Bloomsbury Eurocentrism, Archaeology and Empire: The Legacy of Heritage Politics in 21st-Century Britain (UCL Critical Cultural Heritage Series)

Exploring the complex relationship between archaeology, Eurocentrism and imperialism over the past 250 years, this book looks at the influence of colonial-era archaeologies on current understandings of the past. It draws on a wide range of evidence from academia, education and the media concerning the production, dissemination and consumption of knowledge in 21st-century Britain. Since the 1980s, both the history of archaeology and critical cultural heritage have received significant attention as fields of social discourse linked to the European colonial project. Less explored, however, are the active legacies of these imperial worldviews in the present century. Colonial historiographies are often outdated and even racist, but they permeate current methodologies and approaches. In particular, this book examines the state of the contemporary research landscape, looks at the presentation of history in school curricula, and provides a large-scale analysis of the use of the past in British media. At a time of increasing political unrest across Europe, this book provides important insights into the pervasive nature of Eurocentric archaeologies, and the ways in which cultural memory can affect social discourse. Moreover, the study outlines the areas in which archaeology and heritage researchers may seek to disrupt misuses and misapplications of the past.