THE PAST AND PRESENT OF PUBLIC ARCHAEOLOGY IN POLAND: BETWEEN EDUCATING AND ENGAGING LOCAL COMMUNITIES El pasado y presente de la arqueología pública en Polonia: Educar e involucrar a comunidades locales KORNELIA KAJDA * and DAWID KOBIAŁKA (original) (raw)
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European Journal of Archaeology, 2022
This article aims to conceptualize the present state of public archaeology in Poland, which has recently become topical in archaeological practice. The author defines public archaeology and discusses the historical background of such activities in the context of the specific traditions of Polish archaeology. He then describes the main forms of outreach activities undertaken by archaeologists in Poland and presents community-oriented initiatives that go beyond the education of the general public about the past and strive to engage local communities in activities focused on archaeology and archaeological heritage. He concludes by outlining some directions that this sub-discipline may adopt in future.
On public archaeology in Poland: an interview with Roksana Chowaniec
Public Archaeology, 2018
which began as a series of non-destructive investigations but later developed into a complex research project involving excavations, landscape and environmental studies, digital information systems, and archaeometric research on various types of material culture. This research is focused on the role of Hellenistic towns within the Roman province of Sicily, landscape studies, and the reconstruction of daily life and human impact on the environment. 1 Popularization of archaeology has a long lineage in Poland; however, it has been rather a one-way communication (from the discipline to the general public). However, increasing interest in the development of public archaeology (as an environment of mutual communication and public engagement) can be seen in the increasing number of published books, papers, and conferences dealing with this topic, as well as projects and events engaging local communities (for example,
Arheologija i prirodne nauke, 2016
The author of the paper aims at demonstrating her endeavours to spark interest in ancient times and cultures of the world in a small town in Poland, namely Pułtusk-her hometown. Although there is a university in Pułtusk, it is still quite difficult incite people's curiosity. We live in such times that time is money and for parents more important are languages and fortunately still physical education as well, but much more rarely knowledge children can acquire, for instance in the humanities. Notwithstanding all of the difficulties, the present author not only conducts once a year archaeological workshop to celebrate the Children's Day, but also she managed to open the Humanistic University for Children in 2012. This makes a positive example and proves that when one tries hard he/she is inevitably doomed to success. Therefore, this case may be treated as a precedent. The present author hopes very much that in the upcoming years there will be more and more Universities for Children in small towns allowing children from localities lying away of municipal centres to develop their curiosity for the world, their interests and skills. The following paper, illustrated with very many photos, was presented at the conference held at the Archaeological park of Viminacium from 5th to 8th of October 2012 to which the author was kindly invited. However, it is its revised version.
Polish Archaeology in Retrospective
Comparative Archaeologies, 2011
systemic transition in Eastern Europe prompted my interest in the condition of the social sciences and especially archaeology under the communist rule and the newly emerging socioeconomic and political regimes. The goal of this study is to evaluate the status of archaeology in Poland, its theory, practice, and structure in the period from 1945 to 1990, marked by two milestone historical events: the end of WWII, which brought about a new social, economic, and political constellation, and the social revolution of 1989-1990, which complicated the region's socioeconomics and politics even more. The larger problem examined is how archaeology relates to socioeconomic and political settings in general. I conclude that despite certain attempts, archaeological theory and methodology have not changed after 1990, while the practice and structure of archaeology include new elements.
Folia Praehistorica Posnaniensia, 26, 2021
This paper aims to present how the past is viewed in contemporary cultural and social narratives, and defines contemporary attitude to the past among Poles. My deliberations are placed in the context of the present-day society / culture and their constituting processes, namely the phenomenon of forgetting the past, democratization of the past, its privatization / individualization, commodification of the past and new ways of experiencing it. The paper will specifically concentrate on the archaeological past-that is the past created by archaeologists, and on archaeological heritage. It address three crucial issues, namely: (1) how changes in the historical context of post-1989 Poland influenced the emergence the renaissance of the past and different narratives about it; (2) what are the most important and widespread forms of presenting and/or experiencing the archaeological past in the present?, and (3) what are the main motivations that lie behind contemporary Poles interest in the past, archaeological heritage and activities undertaken around it? Finally, it is argued that the changes in the people's attitudes towards the past have led also to a transformation in the hierarchy of aims and methods in education and dissemination of the knowledge about the past within institutions concerned with the past on a professional level.
Modern Technologies in Polish Archaeology: A Case Study of Central Masovia 2009 – 2014
The aim of this paper is to enrich academic discussion about broadly understood “modern“ or “new“ technologies in Archaeology by assigning actual facts and statistical information to various claims and propositions circulating in Academia. Further, to inform exactly how many researches of different types took place in the 2009-2014 period and in each year of this period, which method is most popular, and if there are any general tendencies to be noticed in the usage of particular methods. Authors use as a base for this case study an area of nine counties in central Masovia region (Poland), which is moderately enriched by objects of archaeological importance, yet where a consistently high number of private and public investments causes steady increase in number of archaeological projects to be carried out in recent years. These are conducted on a different scale from one-day watching briefs up to road scheme projects covering large previously underdeveloped areas around the city of Warsaw and are carried out both by local archaeological teams and units from other parts of the country. A common factor is almost exclusively commercial character of work, also an important background is created by the EU funds inspired a boom in infrastructural investments that will most likely be the largest event of such scale for many years to come. Data presented here is collected from all field reports and documentation collected on a basis of art. 31.3 of Polish Monument Care and Protection Act by Masovian Voivodship Heritage Officer Office for the period of 6 years (2009 - 2014). The paper does not aim to discuss the quality of such work or validity of chosen methods for the projects they have been used in – this is a matter for another study. Neither it is the authors aim to qualify, which method is more suitable for future use in the field archaeology in this region. This report should be treated as a factual base for future discussion and an attempt to present the condition of Polish Archaeology in its certain aspect.
The End of History and Polish Archaeology after the Fall of Communism
Archaeology and neoliberalism, 2016
This chapter deals with Polish archaeology after the fall of communism. Two issues are discussed: (a) recent theoretical and practical research tendencies among Polish archaeologists, and (b) how the fall of communism contributed to making the archaeological. The material heritage of communism, the huge transformations caused by its collapse, the ruination and decay of factories, state agricultural farms, entire towns and villages, among others, also deserve archaeological attention and approach. Accordingly, the main conclusion of this chapter is that instead of analysing theoretical and practical research tendencies in Polish archaeology after the fall of communism, it would be more productive to start doing research on archaeological sites related to communism in Poland, its fall and material aftermaths. This is the task that Polish archaeology has to face in a near future.
Antiquarian and archeological collections and museums in Poland since 1918 a thematic outline
The aim of this article is to draw attention to the complexity of the emergence of ancient and archeological collections and museums in Poland since 1918, without exploring the history of each partition. Polish archeology is particularly indebted to them since, as a scientific discipline, it developed during the times of lack of statehood after the partitions of Polish territories. The politics of the invaders, even though different in each partition, did not favor the development of scientific institutions in which archeology could have found support. Till 1918 only individual collections and museums established by scientific societies or other social organizations were developing on Polish grounds. State institutions collecting monuments aroused only after the First World War. Historical curiosity and passion for collecting constitute the basis of archeology as a science; however, it was only when people interested in the past times moved from collecting ancient items to elaborating means of using them for a rational reconstruction of ancient times that archeology began evolving into a separate discipline. It is thus fair to say that collections and museums, along with scientific societies, were the cradle of archeology. Polish archeology is particularly indebted to them since, as a scientific discipline, it developed during the times of lack of statehood after the partitions of Polish territories. The politics of the invaders, even though different in each partition, did not favor the development of scientific institutions in which archeology could have found support. In this situation, collections and museums became treasuries of knowledge of sort, and knowledge was essential for conducting research and educating future generations of archeologists. In this article, I would like to draw attention to the complexity of the emergence of ancient and archeological collections and museums in Poland since 1918, without exploring the history of each partition. The activities of collectors of Silesia and Pomerania (that in this period were not part of the Polish state) also remain outside my considerations [Jażdżewski, 1983, p. 3–6]. When examining the history of collecting and museum management in general, a reference worth making is to an inspiring essay of Krzysztof Pomian, an outstanding philosopher and historian and expert in the history of European collecting and museum activity, entitled " Archeology, Nation, History ". In this essay, he makes references to the three ways of thinking and methods of describing the past, namely, 1. Biblical history, general history, understood as the history of how all mankind was saved by Jesus Christ and the Church; 2. The history of Rome, general history, understood as the history of the unification of mankind by the Roman Empire; 3. Ethnic history that describes the history of particular nations taking into consideration their distinctiveness [Pomian, 2002, pp. 9–15]. Formed in the Middle Ages, these three perspectives are typical for Latin Christian tradition and are interconnected. According to K. Pomian, it is those three outlooks that determine the place and role of archeology in the European culture, and by doing so, they define the kind of archeological materials that are being collected. From the 11 th to 15 th century, when the inhabitants of Latin world were united in Christianity, Biblical history was the dominating one but the common past was also ancient history. It was a common practice of chronicle authors to situate the history of their nations within this history creating so called ethnogenetic legends which functioned as traditions about pagan past [Pomian, 1968, p. 14; 2002, p. 10]. Due to the process of Christianization, the latter one was becoming more and
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The Management of Research on the Beginnings of the Polish State was established to carry out extensive, interdisciplinary research on the genesis and functioning of the state of the first Piasts, which was undertaken in connection with the need to celebrate the 1000th anniversary of the Polish state and its baptism. In 1949–1953, Early Medieval archaeological sites were examined in 31 cities. The most attention was devoted to strongholds with Piast records (Gdańsk, Gniezno, Giecz, Poznań, Kruszwica, Kalisz, Tum pod Łęczycą, Błonie, Bródno, Wrocław, Opole, Niemcza, Cieszyn, and Wiślica). Most of them are located in the medieval centres of modern cities. In this situation, the natural order of things was to link the problems of Early Medieval castles with the problems of the beginnings of Polish cities. Early Medieval sites in Poland, usually with a complicated stratigraphy, especially in the case of cities or strongholds, are the most difficult to excavate. Meanwhile, at that time o...
Open Archaeology, 2016
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