[Discussion] Contemporary and Historical Archaeology in Theory

[sule tarakcioglu]

CHAT 2004 *(Contemporary and Historical Archaeology in Theory)* 
University of Leicester 19th-21st November 2004

CHAT is a new, British-based, archaeology conference group providing 
opportunities for dialogue to develop among researchers in the 
interdisciplinary fields of later historical archaeology and the 
archaeology of the contemporary world. After a highly successful launch 
at Bristol University in 2003, this second meeting takes place at the 
University of Leicester.

The 2004 conference will include three sessions:

Conflict The last 500 years have seen numerous battles and wars. What is 
the archaeological contribution to their interpretation? How does 
scholarly archaeology of war differ from popular (and profitable) 
battlefield archaeology? What ethical and political issues confront the 
archaeologist working in this area? What role has archaeology played in 
uncovering evidence of very recent conflict, and what issues surround 
this? Conflict need not only refer to state-organised large-scale 
violence. Other kinds of confrontation between groups and individuals 
may also be considered: riots and civil disobedience; national, ethnic 
or racial antagonism; class or gender based conflict; insurgents, 
"terrorists" and "freedom-fighters" and so on. Papers relating to any 
aspect of the archaeology of conflict are welcome.

Industrialising society The archaeology of industrialisation is about 
much more than the detailed recording of steam engines and factory 
buildings in a narrowly defined period-based study. Instead, it is 
moving beyond period- and process- based definitions to a more open, 
wide ranging, and theoretically informed sub-discipline within the 
broader church of historical archaeology. The study of industrial 
society is about the whole range of human actions, reactions and 
interactions with the processes associated with industrialisation. The 
aim of this session will be to look beyond industrial sites and 
monuments and look at the wider study of later post-medieval society as 
it developed from the fifteenth to the twentieth centuries. Issues 
tackled may include the archaeologies of consumption, capitalism, 
colonialism and international trade; gender and ethnicity in labour 
relations; and the meaning of industrial landscapes. Papers should also 
focus on an examination of the social world of the workplace itself - 
discussing aspects such as the relationship between 'artisanship' and 
'proletarianisation', labour hierarchies and social identity.

Reform Explicit and discursive reform is a key social and economic 
aspect of the period, as well as an important part of its religious and 
political history. How evident is a desire for reform, or the 
institution of a designed programme of reform, in the archaeology of the 
period? Spheres to consider might include religious practice, social 
conditions, crime and punishment, landscape and civic planning and so on.

Delegate registration is now open. For further information, please 
contact Dr.Sarah Tarlow (sat12@le.ac.uk) or by post.

	Dr Sarah Tarlow
School of Archaeology and Ancient History,
University of Leicester
LE1 7RH
UK






Email: sat12@le.ac.uk <mailto:sat12@le.ac.uk>
Visit the website at 
http://www.bris.ac.uk/Depts/Archaeology/events/chat2004.html 
<http://www.bris.ac.uk/Depts/Archaeology/events/chat2004.html>