Archeologists Are Too Colonial, Says Anthropologist

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2. Decolonizing Archaeology

The study of archaeology was originated in Europe, therefore its colonial roots are very apparent. Because it originated as colonial practice, in general, archaeology has mainly been westerners traveling and trying to understand the history of different Indigenous people (Indigenous Archaeology as Decolonizing Practice). The fact that the colonizers were the people determining the history of past civilizations reveals that a bias exists in how we understand certain cultures. When artifacts were found and analyzed, they were easily misinterpreted and taken out of context. Then they would be taken and placed in a museum, creating a false history. These inaccuracies are then passed down and are taken for the truth. For example, when British archaeologist Neville Chittick came across ancient stone towns on the Swahili Coast, he automatically assumed that they had to have been made by outsiders (Matters of Context). His misinterpretation was then documented in textbooks and has misguided many people who read his work. In class we discussed the importance of contextualizing artifacts. In order to fully understand the artifact being studied, it is crucial to be conscious and knowledgable about the culture, traditions, rituals and other defining characteristics surrounding it. Without this understanding, artifacts are taken out of context, misunderstood, and the entire truth is not revealed. Archaeology’s colonial roots and prioritization of Western cultures has proved to be problematic, but there are ways to break away from this system.


https://pages.vassar.edu/realarchaeology/2017/09/17/decolonizing-archaeology/