Session: #679

Session, made up of a combination of papers, max. 15 minutes each

Much archaeological work focusses on processes of places-making, but what of places of transience, marginalisation and exclusion? ‘Non-places’ have been the focus of study in the contemporary World and are typically seen as characteristic of ‘supermodernity’. But, is the concept of the ‘non-place’ helpful in thinking about medieval spaces? Might it allow us to move away from a focus on institutional, religious and regulated spaces to engage with spaces of disruption, transience and marginalisation, and allow us to explore those living outside of spaces and regimes of regularity, authority and normativity? Examples of contemporary non-places, existing at the margins include airports and service stations, but also those with more exclusionary functions; slums, detention centres and temporary settlements.

Approaches to medieval place-making have been characterised by a concern with order. By thinking about places at the margins, can we begin to think about medieval space in new ways, to reveal further the complexity of medieval society and to think about the implications of processes such as commercial expansion in creating spaces of transience and dispossession? Papers are invited which explore these questions, for example by:

•Exploring the archaeology of transient and temporary spaces, (e.g. military encampments, fairs, places of temporary refuge).
•Considering the implications of processes such as commercial expansion in the creation of marginalised spaces, (e.g. in docklands and townscapes), and exploring the relations between formalised, regulated space and the emergence of more ‘feral’ spaces.
•Discussing the relationship between spaces of transience and structures of authority.

non-place, medieval, urban, place-making

yes

no

no

Dr Ben Jervis (United Kingdom) ¹

Dr Dries Tys (Belgium) ²