The blog entry to end all blog entries

Since our course is now going into its final week I’ve decided to do a wrap up on my blogging experience. When the idea was first presented in class I thought this assignment was going to be a big pain in the you know what, but it turns out I was wrong. By creating this blog it has allowed me to really gain a wider grasp on what fields of archaeology truly interests me. It was also super interesting to view my fellow class member’s blogs and learn what interests they had. By viewing a vast collection of blog posts it allowed me to see how large the archaeological world is and widened my archaeological experience. Having this blog being focused on death and death related rituals really showed me that our societies past and present are surrounded and consumed with the act of dying itself and what will follow after our deaths have occurred. Researching other cultures traditions of interpreting and practicing mortuary rituals made me realize that no one death is treated the same. It was also interesting to see which mortuary rituals are still relevant in our societies versus other practices that have died out (ha no pun intended... but actually it was). It’s nice to see that for the most part child sacrifice and disembowelment rituals are no longer a staple in modern mortuary practices. This course has changed my views on death and how I myself want to be buried, there are just too many options! Top of the list would have to be space burial, second an old school Viking boat burial and third a reef burial to give something back to the environment. These blog entries have been very useful in expanding my mortuary knowledge (although a struggle at times when rushing to finish an entry at 11:59pm on a Sunday night). All in all I’m glad this mini project was assigned it kept me engaged with the class and introduced me to topics I had never thought of. 

And now a little death joke to end what may be my last blog post.

New grave monuments found at Aigai

 Macedonia funerary monuments found at Aigai
http://www.archaiologia.gr/en/blog/2013/03/21/new-finds-at-aigai/

Elaborate Macedonian Tombs were unearthed which is leading to new theories on how this culture evolved. Three tombs were uncovered which highlighted burial styles of the Macedonian time period. Both human and animal remains were discovered within the tombs; fifteen horses and several dogs were found.  Also found were a dozen adults and the remains of infants and toddlers. The remains that have been recovered indicate that they must have been added to the empty and destroyed grave well after its primary use. Shards of pottery, tiles and pieces of marble funerary stele were found among the bodies. A magic scroll known as katadesmos was also found. The condition that both the bodies and pottery fragments were found in suggests that they were thrown into the tomb all at once. These findings imply that the remains found were mostly likely the result of tragic incident. Connections have been made with the study of pottery and bronze coins that point to the destruction of Aigai by the Romans in Pydna that led to the fall of the Macedonian Kingdom. The tombs that have been found have indications that they were violently looted. There were some grave goods that were uncovered that made it past the looters. A part of a gold shield was found which depicted fighting warriors, a golden oak was also found and there was also evidence of a golden wreath, which led to the suggestion that the deceased was man. There were also a number of golden discs recovered with the characteristics of the Macedonian empire that survived the looting. These findings help piece together how the Macedonians built grave structures. It also sheds light on a tragedy that fell upon this city and its people during in a time of warfare and cultural destruction. 

site: http://www.archaiologia.gr/en/blog/2013/03/21/new-finds-at-aigai/

Pets of the afterlife

Pets have been regarded as important members of the family for thousands of years. Many used for activities such as hunting or letter sending but others as just loved for the comfort and protection they provided their owners. The ancient Egyptians pretty much attempted to mummify any and everything. From plants to crocodiles and everything in between, cats, dogs, birds, livestock, fish, snakes and baboons was all fair game. Many pets were buried and preserved with their masters, remains of cats and dogs have been found in Pharaohs tombs. Other animals that were not considered pets were used as offerings that were intended to appease gods in the afterlife. Later on in the New Kingdom the presence of pets were more prominent. Ramses the second demonstrated his love for cats by having tomb paintings that depicted frivolous cat scenes, which included very obese cats wearing earrings and necklaces. Thousands of cats were mummified as an offering to the god Bastet (goddess of maternity and protection) but only a handful of pet cats have been discovered. Pets still share commonality in the importance they play in the lives of their owners, whether it is thousands of years ago or to present day. 

Citation: 

Meixler, L. (1997, May 24). Pharaohs were united with their pets for eternity: Honoured: Ancient egyptians often mummified their beloved animals. The Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.library.uvic.ca/docview/240085684?accountid=14846

The Marpole Midden and Improper methods of excavation

(Some artifacts that were found during the Marpole excavation) 

I was doing research for a paper in my Indigenous studies class that focuses on death practices and burials locations in Coast Salish territories when I came across a paper on the Marpole Midden and since it references both archaeological and First Nations information I thought why not kill two birds with one stone? 

The Marpole Midden was unearthed in the 1880s near the Fraser Valley River while road expansion was taking place. A shell midden can be described as a layering of deposits that include shell remains, bone fragments (animal mostly), and cultural elements such as stone tools, jewellery and artwork (Roy, 2006).  The midden was described as being a large village that housed many inhabitants for a long period of time (Roy, 2006). The Marpole culture is dated from around 1,500 to 2,900 years ago. The Marpole Midden is located near the Musqueam peoples territory. Evidence suggests that these peoples may been their ancient ancestors (Roy, 2006). The site was mined of its cultural importance on my occasions without any say form the neighboring indigenous communities. Thousands of skeletal remains were removed from this site over the decades, as well as carved bone, stone implements, ceremonial copper and beads (Roy, 2006). Many of the skeletal remains that were removed from the site were intended to be put on display in museums around the country. On many occasions there was not enough space for some of the remains, which lead them to be discarded without any proper thought or care (Roy, 2006). This site due to the time that it was being excavated was not properly processed. Cultural sensitivities were ignored; the Musqueam peoples had no input on what was being done to their ancestor’s remains. The site was processed poorly leading to destroyed artifacts and human remains. In 1991the Musqueam people purchased the Fraser Arms Hotel (Roy, 2006), the land in which midden was discovered. The Musqueam hoped by purchasing this land the destruction of their ancestors and their remains would be persevered from future disruption from outside forces. This is not the first case in which cultural sensitivities have been ignored when addressing indigenous archaeological sites. In many instances there is little care when processing First Nations territories. If historical sites stand in the way of a political campaign or developer many injustices and illegal action take place in order to get the outcome that is desired. More attention must be brought forward when these incidences occur to stop robbing indigenous populations of their cultural heritage. I believe that First Nations have been mistreated from the time of European arrival in Canada. We have stripped them from their culture and put buildings on top of sacred sites. This country was technically theres until we showed up and discredited everything they had built. We have consumed their culture and have made a mockery of their traditions and customs. No one would ever be allowed to walk into Ross bay and dig up thousands of graves and just discard of the bodies or put them on display in museums without gaining some sort of permission. No company would also be allowed to dig up graves in order to put a strip mall without facing lengthy legal processes. But somehow governments pass laws that allow this to happen to First Nations burial sites. There is a double standard when it comes respecting the sanctity of First Nations and their burial locations. Too many of these sites have been desecrated and its the First Nations that lose their cultural rights and heritage. 

Link to the paper:

http://ojs.library.ubc.ca/index.php/bcstudies/article/viewArticle/671
Link to image:
http://www.museumofvancouver.ca/programs/blog/2012/10/2/movments-usual-and-not-so-usual-suspects

Twin Burials in Prehistory Iron Age Germany

(Not where bodies were found, but most likely very similar to what the structure looked like during that time period. The bodies were found buried under the house posts)

 The idea of twin burials first appeared to me when I came across Carly McNeill's blog post on Ice Age twins that had been found buried together thousands of years ago (here's the link to her blog so you can check it out http://archaeologyofdeathandburials.blogspot.ca/). I wanted to see if any other cultures experienced or had commonalities when dealing with twin burials. I wasn't able to locate much information on twin burials but there was one abstract ( I wasn't able to access the full article but still.. good information for a blog post) on an Iron Age settlement that was uncovered on 2001 near Ochtendung, Germany. Two skeletons of perinatal infants in shallow impression were found in postholes of a settlement (Flohr, S. 2012). The infants that were found seemed to have buried without care and one was face down (Flohr, S. 2012). There were no artifacts found with the bodies and they appeared to be between 36- 40 weeks (Flohr, S. 2012). Investigation of the bones concludes that they died around the same stage of development; evidence also suggests that they were most likely related (Flohr, S. 2012). Ideas were proposed that these individuals may have been used for sacrificial purposes but were quickly denied due to the careless treatment of the bodies and how/where they were buried (Flohr, S. 2012). I really would have liked to been able to read the whole article but alas this is all I could piece together. It would be interesting to cross examine different cultures around this time to try and indicate if the birth or burial of twins was common during these early time periods. It would be interesting to see if burials such as these could be seen cross culturally, was it related to religion? Sacrifice? Or was a family simply the mourning the loss of young lives by keeping their bodies close to their dwellings. In any case I found this article along with Carly's to be extremely interesting when examining infant burial practices. 

 Source: Flohr, S. (2012), Twin Burials in Prehistory: A Possible Case from the Iron Age of Germany. Int. J. Osteoarchaeol.. doi: 10.1002/oa.2236