PRESENTING ARCHAEOLOGY TO THE PUBLIC

Tim Copeland

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Archaeology and Cultural Heritage Cultural Heritage Management and Preservation Museums and Cultural Heritage

Abstract

Presenting archaeology to the public is not a new idea. Wheeler stated that ‘It is the duty of the archaeologist to reach and impress the public, and to mould his (sic) words in the common clay of its forthright understanding’ (Wheeler 1954: 224). However this vision of public involvement in archaeology was a long time coming to fruition as evidenced by M. W. Thompson’s (1981) account of the preservation and display of ruins in which the public audience is notably absent. He discriminated between primary interpretation ‘in which someone has to confront the ruin and give an intelligible account of it’ and secondary interpretation (presentation), ‘the popular transmission of this account, or the more interesting parts of it, to other people’. However, he was quite clear about the archaeologist’s role: ‘The latter is in part an educational function and requires different skills from the former with which we are concerned’ (Thompson 1981: 84). This is to be contrasted with the view twenty years later: ‘This background in education and self-fulfilment, distinguishing between information and understanding, is pervasive today as the ideal to be striven for in the presentation of heritage attractions’ (Prentice 1993: 171). During the intervening period archaeologists have taken on the educational role in response to the increase in visits to heritage sites. The reasons were outlined by the publication Visitors Welcome: Good on-site presentation of the archaeological dig is good for raising awareness, good public relations and good for generating income and support for continued work . . . your visitors should go away interested in and understanding the value of digging up the past, and appreciative of the role of the archaeologist . . . Heritage is now a considerable marketable commodity.

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References

2004Reconstruction as interpretation: the example of the Jorvik Viking Centre, York

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2018Digital heritage interpretation: a conceptual framework 2012Enriching Archaeological Parks with Contextual Sounds and Mobile Technology 2000Education in archaeology 2012OLD TINGS, SKELINTANS, AND ROOINZ: BELIZEAN STUDENT PERSPECTIVES ABOUT ARCHAEOLOGY 2015The Role of the Public in Public Archaeology: Ten Years of Outreach and Collaboration at Fort St. Joseph 2007When the Digging is Over: Some Observations on Methods of Interpreting Archaeological Sites for the Public 2006The Role of Archaeology in Presenting the Past to the Public 2013Tracing the Roots of Municipal Archaeology in St Augustine, Florida: The Story of How ‘The Oldest City’ Connected Archaeology, Local Government, and the Public

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