Call for Papers

To those of you doing hands-on experimental work in the field, lab, classroom, or anywhere else please come to ASOR 2020 in Boston and present your work in the "Experimental and Experiential Archaeology" session. I know many of you are doing exciting and interesting things and we'd love to hear about them!

Call for Papers, Deadline Feb. 15: http://www.asor.org/am/2020-call-for-papers
 

Session info

Experimental and Experiential Archaeology

Session Chair: Tracy L. Spurrier, University of Toronto (CA)

This session will feature recent research involving experimental and experiential archaeology projects. This type of work allows archaeologists to put themselves into the past to better understand the production processes of everyday life activities, and to attempt to access ancient human existence, albeit through the lens of our modern perspectives.

Experimental and experiential archaeology projects test archaeological interpretations of ancient manufacture by reconstructing objects and recreating their production methods. Through the experiments, one can try to identify the intentions and goals involved in ancient production and to understand the limitations and challenges that may have been present throughout these processes. They include, but are not limited to, craft production, food preparation, building construction, tool making, and technological innovations. The act itself of conducting an experiment replicating past procedures, as opposed to simply studying them, allows for greater insight into the complexity of the overall process as well as personally experiencing the physicality of a task and other related sensations. The outcomes of experimental and experiential archaeology projects are invaluable for many reasons: for testing hypotheses about ancient manufacture; and for use as pedagogical tools for education purposes, for creating accurate living history museums, and in simulation models and exercises.