Reconstructing ancient worlds: reception studies, archaeological representation and the interpretation of ancient Egypt
Reconstructing ancient worlds: reception studies, archaeological representation and the interpretation of ancient Egypt
Archaeological studies of the reception and representation of the past have proliferated in recent years, but theoretical and methodological work on this area is limited. The wider cultural engagement with prehistoric and ancient cultures is a long-established practice that has continued from antiquity to the present. During this time, there has been an exchange of ideas between those who have investigated ancient material remains and others who have represented aspects of the past in more creative contexts. Such representations of prehistoric and ancient worlds play an important part in generating interpretations of the past, yet we still know little about how they relate to the archaeological process of creating knowledge. In the following discussion, concepts from the field of reception studies are considered in relation to establishing a sound basis for undertaking research on archaeological representation. A case study on the visual reception of ancient Egypt is presented as a means of suggesting how research on archaeologically inspired representations of the past might be structured.
archaeological representation, reception of the past, archaeological interpretation, archaeological visualisation, ancient egypt, egyptomania
1263-1308
Moser, Stephanie
af3009ce-a7c4-4550-a180-7e1987b7deed
December 2015
Moser, Stephanie
af3009ce-a7c4-4550-a180-7e1987b7deed
Moser, Stephanie
(2015)
Reconstructing ancient worlds: reception studies, archaeological representation and the interpretation of ancient Egypt.
Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory, 22 (4), .
(doi:10.1007/s10816-014-9221-z).
Abstract
Archaeological studies of the reception and representation of the past have proliferated in recent years, but theoretical and methodological work on this area is limited. The wider cultural engagement with prehistoric and ancient cultures is a long-established practice that has continued from antiquity to the present. During this time, there has been an exchange of ideas between those who have investigated ancient material remains and others who have represented aspects of the past in more creative contexts. Such representations of prehistoric and ancient worlds play an important part in generating interpretations of the past, yet we still know little about how they relate to the archaeological process of creating knowledge. In the following discussion, concepts from the field of reception studies are considered in relation to establishing a sound basis for undertaking research on archaeological representation. A case study on the visual reception of ancient Egypt is presented as a means of suggesting how research on archaeologically inspired representations of the past might be structured.
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2015 Journal of Arch Meth and Theory
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e-pub ahead of print date: 20 November 2014
Published date: December 2015
Keywords:
archaeological representation, reception of the past, archaeological interpretation, archaeological visualisation, ancient egypt, egyptomania
Organisations:
Archaeology
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Local EPrints ID: 372363
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/372363
ISSN: 1072-5369
PURE UUID: 03581eb0-d342-4eda-ba60-b72821456879
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Date deposited: 01 Dec 2014 16:36
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 18:35
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