern] cultural stereotyping [of ancient Egyptian mummified bodies] would elsewhere be recognized as a form of racism, but the ancient Egyptians are not here to object to the ways in which we depict them,” Jasmine Day, an Egyptologist [...], tells the Sydney Morning Herald.

[...]

Around the world, curators and policymakers are also reconsidering their approaches to other types of artifacts. Earlier this year, [...] Harvard University removed a book binding made of human skin from its library, while the Field Museum in Chicago covered some of its Native American artifacts.

/end of extract

[elimgarakdemocrat]

I get why people find this kind of thing cute but they do know that it's completely destroyed any possibility the original will work right

"oh yeah this was a common slogan, we have several examples of this in the houses of scientists. Probably some kind of incantation meant to ward off bad luck via ironic detachment"

[tlatollotl]

Why do some people rage against using the term Aztec, but say nothing when someone uses Maya (multiple cultures), Zapotec (Bën Za), Mixtec (Ñuu Savi Sukun, Ñuu I'ni, Ñuu Andivi), Tarascan (Purépecha), Huichol (Wixárika), Cora (Náayerite), Huastec (Téenek), or any other indigenous groups? Especially when discussing archaeologically defined groups/cultures that may be quite distinct from their contemporary descendants?

I'm not saying that we shouldn't use better terms. We most definitely should. Anasazi, for example, should never be used beyond a single sentence saying it is no longer an acceptable label when reviewing and discussing the historiography of the Puebloan peoples.

But that doesn't mean some terms should be abandoned in lieu of another term that is no way better. Replacing Aztec with Mexica ignores the two other ethnic groups/city-states that made up the Triple Alliance. I want you to stop and think And see if you can recall what those two groups were. I'll give you a hint, Nezahualcóyotl was from one of those groups.

Give up? They were the Acolhua and Tepanec. So, if you want to stop using Aztec, that's fine. But you have to replace it with Mexica, Acolhua, and Tepanec every time. However, that replacement is only limited to talking about Tenochtitlán, Texcoco, and Tlacopan. Why? Because there were more ethnic groups within the Basin of Mexico, not to mention outside the Basin of Mexico, that were under control of the Triple Alliance and were distinct from being Mexica, Acolhua, or Tepanec. You could, of course, replace Aztec with Triple Alliance, or Ēxcān Tlahtōlōyān in Classic Nahuatl. Totally fine if a little unwieldy. Though you may run into issues with people confusing the Triple Alliance of Mesoamerica with several Triple Alliances in European history.

But what really is the issue with using Aztec to refer to the multitude of ethnicities and cultures that made up the Triple Alliance? It isn't derogatory or insulting. The term is based on the semi-mythical homeland of numerous groups that occupied Central Mexico and made up a large part of the Triple Alliance (the Tlaxcalteca were from Aztlan, as well). In fact, Aztec is a handy term to refer to the collection of all these groups despite the polity not being a monocultural entity because these groups did share many cultural features, histories, and/or languages.

You could compare the term Aztec to Roman. A broad term that encompasses many peoples. But when necessary, you can discuss individual or small groups of ethnicities/cultures within the broader polity. And that includes the people of Rome itself which you could refer to as Romani, which they called themselves, to be distinct from the larger broader socio-political Roman label for the people of the Republic/Empire outside of Rome proper.

It's an issue of scale, I think. But that's why we have multiple terms available to use when the context and need arises. And if better terms come along, by all means replace the previous terms.

If you disagree, I would like to know why. This was sort of a rant into the void from seeing other online discourse. I really would welcome a good explanation as to why we should replace Aztec with Mexica at the expense of all the other groups that made up the Triple Alliance.

[exhaled-spirals]

« Are you going to change yet again, shift your position according to the questions that are put to you, and say that the objections are not really directed at the place from which you are speaking? Are you going to declare yet again that you have never been what you have been reproached with being? Are you already preparing the way out that will enable you in your next book to spring up somewhere else and declare as you're now doing: no, no, I'm not where you are lying in wait for me, but over here, laughing at you?

What, do you imagine that I would take so much trouble and so much pleasure in writing, do you think that I would keep so persistently to my task, if I were not preparing – with a rather shaky hand – a labyrinth into which I can venture, into which I can move my discourse… in which I can lose myself and appear at last to eyes that I will never have to meet again. I am no doubt not the only one who writes in order to have no face. Do not ask who I am and do not ask me to remain the same: leave it to our bureaucrats and our police to see that our papers are in order. At least spare us their morality when we write. »

— Michel Foucault, The Archaeology of Knowledge and The Discourse on Language

[gemsofgreece]

Sike

Initial info snippet: Βεργίνα (or Vergina in English) is pronounced ver - YEE - nah. Just saying, for no particular reason whatsoever.

Perhaps you know that there is a country in the periphery of Greece that has a flag with a sun. This alongside other issues has been a cause of contention between Greece and this country, as it using this sun as a symbol of its non-Greek nationality was condemned by Greece as an act of cultural appropriation.

That sun looked suspiciously like (as in, it was identical down to the last line) to the Vergina Sun, or sometimes called Vergina Star, most famously discovered in the tomb of King Philip || of Macedon, in Ancient Aegae, Vergina, Macedonia, Greece.

The golden larnax with the Vergina Sun found in the tomb that is believed to be King Philip's.

For some time the Vergina Sun was mostly perceived as a symbol of Macedonia or Macedonian royalty, except that meant polar opposite things to Greeks versus to their neighbours. The Vergina Sun became the symbol of the administrative and historical region of Macedonia within the Greek state, which has this local flag:

The flag was first created in the late 80s after archaeologist Michael Andronikos made the huge discovery of the tombs in Vergina. The Vergina Sun was added as a national symbol at the Hellenic Parliament in 1993.

Meanwhile, in 1992 the newly founded neighbour state (risen through the collapse of Yugoslavia) adopted the EXACT same flag as their official national flag, except the background was changed to red. Greece condemned the use of this symbol, accusing the country of appropriation. Due to the rising tensions between the states, the neighbouring country eventually changed its flag.............. which means it's still the same red flag with the sun except now the sun is "designed differently". Of course, the implications behind it as well as the claims have not changed one bit. The neighbour country was mad at Greece for preventing them to express their true ethnicity and for using her immense evil power (which, as we all know, Greece definitely possesses) to steal THEIR history, because Greece is jealous of THEIR history. Anyway even though there was a legal agreement of sorts between the countries in the last years, it is honoured so little you might as well believe it was never done. And it is crap for our side as well, so everybody hates it.

But here's the funny thing. Even if one argues the true issue is what being a Macedonian entails (which shouldn't truly be a discourse but let's pretend it is)... the hilarious truth is that the Vergina Sun..... is actually not a symbol of Macedonia and Macedonians.

You see, the symbol has been discovered all throughout Greece since at least the 6th century BCE, way before the Kingdom of Macedon rose to any prominence.

Vergina Sun originating from… Sparta, 6th century BC, exhibited in the Louvre.

This famous amphora by Exekias, 6th century BC, depicting Achilleus and Ajax playing a board game. The Vergina Sun decorates their cloaks. Exhibit in the Vatican Museum.

Hercules fighting the Amazons. The Amazon bears a shield with the Vergina Sun. Early 5th century, Gela, Italy. (So it was crafted in the Greek colonies in Magna Grecia, South Italy.) Exhibited in the Regional Archaeological Museum "Antonio Salinas", Palermo.

Jar with the Judgement of Paris. Athena's shield is decorated with a Vergina Sun. Athens, c. 360 BC.

So you know, not only it wasn't an exclusively Macedonian symbol but it actually seems to have been an Archaic symbol of Panhellenic (encompassing all the Greeks) warfare.

Dem evil Griekos stealing other pipl's history.

[sankofaspirit]

Cheikh Anta Diop (1923–1986) was a Senegalese historian, anthropologist, physicist, and philosopher, widely regarded as one of the most influential scholars in the field of African history and the promotion of African identity. Born on December 29, 1923, in the village of Diourbel, Senegal, Diop is best known for his pioneering work in the study of African history, culture, and civilization. He sought to challenge the Eurocentric narratives that had long dominated the understanding of African history and instead emphasized the central role of Africa in the development of human civilization.

Diop’s academic journey was remarkable for its breadth and depth. Initially studying in Senegal, he later pursued higher education in France, where he studied at the University of Paris. His academic background was diverse, as he was trained in the natural sciences, including physics, and in the humanities, which shaped his interdisciplinary approach to African history. Diop's work integrated a range of fields, including linguistics, anthropology, archaeology, and Egyptology.

One of his most significant contributions to African scholarship was his argument for the African origins of ancient Egyptian civilization. In his landmark work, The African Origin of Civilization: Myth or Reality (1974), Diop proved that ancient Egypt was a black African civilization, challenging the anti black theories that often portrayed it as an entity disconnected from sub-Saharan Africa. He used linguistic, cultural, and anthropological evidence to support his thesis, positing that Egypt was an integral part of African history and that African contributions to world civilization were often underrepresented or misrepresented.

Diop was also a strong proponent of the idea that Africa had a rich and complex history prior to European colonialism, which had been distorted or ignored by colonial and racist scholarship. He sought to restore Africa’s history to Africans themselves, arguing for a history of self-determination and pride in African cultural and intellectual achievements.

In addition to his work on African history, Diop made important contributions to the development of Pan-Africanism. He was a vocal advocate for African unity and independence and believed that the revitalization of African identity was key to the continent's progress. Diop’s ideas on African unity were influential in shaping the political discourse of the 20th century, and he was respected by leaders such as Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, who shared his vision of a united and self-reliant Africa.

Cheikh Anta Diop's legacy as a scholar and activist has had a lasting impact on the fields of African studies and postcolonial theory. He challenged the dominant Eurocentric worldview and provided the intellectual foundation for later generations of African scholars and activists. His work has been instrumental in fostering pride in African heritage and in challenging the lingering effects of colonialism on African thought.

Cheikh Anta Diop passed away on February 7, 1986, at the age of 62. His death marked the loss of a towering intellectual figure whose work continues to influence scholarship on African history, culture, and identity. His contributions to the understanding of Africa’s place in world history and his advocacy for African unity remain key elements of his enduring legacy. 🇸🇳

[tiredfoxtf]

This mcyt shit is crazy I'm never leaving

Manhunt, hundred days, Dream has just revealed his face, Accusations, twitter wars, Captain Sparklez has cursed, MCC, Buildfight, SMPs and pranks, Doxxing, bullying, death threats Civil wars, November the 16th, Technoblade never dies, Mojang has promised fireflies TCG, Decked Out 1 and 2, Twitch Rivals, Caves and Cliffs Speedruns, Minecraft telepathy Parkour Warrior, Buildmart, Philza died in 5 year Hardcore world, Vanilla purists, "why you are bored" "Minecraft tiktoks will turn your brain to mush" Welcome to Boat Rush!

We didn't start the fire, It was always burning, since the world was turning We didn't start the fire, No we didn't light it, is there a point to fight it?

Potato wars, Life series, Vault shard Animations and fanart, "modding is hard" JONO, Hermit Gang, Derivakat "RPF is bad", "Filter tags" Fandom discourse, exploitation, labour laws Flanderization, Hate anons, First to five wins, media comprehension skills Mod loaders, mob votes, megabuild Perimeter is now a field Wolf armour, Create, custom horns Cheating scandal, new records 15th Anniversary, archaeology Copper lamp, "consistency" and Bedrock New boss,"Is Minecraft hard?" Content thieves, originality Petty drama, "like and follow for more" I can't take it anymore!

We didn't start the fire, It was always burning, since the world was turning We didn't start the fire, No we didn't light it, is there a point to fight it?