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Towards an archaeology of cremation
Williams, Howard
Williams, Howard
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2015-06-25
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Abstract
How can we begin to understand and explain the changing significance of cremation in past
societies? From many parts of the world and for many periods of human history from as
early as the Upper Palaeolithic (Bowler et al., 1980) to recent centuries, archaeologists have
uncovered and investigated material evidence for the use of fire as a means of transforming
and disposing of the dead. This chapter argues that in contrast to the rich and widespread
evidence for cremation in the archaeological record, theoretical approaches in the archaeology
of cremation have been relatively thin on the ground until very recently. This relative failure
to adequately engage with the complexity and the variability of cremation practices across
cultures seems connected to the fact that most of the theoretical debates and developments
in mortuary archaeology have, until quite recently, been primarily geared to the investigation
of unburned human remains. Therefore, alongside increasingly refined methodologies for
investigating burnt bones, it is argued that archaeologists need to redress this imbalance by
developing explicit theoretical approaches to the phenomenon of cremation. Such theories
need to engage with broad cross-cultural themes and also remain sensitive to the considerable
variety of mortuary procedures involving fire used at different times and in different places.
Citation
Williams, H. (2015). Towards an archaeology of cremation. In C. W. Schmidt & S. Symes (Eds.), The Analysis of Burned Human Remains (2nd ed., pp. 259-93). London, United Kingdom: Academic Press.
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Academic Press
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Book chapter
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en
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9780128004517