The conference will be held over the weekend of 15th-16th November 2008 and will comprise a day of papers and discussions at the Archaeology building on Saturday followed, on Sunday, by a trip to the Scottish Crannog Centre on Loch Tay where delegates will be able to visit an experimental re-construction of a crannog and take part on various associated activities.

The use of experiment in archaeology provides a scientific theoretical structure within which various strands of evidence can be united in a systematic methodology. These strands of evidence can comprise information from ethnography, craft skills, technological expertise and archaeological data as well as phenomenological and educational studies. Papers and posters are invited on the following key themes that are suggested as a focus for presentations though not as a limitation on them.
* The role of experiment in archaeological interpretation and research.
* Understanding technology in ancient society.
* The role of experiment in public archaeology and “Living archaeology” centres: the case for greater academic involvement
* Case studies of current projects

More information here.

Archaeologists have tended to associate ‘the everyday’ with the mundane and the routine, to assume that we can readily understand it, and to oppose it to ritual. However, recent developments both in theory and in historical practice make it clear that it is now time to question this ‘transparency of the daily’.

This multidisciplinary conference, organized by the Centre for Historical Archaeology, University of Sheffield, will bring together scholars who are rethinking the ways in which people in the historical past (from classical antiquity to early modernity) perceived and engaged with the world in which they lived, worked, suffered, and worshipped - everyday.

The conference will be organised around 5 related themes:
* The Historicity of the Senses
* The Body in Everyday Life
* Everyday Life versus Ritual Life?
* Living Outside the Everyday
* When Different Everydays Collide.

Confirmed speakers include Professor Chris Gosden (Anthropology/Archaeology, Oxford), Professor Helena Hamerow (Archaeology, Oxford), Dr Miriam Muller, (Medieval History, Birmingham), Professor Blair St George (Folklore, University of Pennsylvania), Professor Carole Rawcliffe (History, UEA), Dr Kate Giles (Archaeology, York), Dr Mary Harlow (Ancient History, Birmingham); Dr Elizabeth Kryder-Reid (Archaeology, University of Indiana).

Please see the Conference website for registration details and for further information about the
programme.

“…for the first time since the EJA appeared in April 1998, this is a combined double issue of the journal. There are two reasons for this. Firstly it is part of the continuing effort to bring the date of issue of the journal back in line with its cover date. Secondly, it accords with recently reviewed proposals of the EAA Boards to have the flexibility of publishing combinations of two or even three issues of the journal to accommodate contributions relating to particular themes or conference sessions. The current issue is therefore by way of an experiment in this direction.”

Alan would like to have some feedback from readers (or indeed others who have views). Please send a comment to this entry!

- John Chapman, Tom Higham, Vladimir Slavchev, Bisserka Gaydarska, and Noah Honch: The Social Context of the Emergence, Development and Abandonment of the Varna Cemetery, Bulgaria

- Per Holck: The Oseberg Ship Burial, Norway: New Thoughts On the Skeletons From the Grave Mound

- Douglas P. Newton: Found Coins as Indicators of Coins in Circulation: Testing Some Assumptions

- Jessica Smyth: The Role of the House in Early Neolithic Ireland

- T. Douglas Price, Joachim Wahl, and R. Alexander Bentley: Isotopic Evidence for Mobility and Group Organization Among Neolithic Farmers At Talheim, Germany, 5000 BC

…and reviews and review essays by Alex Barker, Cornelius Holtorf, Çiler Çilingiroglu, Diane Scherzler, Brian Fagan, Daniel Shoup, Alfredo González-Ruibal, Willem J. H. Willems, Peter Pavúk, Enrico Zanini, Heiko Steuer, Anna Källén, Søren M. Sindbæk, John Carman, Michael Gebühr and Viktor Trifonov.

Past Preservers is in search of Experts, Presenters, Researchers and your Projects and Ideas

We are looking for rising specialists in all areas of Egyptology, archaeology, and related areas of historical study who will readily and energetically share their knowledge and enthusiasm for their subject, both on camera and off it, as either “talking heads” in television documentaries or as researchers behind the scenes.

More here.

Call for Papers (April 2009 Issue)

Beyond the Facts: Invention and Reinvention in Archaeological Practice

The Archaeological Review from Cambridge invites papers on the theme of invention and re-invention in archaeology. The past quarter century has seen a rich academic debate about the nature of archaeological interpretation. Post-modern theories such as constructivism and relativism have encouraged archaeologists to debate the nature of ‘truth’ and to re-evaluate the influence of their own biases and judgments on the past. The topic of invention and reinvention in archaeological methodology has also proved insightful. Experimental archaeological methodologies give a great deal of room for imagination and invention. In archaeological theory and practice, it appears that many 20th century archaeological epistemologies might be ‘reinventions’ of earlier methods used by professionals in the past: archaeologists like Matthew Johnson, for example, have claimed that ‘phenomenology’ may be a ‘reinvented’ tradition from the British Romantic landscape studies. The discipline of archaeology has also promoted better awareness of alternative perspectives on the past, such as the recognition of indigenous values or notions of the sacred; however, lines are still uncertainly drawn between ‘valid’ claims of the past and other, ‘less valid’ fringe theories. In many cases of post-colonial archaeology, post-conflict heritage, or identity studies, the past is a debated realm. Meanings are often constructed, manipulated, invented or re-invented through the use of material culture. Professionals have also been more attentive to the role of the public in propagating myths and folklore, and the relationship between media and pop-culture to professional archaeology.

ARC invites contributors to explore the broad theme of invention or re-invention in archaeological interpretation and practice. Possible topics for contribution include, but are not limited to:

- Exploring invention, reinvention, or imagination in experimental archaeology, new archaeological methodologies, and archaeological
epistemology.

- Reinvention in archaeological practice and field work.

- Inventing identity: cultural heritage as propaganda; manipulation of heritage to invent or reinvent history.

- The uses of myths, folklore, and stretches of the imagination in archaeological heritage.

- The ethics of narrative, invention, and leaps of interpretation in presenting the reconstructed past to the public.

- Debates on the value of studying alternative, intangible, ‘fringe’ or pseudo-archaeological explanations of material culture and the past.

- Fictional or dramatic representations of archaeology in the media; archaeology as invented or re-invented in pop-culture.

- Debates about the “constructed” past.

Please send an abstract of 400 words to Tera Pruitt () by 5th March 2008. The full article should not exceed 4000 words.

Archaeological Review from Cambridge is a journal of archaeology. ARC is managed and published on a voluntary basis by postgraduate research students at the University of Cambridge. Issues are released twice a year. ARC is a non-profit making organisation. Although primarily rooted in archaeological theory and practice, ARC has increasingly begun to accommodate a wide range of perspectives in the hope of establishing a strong, inter-disciplinary journal which will be of interest to those engaged in a range of fields, and therefore breaking down some of the boundaries that exist between disciplines.

SIXTH WORLD ARCHAEOLOGICAL CONGRESS (WAC-6), DUBLIN, JUNE 29-JULY 4 2008

Dear Colleagues,
The WAC-6 Organising Committee warmly invites you to join us in Dublin this summer for what promises to be an exciting Congress! The main venue for the academic programme is the campus of University College Dubin and the social events and tours will take in some of Ireland’s fantastic historic venues and outstanding archaeological monuments and landscapes. There is a wide-ranging programme of cutting-edge themes and sessions to which participants can contribute, and whose organisers alone represent over 50 different nations around the world. Themes will cover diverse issues including: the archaeology of art, identity, indigenous communities, the human body, migration, landscapes, islands, wetlands, heritage tourism, museums, the politics of archaeology, and the ethics of archaeological practice, for example working with communities and in areas impacted by war, infrastructural developments and changing ecosystems.

Please see the WAC-6 WEBSITE for the following information:

CALL FOR PAPERS AND POSTERS - due 22nd February (see Submit Proposals page)
Paper and poster proposals can be submitted using the electronic forms on our website. Papers can be submitted for particular Sessions or Themes, and posters will also be linked to each of the broad Themes of the Programme. Abstracts for Themes and Sessions are listed in full on the website.

REGISTRATION - NOW OPEN! (see Register Tab at www.ucd.ie/wac-6)
Register by 26th MARCH to take advantage of the early fee! Fees are detailed on the Registration Fee page. We would strongly encourage participants who are not already members of the World Archaeological Congress (WAC) to consider joining, as the WAC-6 registration fee is significantly lower for WAC members. You can join WAC online at www.worldarchaeologicalcongress.org/site/join.php.

WAC-6 TRAVEL SUPPORT GRANTS – due 22th February
In line with WAC’s aim to make its meetings as globally representative as possible we are delighted to offer support in the form of free registration and accommodation, and travel support to participants from economically disadvantaged countries and indigenous communities. Please see the travel support application form on the Grants page of the WAC-6 website.

TOURS, EXHIBITIONS, SOCIAL PROGRAMME
Participants are invited to experience Ireland’s rich archaeological heritage during the mid-Congress (2 July) tours, with 5 varied tour options to choose from. There is also a selection of post-Congress archaeological (5-7 July) tours. The academic programme will be enriched by exhibitions, multimedia installations and video art, experimental archaeology demonstrations, performances, and a major art exhibition, Ábharagus Meon / Materials and Mentalities. Furthermore, Ireland’s rich cultural and social life will undoubtedly be a major highlight for many! The formal events of the social programme will be held in some of Dublin’s spectacular historic venues, and there will be time to experience the ‘real Irish Pub’ in its true cultural context!

For enquiries about the academic programme please email , or for poster queries, . For queries about registration, accommodation, and Irish visa requirements please contact .

We look forward to seeing you in Dublin!
Gabriel Cooney, Academic Secretary, on behalf of the WAC-6 Organising Committee
www.ucd.ie/wac-6

8. International Archaeology-Film-Festival
April 23th - 26th, 2008, Kiel, Germany

The theme of the CINARCHEA symposium 2008 is:
“Archaeology – Movie – Museum“

As always, the symposium will facilitate communication and discussion, the exchange of ideas, perspectives and knowledge: participating will be archaeologists, filmmakers, heads of museums and other institutes, journalists and media-experts.

The quality and appeal of the Kiel festival is enhanced by an international competition concluding with an award ceremony. This competitive programme celebrates outstanding recent film productions (from 1996 onward) of special distinction.

Jury members in 2008 are
Dr. Erwin Keefer, Württembergisches Landesmuseum Stuttgart (President)
Maria Longhena, Bologna, Italien
Dr. Cornelius Holtorf, Archaeology, Universität Lund, Schweden
Dr. Elisabeth Milin, SWR Fernsehen, Redaktion TV-Landesfeature, Stuttgart
Askolds Saulitis, film maker, Riga, Lettland
Dr. Claudia Heydolph, film maker, Kiel

Further information here.

Anybody interested in reviewing this title…

Celts on the Margin. Studies in European Cultural Interaction 7th ct BC - 1st ct AD. Dedicated to Zenon Woźniak.

Edited by H. Dobrzańska, Vincent Megaw and Paulina Poleska

(2005, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, ISBN 83-908823-8-8, hbk)

…should email me () as soon as possible with details about who you are and why you would like to review this book. We’re especially interested in reviewers from the Mediterranean region or eastern Europe. .

Length: 1400 words max.

Deadline: 1 July 2008 or as agreed.

The volume contains papers by Bettina Arnold, Otto-Herman Frey, Vincent Megaw, Mitja Guštin, Marko Dizdar + Hrvoje Potrebica, Nives M. Pandžić, Petar Popović, Nikola Theodossiev, Jan Bouzek, Julij Emilov, Aurel Rustou, Mircea Babeş, Miloš Čižmař, Pavel Sankot, Marek Olędzki, Károly Tankó, Maciej Karkowski, Mikhail Treister, Marek Bednarek, Paulina Poleska, Marcin Rudnicki, Halina Dobrzańska + Jan Piekarczyk

This entry will be deleted when a reviewer has been found.

The next session of the Bibracte European School of Protohistory will be held in Budapest, from July 7th to 15th 2008, on the theme of “The Construction of European Iron Age Chronologies.”

The attached call for application has already been sent to our network of researchers and students. As we still have some places left, we would be happy to receive application from students from more European countries. The application form is also attached.

With our best wishes,

Vincent Guichard
Bibracte, Centre archéologique européen
F  58370 Glux-en-Glenne
tél. 00.33 (0) 3.86.78.69.12
fax 00.33 (0) 3.86.78.65.70

www.bibracte.fr