For sale—The past: An archaeological approach to history’s ownership

Abstract

An Archaeological Approach to History’s Ownership: Since we were young, our teachers, parents and tutors have drilled pattern recognition into our subconscious, so by the time we reach maturity, it is second nature to ‘make things fit’. As a result, this paper focuses on the process of taking the abstract object and turning it into something which is seemingly tangible, relatable and able to grant power by identifying events in the past and crafting them into a modern perspective—making passed events contemporary manipulations. In other words, this analysis deals with humankind’s desire to control and attempts to own the elusive past by creating a desired, beneficial and, often times, faux historical narrative through an extremely limited human perspective of history to solidify the present and shape the future. Two case studies which demonstrate this model include: (1) the suspect acquisition of the Parthenon (or Elgin) Marbles and (2) the mid-twentieth century’s (specifically the Second World War) abuse of ancient, sacred iconography—the swastika. By leveraging these two didactics, I argue history is neither set in stone nor truly in the past.

Keywords

• cultural studies
• classical archaeology
• the second world war
• greek archaeology