DOCSLIB.ORG

Glass Beads and Spanish Shipwrecks: a New Look at Sixteenth-Century European Contact on the Florida Gulf Coast

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Glass Beads and Spanish Shipwrecks: a New Look at Sixteenth-Century European Contact on the Florida Gulf Coast Hist Arch https://doi.org/10.1007/s41636-018-0148-1 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Glass Beads and Spanish Shipwrecks: A New Look at Sixteenth-Century European Contact on the Florida Gulf Coast Mark Allender Accepted: 14 November 2017 # Society for Historical Archaeology 2018 Abstract Despite the considerable amount of research españoles se presentan tradicionalmente como el princi- devoted to the study of 16th-century contact between pal medio de contacto de los europeos con los indígenas Native Americans and Spaniards in Florida, little atten- en Florida y como la fuente principal de los objetos tion has been given to the impact of Spanish shipwrecks europeos, tales como cuentas de vidrio. Esto ha creado on the lives and material culture of the Florida Indians. una impresión engañosa de lo que realmente estaba Spanish land-based expeditions are traditionally pre- sucediendo en Florida durante el siglo XVI. Al sented as the principal means of European contact with examinar las rutas de navegación de los españoles, los Native Americans in Florida and as the primary source tipos de artefactos recuperados arqueológicamente de for European objects, such as glass beads. This has los sitios de naufragios de buques españoles en camino created a misleading picture of what was really happen- a casa, y las actividades de salvamento de los indios de ing in Florida during the 16th century. Examination of Florida, se revela que los naufragios españoles Spanish sailing routes, the types of artifacts recovered probablemente eran la fuente de la mayoría de los archaeologically from the wreck sites of homebound artefactos históricos encontrados en sitios arqueológicos Spanish ships, and salvage activities of the Florida In- de Florida con componentes europeos del siglo XVI. dians reveals that Spanish shipwrecks were probably Esto sugiere que las interacciones entre los españoles y responsible for most of the historical artifacts found on los indios de Florida tuvieron una mayor intensidad y Florida archaeological sites with 16th-century European complejidad que generalmente se ha pensado. components. This suggests that the interactions between Spaniards and Florida Indians had a far greater intensity Résumé Malgré le grand nombre de recherches and complexity than has generally been supposed. consacrées à l’étude du contact entre les Amérindiens et les Espagnols en Floride au 16e siècle, l’impact des Extracto A pesar de la considerable cantidad de naufrages espagnols sur la vie et la culture matérielle des investigación dedicada al estudio del contacto, en el Indiens de Floride a attiré peu d’attention. Les expédi- siglo XVI, entre los indígenas y españoles en Florida, tions terrestres espagnoles sont traditionnellement pré- se ha prestado poca atención al impacto de los sentées comme le principal moyen de contact européen naufragios españoles en la vida y la cultura material de avec les Amérindiens de Floride et la première source los indios de Florida. Las expediciones terrestres de los d’acquisition d’objets de l’Europe, dont des billes en verre. Cela a dressé un tableau trompeur de ce qui se ’ * passait réellement en Floride au 16e siècle. L examen M. Allender ( ) ’ PO Box 14422, Gainesville, FL 32604, U.S.A. des routes maritimes espagnoles, des types d artefacts e-mail: [email protected] archéologiques recueillis des épaves des navires Hist Arch espagnols en partance pour l’Europe et des activités de Glass beads are the primary focus of this analysis, conservation des Indiens de Floride révèle que les since they are among the most numerous and diagnostic naufrages espagnols représentaient probablement la types of historical artifacts found on Florida archaeolog- principale source d’approvisionnement des artefacts ical sites having 16th-century European components historiques découverts dans les sites archéologiques de and are especially useful for providing chronological Floride renfermant des éléments européens du 16e dates. As a rule, when glass beads are found on archae- siècle. Cela suggère que les interactions entre les ological sites they are perceived as quintessential objects Espagnols et les Indiens de Floride étaient plus intenses of trade and have become synonymous with the term et complexes que ce qui est généralement supposé. “trade beads.” Commonlyusedterminologies,suchas“contact Keywords glass beads . Spanish shipwrecks . Florida sites,”“contact material,”“trade beads,” and “trade Gulf Coast . 16th century. Spanish entradas . contact kits,” have often masked the diversity of ways in which period sites . burial mounds . rock crystal . sailing routes . Spaniards and Florida Indians interacted in the 16th New Spain . Calusa . Old World disease . Renaissance century, as well as the ways in which European objects jewelry. gold artifacts . silver artifacts were acquired. Since Spanish ships wrecked with great frequency on the Florida coast, native peoples had re- peated opportunities for contact with large numbers of Introduction Spanish shipwreck survivors. The result was a greater intensity and complexity of interaction than has tradi- Traditionally, most archaeologists and historians have tionally been portrayed. While the primary focus here is characterized the contact or interaction between Span- on European and European-derived artifacts recovered iards and Native Americans in 16th-century Florida as from archaeological sites in counties bordering the Flor- taking place primarily within the context of periodic ida Gulf Coast, these implications are relevant for cul- Spanish land-based expeditions. These overland expe- tural and historical dynamics elsewhere in coastal Flor- ditions, or entradas,havebeenportrayednotonlyasthe ida and the Southeast. major means of contact between Spaniards and Native Americans, but also as the primary source of European artifacts, or “contact material,” found at Native Ameri- Conventional View can archaeological sites having 16th-century European components. Most notably, these expeditions include It is widely accepted by most researchers that nearly all those of Pánfilo de Narváez in 1528, Hernando de Soto of the European artifacts found on southeastern U.S. in 1539, and, to a lesser extent, Tristán de Luna y archaeological sites dating to the first half of the 16th Arellano in 1559. century originated from Spanish overland expeditions, The perspective presented here is that Spanish ship- primarily those of Pánfilo de Narváez and Hernando de wrecks offer a different and probably better explanation Soto. This is based on the idea that the historical metal for the presence of the majority of European materials and glass artifacts recovered from these sites were found at Florida archaeological sites commonly known brought along by the Spaniards and traded to the In- as 16th-century “contact sites.” In most written works, dians. These artifacts then have been used as evidence when shipwrecks are mentioned at all, they are usually for indicating points of contact between Spaniards and treated as minor players contributing little to the histor- Native Americans, often as a way of reconstructing or ical archaeological record. Yet, throughout the 16th refining the routes followed by the expeditions. Ohlson century, Spanish ships were wrecking on the Florida (2014:34), for example, notes: “Archaeologists are cau- coast year after year and often multiple times a year, tious about designating a site as one of De Soto’s providing the Indians with a wide array and regular steppingstones across the Southeast, because getting supply of European materials of every description. one site wrong can throw off the rest of the route.” These objects were traded widely or sent as tribute from In a study of archaeological and historical sites in the one Indian village to another all across Florida, making Florida Panhandle, Marrinan et al. (1990) suggested that it nearly impossible to connect specific European arti- the European artifacts from St. Marks Wildlife Refuge facts with Spanish expeditions. Cemetery site (8WA15) were introduced by the Hist Arch expedition of Pánfilo de Narváez. Marvin Smith possibly the only recorded occasion of a Spaniard giving (1987:45) wrote that, within the interior Southeast, Eu- away an object containing precious metal was in ropean artifacts from contact sites dating to 1525–1565 present-day South Carolina, where it was said that De would include only goods introduced by the expedition Soto gave a native chief a feather plume decorated with of Hernando de Soto. Jeffrey Brain (1975), Hudson et al. silver (Bourne 1904:90). (1989a), Milanich and Hudson (1993), and many others Griffin and H. Smith (1948:30) discussed this notion have identified a wide variety of European artifacts as of separate origins for precious metals and glass beads evidence of Native American contact with De Soto that when they wrote that European artifacts from the can be used to trace his path more accurately through the Goodnow Mound (8HG4) “suggest trade rather than Southeast. Hudson et al. (1989b), Langford (1990), and salvage from shipwreck; this is particularly true of the Linden (2013) have identified certain historical artifacts, quantities of small glass beads. The silver may, however, including an Aztec-crafted copper plate, as originating represent salvaged material.” This interpretation is af- from the expedition of Tristán de Luna y Arellano. firmed by Mitchem (1989a:510), who, in making a link Glass beads have often been the artifact category between European artifacts from Tatham Mound most closely
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Ghana's Glass Beadmaking Arts in Transcultural Dialogues
    Ghana’s Glass Beadmaking Arts in Transcultural Dialogues Suzanne Gott PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR EXCEPT WHERE OTHERWISE NOTED hanaian powder-glass beads first captured spread of West African strip-weaving technologies. my attention in 1990, when closely examin- With the beginnings of European maritime trade in the late ing a strand of Asante waist beads purchased fifteenth century, an increasing volume of glass beads and glass in Kumasi’s Central Market. Looking at the goods were shipped to trade centers along present-day Ghana’s complex designs of different colored glasses, Gold Coast,1 stimulating the growth of local beadworking and I was struck with the realization that each powder-glass beadmaking industries. The flourishing coastal bead had been skillfully and painstakingly crafted. This seem- trade achieved a more direct engagement between European Gingly humble and largely unexamined art merited closer study merchants and trading communities than had been possible and greater understanding (Fig. 1). I worked with Christa Clarke, with the trans-Saharan trade, and enhanced European abilities Senior Curator for the Arts of Global Africa at the Newark to ascertain and respond to local West African consumer pref- Museum, to develop the 2008–2010 exhibition “Glass Beads of erences. This interactive trade environment also facilitated the Ghana” at the Newark Museum to introduce the general public impact of the demands of Gold Coast consumers on European to this largely overlooked art (Fig. 2). The following study pro- product design and production, a two-way dynamic similar to vides a more in-depth examination of Ghanaian glass beadmak- the trade in African-print textiles (Nielsen 1979; Steiner 1985).
    [Show full text]
  • The Traveling Beads
    The Traveling Beads What does this colorful 21st century Venetian glass necklace have in common with glass beads found by archeologists at Manzanar? A close look reveals that all the found beads were made of the same material, of similar color and shape, served the same functions, and originated from the same part of the world. How could beads from southern Europe appear thousands of miles away in the sand at Manzanar amongst American Indian artifacts? What do they reveal about the Owens Valley Paiute (Numu) who inhabited Manzanar long before it was a WWII War Relocation Center? For centuries, Europeans have created beautiful glass objects that have served as beads, jewelry, money, vases, lamps and art objects. As early as 1291, there is evidence that artisans working in the glass factories of Italy have molded some of the most beautiful glass products in the world. When European explorers from Spain, Portugal, Italy and France began their land explorations in the New World, they brought these beautiful objects with them to trade with the people they hoped to find in the new land. Archeologists have documented many American Indian sites in all parts of California that contain glass objects and beads of European origin. Trade networks existed throughout the country along river ways and trails allowing indigenous people to exchange resources (or goods) including manufactured items, such as beads. Regional exchanges must have occurred between the Spaniards and the Indians as the missions were built along the west coast of California. The establishment of the mission system was most likely responsible for the mass distribution of glass beads throughout California.
    [Show full text]
  • The Protohistoric Period in the Western Great Basin
    UC Merced Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology Title The Protohistoric Period in the Western Great Basin Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/7xp393zf Journal Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology, 12(1) ISSN 0191-3557 Author Arkush, Brooke S Publication Date 1990-07-01 Peer reviewed eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California Journal of California and Great Basin Anthropology Vol. 12, No. 1, pp. 28-36 (1990). The Protohistoric Period in the Western Great Basin BROOKE S. ARKUSH, Dept. of Sociology and Anthropology, Weber State Univ., Ogden, UT 84408-1208. X HE cultural historical framework for the types and cultural developments. The study western Great Basin derives from a of protohistoric sites and components can compilation of archaeological data which improve our understanding of native cultures identifies time-sensitive artifact types, most as they stood on the brink of intensive contact notably series of projectile points, styles of with Euroamerican society. Moreover, these basketry, marine shell beads, and aboriginal investigations will aid in the identification of ceramics (Elston 1986). The four major subsequent changes in aboriginal material and divisions of the western Great Basin cultural nonmaterial culture and the impacts these chronology (Pre-Archaic, Early Archaic, changes had on ethnographically documented Middle Archaic, and Late Archaic) were groups. This paper is primarily concerned made on the basis of perceived changes in with the protohistory of the western region, as adaptive strategies, which are assumed to be the author is most familiar with its archaeolo­ reflected in artifact assemblages. Generally gy, ethnography, and history.
    [Show full text]
  • O?-A BIBLIOGRAPHY of GLASS TRADE BEADS in NORTH AMERICA
    A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF GLASS TRADE BEADS IN NORTH AMERICA Karlis Karklins and Roderick Sprague Originally published in 1980, and long out of print, this bibliography is reproduced here as it continues to be a valuable research tool for the archaeologist, material culture researcher, museologist, and serious collector. Although some of the references are out-of-date, the majority contain information that is still very useful to those seeking comparative archaeological data on trade beads. The bibliography contains 455 annotated entries that deal primarily with glass beads recovered from archaeological contexts in Canada, the United States, and Mexico. A number of works that deal with bead manufacturing techniques, bead classification systems, and other related topics are also included. An index arranged by political unit, temporal range, and other categories adds to the usefulness of the bibliography. INTRODUCTION Since a thorough review of pertinent literature is prerequisite to the meaningful study of a specific artifact category, this bibliography is offered as an aid to those who are carrying out research on glass trade beads found in the continental United States, Canada, and Mexico. The references in this bibliography are primarily those which will be useful in dating bead collections, establishing bead chronologies, and compiling distribution charts of individual bead types. However, references dealing with bead manufacturing techniques, beadwork, bead classification systems, and the historical uses and values of trade beads have also been listed. Some sources dealing with beads from areas outside North America have been included because they have a definite bearing on the study of glass beads in North America.
    [Show full text]
  • A New Challenge to the Fur Trade
    VOLUME XXXV NO. 2 SPRING 2015 Enter the Americans: A New Challenge to the Fur Trade hile the American entry into the the fur trade in what was to become W fur trade market west of the the Louisiana Purchase (1803) Mississippi River was rather late in its continued unabated to supply the history, it was never the less significant demand in Europe. in many ways. Preceding them by over Trade Goods two hundred years were the Dutch, th Spanish, French, and British trappers From the 13 century onwards the who had several generations of dealing colored glass trade beads found with the Native Americans in the throughout the world were northeast, the Great Lakes region, the manufactured in Venice, Italy. By the upper Missouri area, and the Pacific 1600s glass beads were also being Northwest, as well as the southwestern created in Bohemia (Czech Republic), part of what became the United States. Holland, France, England, and Sweden. The North American continent (and For a short while there was even a to a lesser extent South America) had bead-making industry at Jamestown, long been a source of raw materials for the various, Virginia. Many styles and colors were manufactured, ever-changing, empires of Europe whose resources with different tribes valuing different colors and in timber and furs had been depleted. Looking west designs and trading accordingly. they found a land rich in the many products they Other trade goods made of metal created a needed: timber for ship-building, pelts for the substantial industry throughout Europe, supplying fashions of the moment, and hides for the leather the growing Indian demand for improved substitutes belts that turned the factory wheels of industry.
    [Show full text]
  • Beads Recovered from Shipwreck 31CR314 Queen Anne's Revenge Site
    Queen Anne’s Revenge Shipwreck Project RESEARCH REPORT AND BULLETIN SERIES QAR-B-07-02 Beads Recovered from Shipwreck 31CR314 Queen Anne’s Revenge Site Linda Carnes-McNaughton, Ph.D. Fort Bragg Cultural Resources Program Susan G. Myers NC Office of State Archaeology April 2007 Underwater Archaeology Branch Office of State Archaeology Department of Cultural Resources State of North Carolina www.qaronline.org Cover photo: Queen Anne coin weight for 1 guinea gold coin. Recovered from site Fall 2006 Introduction Portable, desirable, and durable, beads find their way onto many archaeological sites. The complex artifact assemblage from the shipwreck believed to be Queen Anne’s Revenge (QAR) includes five glass beads, three of them complete, one badly damaged and one in three pieces. The damaged beads were fragmented during conservation activities used to break down large concretions. Three beads originated in concretion recovered from the Stern portion of the vessel and two were found in a concretion from the bow. Whether they were among the ship occupants’ personal effects, or lost from a hank, or part of some trade cargo, they are provocative reminders of La Concorde’s life as a slave trader, but it may never be certain. Since more beads have now been seen, locked in concretions (as revealed through x-radiography, 687.000 and 786.000), the sample size will undoubtedly increase and future observations will become more definitive. In general, glass beads as an artifact group are functionally related to personal items, and typically classified as ornamental. Small beads, in the size range of seed beads (2-4 mm) and pony beads (4-6 mm) were often sewn on articles of clothing or strung for personal adornment, such as necklaces or earrings.
    [Show full text]
  • Book Reviews and End Matter
    BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers Volume 1 Volume 1 (1989) Article 10 1989 Book Reviews and End Matter Follow this and additional works at: https://surface.syr.edu/beads Part of the Archaeological Anthropology Commons, History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology Commons, Science and Technology Studies Commons, and the Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons Repository Citation (1989). "Book Reviews and End Matter." BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers 1: 95-101. Available at: https://surface.syr.edu/beads/vol1/iss1/10 This End Matter is brought to you for free and open access by SURFACE. It has been accepted for inclusion in BEADS: Journal of the Society of Bead Researchers by an authorized editor of SURFACE. For more information, please contact [email protected]. BOOK REVIEWS The History of Beads from 30,000 B.C. to the It is to be hoped that the _degree of completeness Present. represented in the map of North America is not indi­ cative of the completeness of the other maps. Only Lois Sherr Dubin. Harry N. Abrams, New those tribes or archaeological cultures mentioned in York, 1987. 346 pp., 130 figs., 248 color figs. the text are included, thus the Chumash represent the $60.00. California Culture Area, the Yakima represent the Plateau, and the Haida represent the Probably the most important line in this work is Northwest Coast. We are told in the caption that on the title page: "Original Photography by Togashi." italics represent prehis­ toric cultures, yet three of the four This will be the final word in coffee-table books on listed are the three traditional Southwest cultures the subject of beads.
    [Show full text]
  • 19Th Century Glass Tade Beads
    19TH CENTURY GLASS TRADE BEADS From two Zulu royal residences Sharma Jeanette Saitowitz University of Cape Town The.sis presented to the University of Cape Town in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts June 1990 The copyright of this thesis vests in the author. No quotation from it or information derived from it is to be published without full acknowledgement of the source. The thesis is to be used for private study or non- commercial research purposes only. Published by the University of Cape Town (UCT) in terms of the non-exclusive license granted to UCT by the author. University of Cape Town ABSTRACT This thesis is a formal analysis of beads from the two Zulu capitals of Mgungundlovu ( occupied by Dingane between 1829 and 1838) and Ondini (held by Cetshwayo between 1873 and 1879). It contains a set of procedures for producing a bead taxonomy, most of which has been adopted from work done in North America, bur some of which consists of analytical methods original to this study. The taxonomy is based on visual and physical screening of large collections, followed by chemical analysis. It provides a standardized system for South African bead studies. Results of the analysis are employed for the following purposes: 1) To provide a database of the varieties of glass beads in circulation in Zululand for two relatively short periods of time in the nineteenth century. 2) To determine the spatial and temporal variability in relative abundance of bead types in the two sites. Subtle differences occur between beads excavated from one section of Mgungundlovu and another.
    [Show full text]
  • Tracing Sixteenth Century Beads in South America to Understand Their Impact on Indigenous Ritual Practices and Material Culture at the Time of the Spanish Conquest
    Tracing Sixteenth Century Beads in South America to Understand Their Impact on Indigenous Ritual Practices and Material Culture at the Time of the Spanish Conquest The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Feinzig, Kristi May. 2017. Tracing Sixteenth Century Beads in South America to Understand Their Impact on Indigenous Ritual Practices and Material Culture at the Time of the Spanish Conquest. Master's thesis, Harvard Extension School. Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:33813391 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Other Posted Material, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#LAA Tracing Sixteenth Century Beads in South America to Understand Their Impact on Indigenous Ritual Practices and Material Culture at the Time of the Spanish Conquest Kristi May Feinzig A Thesis in the Field of Anthropology and Archaeology for the Degree of Master of Liberal Arts in Extension Studies Harvard University March 2017 © March 2017 Kristi M. Feinzig Abstract This thesis examines bead preferences in Peru, Venezuela, and Colombia before and after the Spanish Conquest during the sixteenth century. By examining the spread of beads across a region, I was able to gain insight into colors and materials that people desired and identify potential patterns of resistance to glass beads. Information about the cultures and societies of my study are gleaned from examining glass and shell bead dispersion and their use before and after this period of significant cultural impact.
    [Show full text]
  • Trade Beads: the First Worldwide Currency
    March 23, 2011 TRADE BEADS: THE FIRST WORLDWIDE CURRENCY Special Exhibit Runs March 31-August 31, 2011, at Pawnee Indian Museum State Historic Site ______________________________________ REPUBLIC, KS—The Kansas Historical Society announced the special exhibit Trade Beads: The First Worldwide Currency will open March 31 at Pawnee Indian Museum State Historic Site. This exhibit runs through August 31, 2011. Regular admission fee of $3 applies. The museum is located at 480 Pawnee Trail, Republic. For more information call 785-361-2255 or visit kshs.org/places/pawnee_indian . Trade beads have been used for thousands years for various purposes such as decoration and money. The oldest beads were made from bones, copper, shell, and even teeth. European explorers used glass beads to trade with American Indians with the first recorded use by Christopher Columbus in 1492. The majority of these glass beads were made in Venice and Bohemia. Numerous glass beads of many different colors were discovered in the excavations at Pawnee Indian Museum. This exhibit features dozens of beads produced from the 1500s to the 1800s. About the Pawnee Indian Museum: The Pawnee Nation was the dominant power of the Central Plains for hundreds of years. This museum tells the story of a Pawnee village that may have existed as early as the 1770s. The most remarkable feature is the museum’s centerpiece – the excavated floor of a large Pawnee earth lodge. Feel the spirits of the past while walking the perimeter of the lodge and view the rare sacred bundle that hangs above the altar. After touring the museum, walk the interpretive trail that winds through the depressions marking other lodges.
    [Show full text]
  • Thesis Methods of Dating Glass Beads From
    THESIS METHODS OF DATING GLASS BEADS FROM PROTOHISTORIC SITES IN THE SOUTH PLATTE RIVER BASIN, COLORADO Submitted by Christopher R. von Wedell Department of Anthropology In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Colorado State University Fort Collins, Colorado Fall 2011 Master‟s Committee Advisor: Jason M. LaBelle Sammy J. Zahran Mary Van Buren ABSTRACT METHODS OF DATING GLASS BEADS FROM PROTOHISTORIC SITES IN THE SOUTH PLATTE RIVER BASIN, COLORADO Morphological characteristics and chemical trace elements counts acquired using Laser Ablation-Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry analyses were documented for glass trade beads from 24 protohistoric archaeological assemblages in the South Platte River Basin. The resulting database was used to provide quantitative descriptions of each recorded assemblage and to characterize the types of glass beads currently reported in the region. Statistical analyses were then conducted to determine if and to what extent morphological and chemical traits change through time. Characteristics of beads in dated contexts were then used to develop a linear regression model in an attempt to determine if it is possible to estimate the age of beads from undated contexts. It is concluded that morphological and chemical characteristics of glass beads in dated contexts can be used to estimate the age of glass beads in undated contexts using linear regression. The results of this thesis demonstrate that morphological characteristics are currently more accurate and precise than chemistry although both methods hold potential for revision and improvement as more dated sites become available to supplement the statistical models. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis was made possible by the encouragement, support, and gentle nudging of many individuals and institutions.
    [Show full text]
  • Gifts, Goods and Money
    Gifts, Goods and Money Gifts, Goods and Money: Comparing currency and circulation systems in past societies explores and Hofmann (eds) Brandherm, Heymans the economic and social roles of exchange systems in past societies from a variety of different perspectives. Based on a broad range of individual case studies, the authors tackle problems Comparing currency and circulation systems surrounding the identification of (premonetary) currencies in the archaeological record. These concern the part played by weight measurement systems in their development, the changing role of objects as they shift between different spheres of exchange, e.g. from gifts in past societies to commodities, as well as wider issues regarding the role of exchange networks as agents of social and economic change. Among the specific questions the papers address is what happens when new objects of value are introduced into a system, or when existing objects go out of use, as well as how exchange systems react to events such as crises or the emergence of new polities and social constellations. One theme that unites most of the papers is the tension between what is introduced from the outside and changes that are driven by social transformations within a given group. Dirk Brandherm studied Archaeology, Classics and Social Anthropology at the universities of Münster, Edinburgh and Freiburg. Most of his work has been in European Bronze and Iron Age archaeology, with one focus on metalwork production and depositional practices. He currently holds a position of Lecturer at Queen’s University Belfast, Northern Ireland. Elon Heymans studied archaeology at the University of Amsterdam and at Tel Aviv University.
    [Show full text]