Theme:
The archaeology of material culture, bodies and landscapes
Session format:
Session, made up of a combination of papers, max. 15 minutes each
Title:
The Third Dimension. Animal representations in the past.
Content:
Animals pervade our lives, both today and in the past. From the smallest bug through pets and agricultural animals to elephants and blue whales, the animals themselves, animal-derived products and representations of animals can be found everywhere in our daily lives. This session focusses on the representations of animals in the past: How were animals represented in iconography, and what do these representations tell us about the role and function of both animals and the representations themselves? How did humans and animals interact in the ancient world and how do these interactions impact animals and humans?
We encourage researchers to explore these questions through the iconography of animals (figurines, zoomorphic vessels, seals and seal impressions, plaques, wall paintings etc). We are especially interested in new approaches to examining these items. This can for example be by using technologies like 3D models to emphasise the dimensionality of objects and what this can reveal. It can also be with theoretical and interdisciplinary approaches that examine the intersection of the human and the animal - for example, devices or contraptions designed to contain/control or decorate an animal. We also encourage papers that challenge notions of animals purely as objects, but instead take a less anthropocentric perspective that focusses more on the condition and behaviour of animals and how these can be ‘read’ in the iconography.
The main focus is the Eastern Mediterranean and the Near East, but papers from all areas and periods are welcome.
Keywords:
animals, iconography, zoomorphic, 3D models
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Main organiser:
Dr Katarzyna Zeman-Wisniewska (Poland) 1
Co-organisers:
Dr Laerke Recht (United Kingdom) 2
Dr Esmeralda Agolli (Albania) 3
Affiliations:
1. Institute of Archaeology, Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw
2. McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge
3. Department of Archaeology and Culture Heritage, University of Tirana
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