Archaeology of Medieval Europe I: History and Politics in Medieval Archaeology

Sponsoring Organization(s)

Center for Medieval and Early Modern Studies, Univ. of Florida

Organizer Name

Florin Curta

Organizer Affiliation

Univ. of Florida

Presider Name

Andrew Holt

Presider Affiliation

Florida State College at Jacksonville

Paper Title 1

Byzantine Archaeology at a Crossroads

Presenter 1 Name

Michael Decker

Presenter 1 Affiliation

Univ. of South Florida

Paper Title 2

Politics, Identity, and Archaeology in the Border Region: (Re-)imagining the Early Medieval Past in the Southeastern Alps

Presenter 2 Name

K. Patrick Fazioli

Presenter 2 Affiliation

Mercy College

Paper Title 3

Medieval Slavs in Moldavian Soviet Archaeology

Presenter 3 Name

Iurie Stamati

Presenter 3 Affiliation

Univ. of Florida

Paper Title 4

Strongholds of the Rus'

Presenter 4 Name

Matthew Smith

Presenter 4 Affiliation

Univ. of Florida

Start Date

11-5-2017 10:00 AM

Session Location

Schneider 1335

Description

Over the last few decades, scholars have studied the relationship between nationalism and archaeology. The common approach has been one inspired by Benedict Anderson's concept of "imagined communities." Archaeologists served the nationalist cause by providing illustrations to an already defined ideal of medieval national history. More recently, however, the scholarly focus shifted to the role of historical fiction in shaping the archaeological interpretation of sites and artifacts. This session is meant to present some of the most recent work in the field, through case studies, such as the archaeology of the early Slavs in the (formerly Soviet) Republic of Moldova, in Slovenia, and in Austria, the role of the Normanist debate in the development of a Russian archaeology of the Viking Age, and the recent changes in the popular perception of Byzantium.

Florin Curta