Theme:
Theories and methods in archaeological sciences
Session format:
Session, made up of a combination of papers, max. 15 minutes each
Title:
Anthropomorphism in material culture and landscape: Approaching a fundamental of human cognition
Content:
Anthropomorphism is one fundamental example of the analogous thinking of humankind: that of projecting a human corporal image over the surrounding world.
Anthropomorphism contributes to the human sense of control over the environment and an increased sense of knowledge and insight about the world they inhabit. It is a characteristic of thought that bestows a feeling of protection through understanding, and thus represents the human capacity for reasoned thought as a tool for defense and survival. Anthropomorphism is an aspect of human cognition that displays a unique capability and inherent bias toward creating a conceptual framework first, then modeling material culture and society. For a mental control of cosmic phenomena, supernatural entities, geomorphs, and up to spatial organizations or objects, humanity used anthropomorphic images or symbols. Anthropomorphism is also a type of self-reflection, whereby humans can contemplate the verities of their lives through projection onto other species.
Although less studied, anthropomorphism is a significant cognitive subject for archaeology, being present in material culture and landscape, both as icons and diagrams, from early prehistory up to the modern world.
This is the reason why the present session proposes archaeological approaches to the anthropomorphic images that are determined by nature or culture.
Keywords:
anthropomorphism, cognition, material culture, landscape
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Main organiser:
Professor Dragos Gheorghiu (Romania) 1
Co-organisers:
Dr. Vincent Paladino (United States) 2
Affiliations:
1. National University of Arts - Bucharest
2. American Anthropological Association
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