The views and opinions expressed in articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of ABACUS or the Australian National University. 2015
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Contents Note From the Editor – Cynthia Parayiwa
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ANU WWI Trench Excavation (Arch) – Glenn van der Kolk
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Crossword Reading Break
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Indonesia Field School (Anth) – Cynthia Parayiwa
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Perks of Student Engagement in CAS (Arch) – Lucy Blackam
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Australian Archaeology Excursion (Arch) – Melandri Vlok
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2015 Educator Awards
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Places of Conflict & Violence – Part I (Anth) – Kert Tandog
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Places of conflict & Violence – Part II (Anth) – Kert Tandog
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Essay Extract : Consultancy Archaeology (Arch) – Melandri Vlok
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ABACUS Executive 2015
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ABACUS Executive 2016
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Cover Photo Credit Simon Tener (2015)
Note from the Editor
As 2015 came to an end, so too did my time as editor for the Archaeology, Biological Anthropology and Cultural Heritage Society (ABACUS)’s Magazine. 2015 has been filled with amazing experiences for myself not only academically but also through my involvement with ABACUS. After spending three years in the Research School of Biology (RSB) and moving to a Science/Arts (Hons) program in my penultimate year, I felt a stranger to the School of Archaeology & Anthropology (SAA). Joining ABACUS soon remedied this. Through the society I was able to meet a plethora of people similarly passionate about my new study interests. I was further able to get involved in a host of events available to SAA students. These included guest lectures, student led events, archaeological digs and Heritage Day events that allowed for networking with not only students and academics but my community. This issue of ABACUS Magazine touches on some of the highlights of the year gone by such as archaeological excursions, courses available through SAA and the student benefits of getting involved with the Canberra Archaeology Society. The magazine continued to meet its main aims of showcasing work from Archaeology and Anthropology students at the ANU in addition to providing SAA students an opportunity to hear about what is on offer in relation to their study interests.
In parting, I would like to sincerely thank the members of the 2015 ABACUS Executive team for all their tireless efforts throughout the year to provide SAA students with a number of opportunities. I can only see great things in the society’s future and encourage everyone to keep an eye out for ABACS in 2016. I would further like to thank all those within SAA and CAS, students and lecturers alike, who continue to provide an invaluable experience for those who go through the school, allowing for an accepting, rewarding, and comfortable learning environment. Cynthia Parayiwa 2015 Editor, ABACUS Magazine
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World War I Trench Excavation
By Glenn van der Kolk ANU was recently involved in trench warfare but luckily the only shots fired were those going into the take away coffee. In 2016, Australia commemorates 100 years since the participation of the Australian Infantry Force in World War 1 (WWI). In mid 2015, a collaborative force comprising of the Australian National University, ACT Parks and Conservation Service and the Jerrabomberra Wetlands Management Committee engaged in historical research and excavation of a site in the Jerrabomberra Wetland near Pialligo. The excavation site located on Dairy Road, opposite RMC Duntroon, was the ‘research and development’ school for trench warfare from 1916. The aims of the archaeological investigation were to determine whether geographic correlation could be made between the exposed trenches and historical maps, determine the quality of the preservation of the trenches and whether there were any remaining artefacts. A team of students led by Dr. Tim Denham undertook imagery analysis as well as geophysics survey using ground penetrating radar, magnetometer survey and resistivity survey in 2014. In July 2015, a controlled mechanical transect was excavated in an area where the trenches were thought to have been constructed. The exposed area revealed clear changes in soil deposits from river mud to alternating transects of fine sand and course sandy fill. The sandy fill is a legacy from when the area was made safe and is a clear indicator of where the trenches once were.
Cross sectioned trench on site. Photo credit Glenn van der Kolk (2015)
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Additionally, pure sand was observed between the river mud and course sandy fill. This might be the remains from sandbags which were used to support trench walls. Care was taken when excavating the sand in an effort to identify sand bag impressions however none were found. Artefacts included metal shrapnel, shot gun and 303 cartridges. Post holes could be identified in the stratigraphy as well as depressed land features between the WWI trenches which might have been walkways.
Post hole in river mud. Photo credit Glenn van der Kolk (2015)
The trench walls were very well preserved. Some slumping had occurred over time however details such as, what appeared to be foot holds and shelf arrangements, could be made out. One limiting factor for conducting a more extensive excavation is the level of the water table which is higher when compared to the time when the site was used for trench warfare training, due to the creation of Lake Burley Griffin. High definition analysis of the site was achieved with 3mm wet and dry sieving. This process enabled extraction of the shrapnel which provided insight as to where the ordinances were detonated. This was a tedious task due to the thick river mud deposit however necessary in order to find the fine details in the archaeological record. ACT Parks and Conservation Service and the Jerrabomberra Wetlands Management Committee will now consider whether further archaeological activity should take place and whether the site could be opened up for public display. A wider area excavation made safe for public access would be a great asset as we prepare to commemorate 100 years since Australia’s involvement in WWI trench warfare in Europe.
Glenn is a third year undergraduate student studying a Bachelor of Archaeological Practices. His interests include Australian historical and pre-history archaeology as well as military archaeology. His highlights from studying at the ANU include CAS archaeological field activities as well as field trips with Research School of Earth Sciences and Fenner School of Environment and Society. Glenn’s best tip for getting involved in field activities is to keep in contact with ABACUS, establish networks with other students and keep an ear to the ground.
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ARCHAEOLOGY CROSSWORD by Frank Longo | © 2014, The New York Times
ACROSS 1 Archaeologists use these to locate dig sites 5 Docking places for boats 11 Flow back, as the tide 14 Helps pull off a crime 15 ___ borealis (northern lights) 16 VI × II 17 Egyptian boy-king whose tomb was unearthed by Howard Carter in 1922 19 Business firms: Abbr. 20 Foot part 21 Nectar-collecting insect 22 Hair on a lion’s neck 23 Kind of badge earned by a boy scout 26 Bulgarian, Czech or Serbian 28 Establishes as law
30 Object found at an archaeological dig 32 Grassy ground surface that an archaeologist might have to dig through 33 Go one better than 35 Hole in the ground created by an archaeological dig 36 Continent that’s home to Harappa, Pakistan, where archaeologists have unearthed buildings from a complex ancient society 38 Sonnet writers, for example 40 Helps 43 Add-___ (extras) 45 Fertile area in a desert 47 Alley-___ (pass-shot combo in basketball) 48 Material poured into 11-Down when digs are 8 complete
ACROSS
25___ dating (method of determining the age of an organic object)
51 Marathon participant 53 Singer/actor Frankie who was a teen idol in the late
1950s
31 Decays
55 Italian coins retired in 2002
34 Archaeologist’s trowel, for example
56 Start the planting season
37 It’s between the foot and the leg
59 “Murder, ___ Wrote” 30-Across may
29 “How ya doin’, bro?” 30 “Have I got ___ for you!”: 2 words.
54 Actress Spacek of “Carrie”
60 Place where a analysed
27 Balm or gloss may be applied to it
be scientifically
39 Title for archaeologist Flinders Petrie or Leonard Woolley
61 Peruvian city of the ancient Incas that was discovered by archaeologist Hiram Bingham in 1911: 2 words.
41 “___ that answer your question?”
66 From ___ Z (completely): 2 words.
44 Code for a major Calif. airport
67 Opening at which fluid enters
46 Japanese fish dish
68 Geologic time periods that are understood fully by archaeological discoveries
more
42 Quick on one’s feet
48 Sentimental song 49 Operate an airplane
69 Cub scout unit
50 Utterly senseless
70 Gave an examination to
52 Nephews’ sisters
71 “___ people never learn!”
57 Months after Septs. 58 “I beg your pardon?”
DOWN
59 Went like lightning
1 Doorstep item that may say “welcome”
61 Cambridge college that offers a Ph.D.
2 Monkey in “Aladdin”
program in Archaeological Materials
3 House animal
62 Hawaiian guitar, for short
4 Word before electricity or cling 5 Stop sleeping
63 ___-Magnon man (early Homo sapiens whose remains were first found in France in 1868)
6 “What’d you say?”
64 Ingredient in some club sandwiches
7 Persian Gulf resident
65 Avail oneself of
8 Italian capital whose ancient ruins have been studied by archaeologists
9 Most liberated 10 ___ Lorenzo (ancient Olmec center studied by archaeologists) 11 Holes dug by archaeologists to search for or expose buried items
PRINT, COMPLETE, ENJOY
12 Like the Six Million Dollar Man 13 Cut in half 18 “___ worry!” (“Never fear!”): 2 words. 22 Secretive organized crime group 23 Small plateau 24 Baseball Hall-of- Famer Slaughter
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Course Spotlight Indonesia Field School: Contemporary Change in Indonesia (ANTH3014/6065) By Cynthia Parayiwa
“The world in which you were born is just one mode of reality. Other cultures are not failed attempts at being you; they are unique manifestations of the human spirit.� Wade Davis
Studying Anthropology at the Australian National University presents a multitude of opportunities to immerse oneself in variety of cultures, practices and societies through a variety of courses offered by the School of Archaeology and Anthropology (SAA). I had the invaluable opportunity to undertake one of these courses in mid-2014 journeying to Indonesia and collaborating in field research with local students. I was able to immerse myself within the local culture through activities which ranged from sitting in on local council meetings to attending a three day wedding ceremony. Villagers also arranged events for visiting students to attend soccer matches between host villages, and an afternoon spent on a secluded island relaxing, socialising, and enjoying traditional dishes. Indonesia Field School: Contemporary Change in Indonesia (ANTH3014/6065) is a course offered during the ANU Autumn session which introduces students to life in Indonesian villages, experiencing their culture and way of life. Students from the Australian National University (ANU) in
Australia, and Duta Wacana Christian University (DWCU) and Sekolah Tinggi Pertanian Kewirausahaan (STPK) in Indonesia collaborated in an International Thematic Service Learning Program on the island of Maluku, Indonesia. Students with academic backgrounds in anthropology, information and technology, population health, product design, and agricultural sciences collaborated in groups of roughly six students. My group carried out data collection over three weeks, June/July 2014, in Laba Kecil, the smallest of the 28 villages within the district of South Loloda. The main aim of our major project was to work collaboratively with villagers in isolating their main areas of need. Students aimed to present their findings to the West Helmahera district government (pemerintah kabupaten) officials (Bupati) for potential rectification. Students furthermore identified and implemented small scale projects within their host village (in the form of service learning initiatives) that further aimed to empower target communities. 10
Over my stay in Laba Kecil, I learnt to work collaboratively in a team despite clashes between varying academic specialties and language barriers. This was an invaluable lesson particularly when conducting field research, where the success of relationships between members of a research team is paramount to the quality of the data collected and presented. Data for our projects was mainly qualitative and collected through translated interviews with villagers and village officials. Issues raised by villagers were to be independent of our influence as visitors within the area. This was particularly difficult as what we would deem as a major concern, for example access to health services, was not something prioritised by locals.
Maternal health was of particular concern to us after hearing of cases of both high maternal and infant mortality due to inadequate access to perinatal health facilities for remote villages. However, villagers stressed that the issue that needed higher prioritisation was that surrounding the restructuring of freshwater distribution among the villages. This had been slowly neglected over the past few years and heavily impacted access to water for drinking, cooking, cleaning, and bathing. Small scale service learning programs involved students sharing skills with villagers that could aid in supporting their everyday way of life. Within my group this included developing basic English lessons that would help villagers communicate when trading in larger cities, new agricultural practices allowing for higher yields, and sustainable fishing practices.
Farewell for students based in Laba Kecil, the whole village came down to see us go. Photo Credit Cynthia Parayiwa (2014)
Although our findings on freshwater distribution were successfully presented to district heads at the end of our stay, the future of the water crisis among remote villages within our research location remained unclear when we left. The sustainability of our small scale service learning projects was further questioned by students as we only had three weeks to produce and implement
projects and without administration they could be easily neglected in our absence. Despite these setbacks, which are not uncommon, the overall objectives of the course were achieved and both local villagers and visiting students gained invaluable experiences through exposure to new cultures over the study period. 11
Photo Stories
Scenic views on two of the many Islands of Indonesia. (above) Arrival in Ternate. (below) Relaxing on a small secluded island with the locals. Photo credit Cynthia Parayiwa (2014)
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One of the Indonesian students involved in the Service Learning Program posses with children in Laba Kecil after an English lesson. Photo credit Cynthia Parayiwa (2015)
A bride is welcomed into her groom’s village the day before the wedding by the women of Laba Kecil. Photo credit Cynthia Parayiwa (2015)
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Perks of Increased Student Engagement in CAS by Lucy Blackam President of the Canberra Archaeological Society
Springbank Island located in Canberra’s Lake Burley Griffin. Photo credit, including overleaf, Simon Tener (2015)
The Canberra Archaeological Society (CAS), is a community organisation in Canberra run for students and Canberra locals interested in archaeology. In 2015, CAS saw a massive increase in student involvement with event attendance and organisation, and the overall running of the society. Such heightened student involvement came with perks, such as an educational local excavation that ran for two weeks on Lake Burley Griffin’s Springbank Island. The Springbank Excavation enabled CAS to bring in more students and get some great coverage in local Canberra media. Springbank was a great way for CAS to get involved with the Canberra community by connecting them with local archaeology. We had new members come in from all age groups, and all walks of life. The 100 people that came on the Springbank heritage day were enthralled and excited by the dig and all the opportunities that Canberra’s archaeology holds
for them. The massive heritage event day was a massive success through great student volunteers and their engagement with the project allowing it to run smoothly. Additional perks associated with increased involvement in CAS include gaining valuable networks with some archaeology greats such as Jack Golson, John Mulvaney, Isabella McBryde, Dave Johnston and Mike Smith who are all CAS members and invaluable connections. To entice potential student members to the CAS/CAR lectures next year we are looking at moving the lectures run in the Manning Clark Theatre 6 to an earlier time of 6pm. We will keep all those interested updated on these changes once this is booked in. For lectures in 2016, we would love to start having students come in and present their work, especially if the work is within Canberra. Make sure to let CAS know if you would be interested in showcasing your research! 14
Apart from the Springbank excavation, CAS was further involved in events such as a visit to artefact grinding grooves on Percival Hill, and archaeological surveys at Goorooyaroo and historic sites near Mulligans Flat in Gungahlin. A good sprinkling of ANU students came along to learn about local heritage and gain some experience in recording techniques. In 2016, we plan to continue this fieldwork and offer more training in archaeological methods. The more student involvement we get the greater chance these, and more, events and learning opportunities will be run for students to gain more skills. Much more recently CAS has been looking at establishing a prize in collaboration with the ANU prizes and scholarships department. The prize would be a certain amount given to a deserving recipient involved in local research within Canberra. This prize is being produced to hopefully entice more students towards researching Canberra and the abundance of archaeological reserves that remain to be unearthed and appreciated.
If anyone would like to join CAS or have a chat to Lucy feel free to contact her on lucy.blackam@live.com , and for all 2015 members, don’t forget to renew your membership between now and February 2016 to get the early bird student 15 discount of $16!
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PERTH 29 – 31 JULY 2016 Hosted by the Archaeology Society of Western Australia at the University of Western Australia
Presentations Posters Panel discussions Workshops Networking opportunities Social events International keynote speakers Affordable student pricing Registrations close 15 July 2016 Abstract submissions close 15 May 2016
Australian Archaeology (ARCH2004/6004) Excursion 1st July - 2nd August 2015 By Melandri Vlok
It is our responsibility as the next generation of archaeologists, whether we end up working within Australia, or abroad, to conserve the past. To our best effort, we must commit ourselves to the management of archaeology sites, an exhaustive resource. However, first we must have the tools to do so. As such, students of the Australian Archaeology course (ARCH2004/6004) spent three days at Kioloa, on the south coast of New South Wales. Site recording (top) and the 2015 Australian Archaeology excursion team (bottom). Photo credit Melandri Vlok (2015).
20,000 years of occupation have been recorded along the south coast. Pleistocene sites such as Burrill Lake Rock Shelter continue to attest to the resourcefulness and land use of the past first Australians. The myriad of sites found along the coast further suggest continued use of this area right up until present day. The first day of the trip provided a beautiful allegory to the continuation of the human story as we commenced a cultural heritage walk with today’s landowners, the Murramarang people. We were educated on the use of land and water resources for food and survival. We finished the day at the Burrill Lake shelter and reflected on what we had learned from the Murramarang people. How did things change over time? Were there things that stayed the same?
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Rock paintings (top & bottom) photographed during Australian Archaeology trip to Kioloa, NSW. Photo credit Melandri Vlok (2015)
Quite often as archaeologists, it is easy to mislay the fact that we are telling the story of human kind. It is very easy to forget that each individual had emotions, governing reasons, and a purpose, as we construct issues into scientific hypotheses. It goes without saying, that this is no longer possible when you discuss with landowners as they tell stories. It is as if for a second, you catch a glimpse through the ever frustrating time warp, at the motives of the people of the past; how they moved, why they chose to live a certain way, and you get to feel as though they were alive once again. By the second day, when we had reached the Coles Creek site, an undated rock art site, an understanding of the importance of such work had set in. The Coles Creek site provided an opportunity to train in site assessment practices. Lithics, grinding grooves, and the contours of the rock shelter were recorded along with the pièce de résistance of the complex- the rock art. We recorded the men who danced along the wall, the goannas who slithered alongside them, and the ‘Dhulagar’, the law man who lay watching. All were a part of the goanna dreaming story, according to Barry Carriage, a Murramarang man. The goanna is said to have carved the way through
the Coles Creek complex. Eight rock arts sites, most with depictions of goannas have been found along the creek’s path. The third day provided an opportunity to walk through the Kioloa campus, where grinding grooves have also been found. This allowed students to see that Coles Creek itself was in no way isolated. Resources were being used all throughout the coastal area. Such an experience would not be possible had we only sat in class and listened to lectures. To be present, to witness and to record these places far extends any theoretical instruction. It is my hope that future classes have the opportunity to do so as well. An opportunity such as this was possible thanks to Dr. Duncan Wright, Australian Archaeology lecturer. Also I would like to thank Dave Johnston, and Tom Knight.
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2015 Educator awards In 2015, ABACUS awarded two ANU lecturers within the School of Archaeology and Anthropology, Dr Duncan Wright and Dr Dougald O’Reilly, with awards of appreciation for their continued work to improve student education. ABACUS continues to appreciate the efforts put forward by the ANU staff towards providing students with invaluable education and experiences. Congratulations to the 2015 recipients.
Senior archaeology lecturer and researcher, Dr Dougald O’Reilly, accepts his 2015 Educator Award from ABACUS president, Melandri Vlok. Photo credit Cynthia Parayiwa (2015)
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Position Vacancy
Ever wanted to be part of the ABACUS Executive Committee? Look out for the opportunity to join a fun loving group behind the organisation of a large number of student lead events within the School of Archaeology and Anthropology Positions available: ďƒ˜ Post-Graduate Representative 2016 ďƒ˜ First Year Representative 2016
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This issue’s student spotlight is on Kert Tandog, a current ANU Masters student studying Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development. Her interests include the anthropology of violence, suffering, conflict and development, in addition to Philippine prehistory, environment and resource management. In this two part narrative, Kert gives a moving account of violence and conflict within the Philippines and the impact this can have on local perceptions of violence and those inflicting it. This gives a gripping example of the application of anthropology when investigating current affairs and the importance of aiming to improve the understanding of perceptions surrounding conflict and violence. This article does make reference to events that may be upsetting to some, reader discretion is advised.
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Student Profile |Kert Tandog| |Masters in Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development | A Two-Part Narrative on Places of Conflict and Violence, and the Space for Anthropology The Australian Smart Travel website strongly warns Australian citizens “not to travel to central and western Mindanao”. Almost 2/3 of Mindanao has been plagued with conflict for centuries; motivations, spaces of death, locations of death, and affected bodies changing from time to time.
PART I I was born and spent majority of my life at the heart of central Mindanao in a small town called Kabacan, which means “abundance” or “prosperity”. Like many other towns in Central Mindanao, Kabacan has witnessed its fair share of violence and suffering, despite its claims to be abundant and prosperous. Over the years, I have learned to be attuned to danger and to wake up at the slightest unusual movement. When I was younger, I used to run to my parents’ room every time I heard bombs and gunfire from some unknown location. Unknown, yet it felt so close as if war was just on our doorstep. After finishing my undergraduate degree in Anthropology and deciding to teach carefree 16-year olds, the conflict had dissipated. But we have been conditioned to be wary. My seniors in the university were always on edge. The slightest information and news of what we call “engkwentro” – “encounters” between armed groups – were delivered across the university. Class dismissed. We spent a good amount of time outside the walls of the university than in it. Last year, while I spent my first year studying in ANU, News reached me of a bomb planted in front of a primary school that had killed one of our uni students. I can just imagine a young girl taking an evening stroll– as students her age usually do – to meet friends, find dinner, or get credit from a local store to message daily gossip. That was the end of it. Game over.
I came to ANU to study Masters of Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development (Conflict and Development) (MAAPD), with the hopes of studying conflict and finding out how to alleviate the suffering it has caused. Conflict has always been in front of me since I was young, yet it seemed elusive. The vocalist of Asin, a Filipino folk band, sings in her warm voice, “My land in Cotabato is as chaotic as my thoughts… Brother-to-brother, flesh-to-flesh are killing each other; I don’t know why”. Not knowing why is only partially true. We know a myriad of narratives of the roots of conflict. Popularly, it is understood as a religious conflict – Muslims versus Christians – but history reflects that it is about identity and land. Admittedly, my ethnolinguistic group – the Kinaray-a (an indigenous group from from Central Philippines that migrated to Central Mindanao in the 1930s, majority of which are Christians) – have taken part in the violence as members of a vigilante group called ILAGA (rat). The most atrocious bloodbath recorded was in the early 1970s when the ILAGA rounded up and killed Muslims in a mosque. ILAGA has always been blanketed as a group composed of land-grabbing Ilonggo Christian extremists out to extinguish Muslim groups for their own gains and for the interests of the government, but in reality it was composed of different ethnicities from different social classes with different motivations. Indeed, everyone who migrated to Mindanao is considered a land-grabber that takes advantage of the Muslim population. However, the elders in my mother’s village told me that they never encountered Muslims when they first arrived in a dense forest in Mindanao which they eventually called Salvacion (salvation). They believe they had saved this land from being a waste, and that this land had saved them from extreme poverty and servitude in their land of origin. This village is located just 30 minutes outside my hometown, Kabacan. 23
PART II I met one of the ILAGA members three years ago. He used to sit in his porch every day waiting for his imminent death from a long term illness. I looked at him – a man who was living in a poverty-stricken village, unable to pay the exorbitant fees for proper healthcare. Like many other narratives, there is always a counternarrative. Such exists about ILAGA. The narrative I’ve known is drastically different from the academic and popular portrayal of them. My mother and grandmother had told me that ILAGA had protected them from angry Muslims; that without the ILAGA, everyone in this small village would have been killed and their houses destroyed. But as I looked at the man, I asked myself “why did he take part in a group that had killed the innocent?” It was obvious that he did not gain anything from participating – his land was just as small as everyone else in the village. One would assume that my people would have known what it felt like to be oppressed, to suffer for no apparent reason. Why harbour feelings of violence towards people who are most likely innocent themselves? Similarly, why did the Muslim armed force – then called Blacksert (or Blackshirt) – attack our small village? Why did it end up as “us versus them”? I realised there is something missing from the different articulations of this strain of Mindanao conflict, even those from the academe. I recently read Taussig’s Culture of Terror (1984, p. 492), in which he said: “creating an uncertain reality out of fiction, a nightmarish reality in which the unstable interplay of truth and illusion becomes a social force of horrendous and phantasmic dimensions. To an important extent all societies live by fictions taken as reality”. Perhaps understanding this is the first step in understanding the violence between the Muslim group and my people; coupled with the conceptions of how “other” is constructed, how “other” is understood as violent and must be punished with violence. Perhaps both parties have fictionalized a truth about their “other”; a story of “space[s] of death” (1984; indeed the ILAGA are believed to practice cannibalism, while the Muslim group are considered violent people) filled with uncertainty, but believed to be answered only by violence towards each other. In such a space,
Anthropology can provide an understanding of the different ways of knowing, thinking and practicing. Through Anthropology, we can understand that our actions are a product of and mediated by social interactions and meaning-making. As ScheperHughes incessantly points out, violence is not inherent; and to understand it, we must understand the contexts, structures, systems of thinking, and ideologies (which includes fiction, according to Taussig) around it. I don’t claim to understand the social phenomenon of violence in our lands. I use ‘our’ because I still believe we can live together, that social walls and demarcations can be broken. I hope this is not a wishful thinking. However, I do believe that Anthropology can help all of us understand it and perhaps present an in-depth version of a narrative that does not justify violence on both sides, but provides a space in which all of us can heal our deep wounds. Perhaps we can prevent more suffering and more deaths. With this, I end with the lyrics from the same Asin song, “If I can help in any way, I would help with all my heart. I will offer my guitar. Please use it in the midst of violence. If you think your enemy has no heart, use your heart. Think of him as a friend. Understand that like you, he also has a heart.” References: Taussig, Michael 1984, “Culture of Terror, Space of Death. Roger Casement’s Putumayo Report and the Explanation of Torture”, Comparative Studies in Society and History vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 467-497. Also see Scheper-Hughes & Bourgois, P (eds) 2004, Violence in War and Peace: An Anthology, Blackwell Publishing, USA.
Kert Tandog. Photo credit Vince Escarcha (2013)
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Mindanao, Philippines. Source: latitdes.nu. Image by Caracena
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HOORAY for OGM Join the 2016 ABACUS Ordinary General Meeting to meet society members, join discussions on the society’s plans for the year ahead, and voting of additional ABACUS executive members. Keep an eye out as details role out.
DATE : WEEK 4
TIME : TBA PLACE : TBA
st 1
Year campus Tours
Know anyone starting at the ANU in 2016 who would need to find their footing around the School of Archaeology and Anthropology? Keep an eye out for information on ABACUS led tours for budding Anthropologists and Archaeologists.
Instagram (@a.b.a.c.u.s)
Facebook (ABACUS ANU)
Twitter (@A.B.A.C.U.S)
abacusanu@gmail.com 27
Consultancy Archaeology and the Contribution to Understanding of the Indigenous Past in Australia (An Essay Extract) By Melandri Vlok
Australia has seen an expansion in the Cultural Heritage Management sector in the recent decades due to the mining boom. As a result, there has been a shift in Australian Indigenous archaeology with the prevalence of consultant based archaeologists hired by development corporations to assess sites. The effect on the field of Indigenous Archaeology has been considerate, and the increase of consultancy work has led to significant contributions to the field. The reasons for this lie in the differences of consultancy based work to the field of academic research. However, a division within the field of archaeology has brought on its own set of issues that need to be considered for further work in the field of Australian Indigenous archaeology.
CONTRIBUTIONS TO AUSTRALIAN ARCHAEOLOGY Consultancy based archaeology has contributed many aspects to the field of Australian Indigenous archaeology that academic research has overlooked. The increase of archaeologists employed by developers has caused a shift from strictly traditional research being the dominating factor in the field.
A survey published in 2014 has shown that approximately 500-600 people work in Australian archaeology. 52% of these are involved in private consulting and a further 16% work in government organisations (Collery, 2014). The focus is also predominantly on Indigenous work with 66.4% of Australian archaeologists working in this area (Collery, 2014).
With an increase in the number of consulting based archaeologists, this has resulted in a way of identifying sites of research potential, but not necessarily involving research itself (Brown, 2008). In 2008, 300 sites of significance were recorded into the Aboriginal Heritage Information Management System (AHIMS) data base annually (Brown, 2008). Consultancy work has contributed to the identification of many sites that may make it easier to construct research over large areas. As such, data collected from consultant work has also been used to discuss the effects of sample size bias in archaeology and the implications for considering culture innovation indicators in the archaeological record. Consultancy archaeology in the Hammersley Plateau, Western Australia has been used to debate whether trends indicating intensification of backed artefacts and artefact discard is actually a result of sample bias (Marwick, 2009). As such, consultancy work is also contributing to considerations of data interpretation in academia and research. 28
Consultancy projects have access to better funded data collection for cultural resource management purposes which enable large amounts of data sets to be collected that would not be viable in academia (Williamson, 2000). Consulting projects such as those in the Pilbara region of Western Australia demonstrate the potential for the amount of information that could be collected through consulting practice. Most of the work in the Pilbara is consultancy based due to the mining boom (Morse, 2009) and the amount of grey literature in the area has been successfully consolidated by McDonald and Veth (2009) to provide a wide geographical understanding of land exploitation. Three decades worth of material both published and unpublished -on the Dampier archipelago petroglyph province- were consolidated to not only provide assessment for National Heritage listing but also provided a comprehensive contextualisation of the area (Morse, 2009). Similarly Hook (2009) used lithic material documented for cultural resource management purposes to investigate the manufacture and distribution of macroblades in Paraburdoo, southern Pilbara. A number of macroblade quarries are found throughout the Pilbara and 380 sites, recorded from consultancy, spanning an area of 184km² were used in the analysis (Hook, 2009). Hook composed a reduction process that highlighted minimal wastage except for the use of dolerite, which although similar in form, was created using a different process. Suggestions that dolerite macroblades were used in trade, were proposed (Hook, 2009). The large database which Hook used to compare materials and typologies included small scatters that may have been overlooked in traditional academic research where time constraints and specific research questions are a factor (Williamson, 2000).
Grey literature produced through consultancy also produces alternate ways of data production and perspectives. Grey literature is considered here, as by Gibbs and Collery (2012) to be all forms of archaeological data that is not published either through academic publish houses or journals. Non-university based publications allow for alternate forms, fresh ideas and new perspectives on archaeological information (Seymour, 2010). Furthermore it allows for faster distribution, with publication delays avoided (Seymour, 2010). Data can be presented in ways that is not possible for academic publication, and peer review may in some ways hinder the spread of ideas and stifle possible research (Seymour, 2010). Although it should also be mentioned that at times, grey literature is also peer reviewed by other archaeologists in the field (Seymour, 2010). The benefits of grey literature are represented in the work by Brown (2010) who used the NSW AHIMS to draw distinctions of different sub-bio regions in the Sydney Basin. Brown discovered that lithics tend to be associated with rock shelters in sandstone country, whereas they are found in open area sites in shale country (Brown, 2010). A predictive model was constructed from the research that in turn benefits consultants in site identification (Brown, 2010). A significant aspect of contribution by consultant archaeologists is the awareness of cultural heritage conservation. There is a reality in the need for consulting archaeologists in cultural heritage management of aboriginal heritage (Williamson, 2000). An expansion in the cultural heritage management sector (Ulm et.al, 2005) has lead ultimately to Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Standards which are to be followed by all archaeologists (Brown, 2008). A guidelines kit was enacted by NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service in 1997 to standardise site assessment 29
This has resulted in a shift in the relationships between Aboriginal groups and archaeologists, which in turn has a direct effect on research (Brown, 2008). This has pushed for indigenous people to become ‘right holders not simply stakeholders’ (Brown, 2008: 22). Consultant archaeology also allows decisions to be made on the impact of sites and can be beneficial in recording places where intrusive archaeology conducted by academia is not suitable (Lewis et.al, 1985). This is uniquely beneficial because archaeology is still recorded at these sites however minimal.
The emergence of consultancy has contributed much to the field of archaeology, especially in terms of providing new perspectives and opportunities for data collection. There are considerable differences to academia however, that do enable each field to provide different aspects within the same discipline.
Rock paintings from Kioala, NSW. Photo Credit Melandri Vlok (2015)
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ABACUS Executives 2015
(from left) Cynthia Parayiwa (Publications Officer), Marni Booth (Treasurer), Lucy Blackman (Vice President), Kelsey Rydar (Secretary), Simon Williams (General Representative), Melandri Vlok (President), Sean Sheehan (First Year Representative)
A huge thank you to you all for your hard work in 2015! 31
ABACUS Executives 2016
(from left) Marni Booth (Treasurer), Sean Sheehan (General Representative), Rebecca Banks (Secretary) Glenn van der Kolk (General Representative), Melandri Vlok (President), Kelsey Rydar (Publications Officer), not pictured Emily Miller (Vice President).
All the best to the 2016 abacus exec. Team! 32
Crossword Answers
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