We are pleased to announce that the 7th International Congress on the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East will be held in London in 2010, organised jointly by the Department of the Middle East, The British Museum and the Institute of Archaeology, University College London.
Major features of the congress will be:
- Five main themes – details below
- A session on recent and current excavations and surveys
- A session on Islamic archaeology
- Workshops
- Posters
7ICAANE Congress Themes
Mega-cities and Mega-sites
In every age – prehistoric, historic, modern – there have been special sites and cities that dominate their socio-political environs to such an extent that they can be characterised as mega-sites or mega-cities. These giant settlements act like geographical and economic black holes, drawing in energy and resources of all kinds from near and far. Their impacts are of epoch-defining importance. Within this theme we aim to explore the structure and significance of mega-sites and mega-cities through the ancient Near Eastern past. We invite papers on specific case-studies including, for example, Çatalhöyük, Uruk-Warka, Nineveh, Babylon, Persepolis, Seleucia/Ctesiphon, Samarra, Merv, Istanbul and many others.
Ancient and modern issues in cultural heritage
This theme invites comparative and case-specific contributions on issues in the management of cultural heritage. Papers relating to heritage in conflict and post-conflict states, archaeology and the construction of identity, the value and treatment of archaeology and heritage in education and tourism, and the roles of state and non-governmental organisations are all encouraged. Within this theme we also welcome contributions on ancient and pre-modern approaches to the past. Papers here might include ancient libraries, collections and restorations, from the creation of ancient museums to restoration in modern times.
Colour and light in architecture, art and material culture
This session invites papers to explore the inter-relationships between colour and light. Papers may include the association and symbolism of colour for certain types of object or representations; colour schemes in art and architecture; pigments, dyes and their sources; the impact of light on the organisation of space; and the visibility, degradation or disappearance of colour.
The archaeology of consumption and disposal
The archaeological record is created by acts of consumption and disposal; from everyday activities relating to subsistence, to less frequent events such as mortuary rites. We invite papers which discuss the archaeology of production, procurement, movement, usage and disposal relating to everyday and exotic items from the past. Papers may include for example, discussion of site formation processes, the organisation of space relating to zones of activity and burial of the dead.
Landscape, transport and communication
This theme invites contributions on the landscapes of the ancient Near East and all aspects of human interaction with and within them. Papers may include different aspects of landscape studies, environmental and geoarchaeological work, methodological and theoretical concerns in field survey, as well as computer-based modelling approaches to human-landscape interaction. We welcome papers exploring movement and information flow between human settlements. They may include the origins, significance and transformations of major highways as well as local networks of exchange, the logistical concerns of ancient transport and communication systems, and the techniques and technological inventions to overcome them.
