This thesis examines the burial assemblage of grave 25 at Sindos cemetery, in central Macedonia. Using a biographical approach and theoretical tools drawn from the fields of objects biography, semiotics, ritual and mortuary archaeology is aiming in identifying the nature of the burial and comprehend what it meant for the people that experienced it through time, from its creation, in the late archaic period up to the present day. By examining the material in their ancient context the focus is placed on notions of value, identity, ideology and ritual and on the way the items under study were used in order to communicate certain meanings by creating different facets of value and identity.
In their modern context a follow up of the materials’ journey from their discovery in the 1980s up to the present day is presented focusing on the way that they were handled by archaeologists, museums and scholars. Emphasis on museum exhibitions and scholarly discussion showed that even now a millennia and a half after its creation grave 25, as part of wider assemblage of archaic material, can be used in the creation of identities, to influence public opinions and shape contemporary societies, each time according to the needs of the times. This part has also stressed how this use and often abuse of the archaeological material can affect the disciplinary discourse and cause controversies which can distract scholarly research.
Collections
Show Collections
