Recent discussions of a renewed materialist approach (often referred to as the new materialisms) have fostered a revisit-ing of some of the foundational tenets – ontological, epistemological,... Show moreRecent discussions of a renewed materialist approach (often referred to as the new materialisms) have fostered a revisit-ing of some of the foundational tenets – ontological, epistemological, ethical – of the social sciences. e challenges andpossibilities raised in these discussions between historians, archaeologists, geographers, and political ecologists have thepotential to open new perspectives on the nature and ethics of research practice, representation, and the objects of ourstudy. is article takes the form of an experimental intervention, highlighting the multiple intersections between recentdiscussions in new materialist political ecology and archaeological approaches to practice and representation. A casestudy exploring the historical archaeology of the colonial Andes provides a brief yet concrete examination of some of thepotential impacts of a new materialist approach, highlighting new foci on labor, animal history, and the ‘slowness’ ofarchaeological practice. Show less
This research strives to reveal how ideologies of race, class, and gender manifested in the the social, physical, and material landscapes of pre-emancipation colonial Saba, Dutch Caribbean. Race,... Show moreThis research strives to reveal how ideologies of race, class, and gender manifested in the the social, physical, and material landscapes of pre-emancipation colonial Saba, Dutch Caribbean. Race, class, and gender serve as facets and vectors for ideology. By viewing them as processes, their capacity to express such through their social and material environments inextricably tied to their particular temporal and spatial contexts. Through comparisons of the social and material environments of multiple, contemporaneous social contexts within Saba, common social and material vectors among these ideological facets can become apparent. In particular, this concerns: • How tensions between the “incomplete hegemony” of colonial authorities and plantation agriculture with Saban residents resulted in a dialectic between local landscapes, materiality, and ideologies of race, class, and gender. • Differentiating between slavery, free poverty, and low class in the archaeological record. • The dialectic between scale, locality, and perspective in defining and situating class and poverty. Show less
