This study explores the process of identity creation in the Caribbean archipelagic space by examining the last five centuries of Grenada’s layered history through detailing and analyzing the major... Show moreThis study explores the process of identity creation in the Caribbean archipelagic space by examining the last five centuries of Grenada’s layered history through detailing and analyzing the major human-environment interactions that have transformed its landscape, particularly following the invasion of Europeans since the 17th century and the establishment of plantation agriculture and slavery (utilizing enslaved Africans and their descendants), village settlements and subsistence agriculture, and much later tourism. It will analyze its landscape transformations by examining land use and settlement patterns of its human occupants from the Indigenous Kali’nago to its current inhabitants via the concept of creolization. Centuries of interactions between and among these various groups of people and the Grenadian environment have created a landscape best described as a palimpsest where layer upon layer of interactions intertwine, overwrite and blend with each other through time. Yet leaving glimpses or blurred pictures of impacts in various and discernable ways, thus creating a long-term biography of this islandscape. By examining the Grenadian palimpsest and analyzing the concept of landscape identity through historical representations and memory-traces embedded in the Creole cultural landscape this study explores the relationship between people and the landscape over time. Show less
This thesis presents an investigation into how geopolitical change and religious control are reflected in the composition of copper-alloy costume artefacts, recovered from Roman and early medieval... Show moreThis thesis presents an investigation into how geopolitical change and religious control are reflected in the composition of copper-alloy costume artefacts, recovered from Roman and early medieval contexts. It engages with the challenging topic of portable X-ray Florescence Spectrometry use in archaeology, especially as applied to corroded copper-alloy artefacts. The relevance is twofold. Firstly it helps us better understand the globalising effects of the Roman Empire on distant cultures and the emergence of the western economy after the end of antiquity. This is investigated by detecting changes in craft production, considered a proxy for understanding changes in past economies and societies. Secondly it advances a methodology for the study of copper-alloy objects. Subsequently the composition of Roman brooches from Germania Inferior, suggested a strong link between brass and Roman military production. This connection was also seen in other parts of the Roman world, suggesting a degree of centralisation or control. The earliest roman objects found in the Baltic States, far north of the Limes frontier, are also in this 'Roman' alloy. These objects had a lasting impact on the peoples of this region. They adopted and adapted them stylistically to suit their local preferences for centuries after they first appeared. Show less
A mere day after his first footfall in the Americas, Columbus notes the broad foreheads of its inhabitants. These cranial shapes are deliberately created by applying pressure to the infant’s head... Show moreA mere day after his first footfall in the Americas, Columbus notes the broad foreheads of its inhabitants. These cranial shapes are deliberately created by applying pressure to the infant’s head after birth. Facing Society studies indigenous identities through head shaping practices against the backdrop of broader social developments in Caribbean communities before and after 1492 through a multi-disciplinary approach combining archaeology, (ethno)history, anthropology, and sociology. The first evidence of intentional cranial modification comes from the Early Ceramic Age, however by the Late Ceramic Age it was found across the Caribbean. Different regional patterns emerge in conjunction with diverging social developments. For example, the relatively homogeneous pattern of cranial modification seen in the Greater Antilles indicates a collective identity fostering social cohesion in expanding communities and connecting distant villages within the interaction sphere. The Early Colonial Period was transformative for indigenous communities and identities, and consequently caused a decline in head shaping practices. An unexpected revival was seen among the Black Carib, a community of free African descendants on St. Vincent. Traces of head shaping practices can still be found to this day demonstrating the lasting importance of indigenous social practices in the cultural mosaic of the current Caribbean. Show less
