Critique of Class

So admittedly I came to this class slightly interested in the subject, but more thinking "well I need to take it for my degree".  I am leaving this class with an entirely different attitude about archaeology.  This class has been truly more then I could hope for.  Professor Erin McGuire is one of the greatest profs I have had, and this class one of the most amazing eye opening I have taken.

Truthfully I am not a person who is into archaeology very much, I am more of a cultural anthropologist, this classes interesting material, and approach to learning about death and burial really changed my my mind about archaeology and I am 100% sure my future attitude when approaching a archaeology class will be very different.    I thoroughly enjoyed myself and found that the none testing of the material made me really have a chance to not worry about whether or not I could remember a thousand and one dates, but instead to understand the material and approach it will a "want" to learn rather than a "need" to learn urgency. 

The guest speakers who came in were really amazing and I really saw a different side of archaeology where there is a component and piece more then just researching and looking at old sites.  I especially was impacted by the Chinese burial speaker and her work, and presentation about ethics and the residential schools.  Presenting topics and connecting theories to case studies helped exponentially and made this a thrilling journey and an experience. 

It truly was an amazing awakening to archaeology and a chance to see potential in studying anthropology, with relevant agency in more then just cultural anthropology.  There is an amazing quote that I thing sums up this class, "remember the past, live in the present, and look to the future."  I think that this class has incorporated all of this and really was a true fantastic experience. 

It's not what you got down there, it's what you believe in that counts

So about three years back I was in a New Age shop in Fan Tan Alley, and saw a very interesting thing.  This thing was an article about a female shaman grave that was found in Israel in 2008.  This archaeological find was a big deal, because in that area in particular it is very rare to find a spiritual leaders grave that is female.

 This grave in Hilazon Tachtit, Israel, of a Natufian woman was 12,000 years old it is thought to be the earliest known grave of a female shaman.  Inside her grave were found with offerings of 50 tortoise shells and a human foot.  The burial site she was in contained at least 28 other graves, and the Shaman’s was separated by a circular wall of stones, with this wall were buried many different animal bones.  She was about 45 years old.  One other thing that is described that I found quite interesting and could possibly lead to help with an explanation for one of the other graves we looked at in class.  Is the positioning of rocks on the head, pelvis, and arms of the buried individual, sound familiar?  Well it should be, the burial we talked about in class could have similar meaning. 

This big draw of this story for me is my own interest in gender and religion, especially about what a woman can do with regards to contact with a spirit world, or whatever the location of the divine or divinities may be. This is something that for me has always been of interest because of my involvement in religion.  In my experience many times all genders of spiritual leaders that I have met have been quite amazing people.  But to note that there is a woman with such power and respect within the archaeological record at this time, is something that I am quite inspired by and gendered archaeology is something I would like to explore more.

On one last note, regarding gender I would like to take a moment to wonder if the archaeological record may or may not reflect the changing acceptance in reform Judaism for who can become Rabbi’s in the recent year.  I speak from this position as I am reform Jewish and I know more about the practices and religion.  Recently women, gays, lesbians, African Americans, and many more diverse people are being allowed to enter the rabbinical circle.  I would wonder would there be any difference to the graves, that tells the story of this shift, years from now? 

Article about the female shaman: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,446407,00.html

Dancing and Stones

Well what do the living leave for the dead? Really what do different cultures leave for the dead as commemoration, or a gift?  I wanted to also find out which of these offerings may or may not survive in the archaeological record.  So I looked at Jewish contrasted with Malagasy traditions. 

So to begin with I chose the example of the Jewish tradition of leaving stones on a grave, this to me is a familiar one, and one I have experienced a fair amount myself in the last four years.   The reason for the stones being left on the grave is for two different purposes.  One because in the ancient times, many times there were no grave stones to mark where the deceased were buried, the stones themselves became the markers to remember where loved ones where laid to rest.

 The second reason came later in Jewish history, and this pertains to remembering the destruction of the two temples around 70 CE and a little earlier.   I would like to add a third reason that I have heard talked about recently, a modern concept that the stones may be considered more environmentaly friendly, and as part of Tikun Olam (helping the world) in modern Jewish faith is present, this is a very good possibility.  As to whether these would survive within the archaeological context, I think that they would do very well, however they may not be recognized for their exact meaning if there is no explanation of Jewish memorial customs present. 

The opposite example I came across was dancing with the dead and rewrapping them in a new shroud as they decompose.  This is a custom given to the dead of the Malagasy people in Madagascar it is called Famadhana.  This is now frowned upon as predominant Christian religion, dancing a jig with the bones of a relative is usually not accepted in the Christian burial traditions.   This tradition is fairly new to Madagascar, and the use of shrouds has been on the decline due to price of silk in the last while.   The dancing is thought to be similar to traditions in Southeast Asia where it is believed that the soul can’t leave the body until the body is decomposed completely, the dancing is told to be to celebrate the kinship.  This quote from a Malagasy man to BBC should sum it up “It's important because it's our way of respecting the dead. It is also a chance for the whole family, from across the country, to come together.”

As to whether this would all carry on and be foreseeable in the archaeological record years from now, that is debatable.  The shrouds and cloth if it is not too far into the future may be noticeable in the archaeological record.  The dancing however will only be seen if stories are taken in as evidence of burial ritual, and/or people are present that are still keeping up the traditions.

So to leave this entry with a question, I want you, the reader, to ponder what you give to the dead? Do you give anything back to the dead?

Jewish Grave Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/catsplay/3368908766/

Famadhana Photo and info: http://www.weirdworm.com/7-strange-funeral-customs/2/