PALESTINE VOLUME II - The Citadel of Jerusalem: A Case Study in the Cultural Appropriation of Archaeology in Palestine by Mahmoud Hawari (original) (raw)

2010, The Citadel of Jerusalem: A Case Study in the Cultural Appropriation of Archaeology in Palestine Author: Mahmoud Hawari

The cultural appropriation of archaeology is a form of structural violence. The term 'cultural appropriation' is generally applied when the subject culture is a minority culture or somehow subordinate in social, political, economic, or military status to the appropriating culture; where a more powerful culture raids a less powerful neighbouring one; or when there are other issues involved such as a history of ethnic or racial conflict between the two groups. It can include the appropriation of various forms of cultural heritage, such as dress, food, music, art, icons, rituals, language, religion, holy places, historical and archaeological sites. These elements, once removed from their indigenous cultural contexts, may take on meanings that are significantly divergent from, or merely less nuanced than, those they originally held. In the process of the Zionist colonisation of Palestine and the gradual dispossession of Palestinian land, Israeli archaeology has been actively employed in divesting Palestinians of their history and appropriating their cultural heritage. In this context Biblical archaeology has played a significant role. Its goal has been to establish a link between the modern State of Israel and the 'Israelite' period, and as a result the pluralistic nature of Palestine's past has virtually vanished from public awareness, and with it the Arab past, traditions and cultural heritage. Many archaeological, historical and holy sites in Palestine / Israel that are an integral part of Palestinian cultural heritage have been appropriated as 'biblical' or 'Jewish'. In the meantime, Israel continues to intensify its Judization of archaeological sites in the West Bank and Jerusalem. This paper presents a case study of the cultural appropriation of archaeology in Palestine.