EXARC Journal - Latest Articles

Book Review: Spaces that tell stories: Recreating Historical Environments by Donna R. Braden

Thit Birk Petersen (DK)

Spaces that tell stories: Recreating historical Environments is a textbook and a how-to manual for those setting up a new exhibition or living history site, or for those evaluating existing interpretation on a site. Everybody who works in museum education, exhibition and living history knows how fantastic it is when an historical environment engages a visitor in the topic. We also know how difficult it can be...

Book Review: Scelte Tecnologiche, Expertise e Aspetti Sociali della Produzione. Una Metodologia Multidisciplinare Applicata allo Studio della Ceramica Eneolitica by Vanessa Forte

Valeria Tiezzi (IT)
This book is a welcome addition to the bookshelf of Italian archaeologists interested in Prehistory and will certainly be of great use to those who are trying to gain a good understanding of pottery technology. Written in Italian, it is one of the few books in this language dealing with ceramic technology and the social aspects of the production by presenting, as a case study, the Copper Age domestic and ...

Book Review: The Bead Maker From Ribe: The Story of a Viking Craftsman by Thomas Risom

Neil Peterson (CA)
Having been involved with experimental work with Viking Era beads for a decade and a half, I am always looking for more information on the topic. Ribe is the most significant beadmaking site of the Viking Era due to its archaeological remains and the museum’s active experimental, interpretative, and craft programs. New material focusing on this site is thus of particular interest, so I was very pleased to get a copy...

Conference Review: Archaeological Approaches to the Study of the Potter’s Wheel, November 2020, via Discord and YouTube

Chase Minos (GR)
‘Archaeological Approaches to the Study of the Potter’s Wheel’ was a virtual conference hosted on EXARC’s Discord server and YouTube channel from November 24th to 27th of 2020, organised by Dr Caroline Jeffra, Dr Richard Thér, Chase Minos and Dr Roeland Paardekooper. Similar to many conferences affected by COVID-19 restrictions, its initial venue location in Amsterdam, Netherlands was not possible...

What was *platъ and how Did it Work? Reconstructing a Piece of Slavic Cloth Currency

Jan Kratochvíl and
Jakub Koláček (CZ)

Introduction

There is rare but clear evidence that at least some early medieval Slavic communities used pieces of textile during the exchange of goods. The written sources (transcription of the notes of Ibrahim Ibn Yaʻqūb and a short notice made by Helmold of Bosau nearly two hundred years later) entitle us to believe that it was some kind of currency and not a local predominant commodity.

Let the Chips Fall Where They May: Evaluating the Impact and Effectiveness of Video Resources for Knowledge Transfer in Flint Knapping

John Kiernan (US)
Knowledge and know-how: The ‘how’ of knowledge transferal continues to be a question in prehistoric archaeology, especially in relation to early hominid development. Has the transferal process been greatly affected by our so-called modern world and its technological advantages? Have the current modes of communication enhanced and eased the transfer of knowledge? As visualization is a key element...