We Are Living In A Material World

November 16, 2022 5:45 PM

Material culture (previously) surrounds us, both the old stuff and the new stuff [archive.org link]. Sometimes this stuff reveals surprising new facts, as with the recent translation of writing on a hand-shaped bronze ornament uncovered in 2021 that pushes the timeline for the existence of writing in Basque by hundreds of years. Other times, it's just a thing for kids to play with, or maybe adults, or definitely adults[NSFW], but sometimes play carries meaning.

Academic types study this stuff in various disciplines, some of which have been around for a while, but which are constantly turning up new old stuff. A common problem with this kind of work is the ideology, though people pursue various strategies to remediate the colonizer's perspective. Indigenous material culture varies all over the world, and while frequently the subject of historical exploitation, many cultural heritage organizations are working on ways to give it back [SLYT].

posted by cupcakeninja (2 comments total)

Happy Week 3 of Fundraising, y'all! Thanks to the staff, SC, and volunteers for all the hard work. This post brought to you as a labor of love (and specifically being intrigued about the Basque news), but if you're standing there with a wheelbarrow full of cash and aren't sure where to put it? You know the drill.
posted by cupcakeninja at 5:53 PM on November 16, 2022

This is a really interesting set of links. Thanks for posting.
posted by sillyman at 5:03 AM on November 17, 2022 [1 favorite]