Springer Maritime Archaeology and Social Relations: British Action in the Southern Hemisphere (The Springer Series in Underwater Archaeology)

This book analyses British action in the Southern hemisphere in the late 18th century, examining two Royal Navy ships, one off the Argentinean coast and one off the Southeast Australian coast. The author goes beyond a descriptive analysis of wrecks by treating them and their cargoes as embodiments of 18th century social relations. The book challenges traditional approaches, providing a perspective that emphasises the richness, diversity and complexity of British action. Review From the reviews: "Maritime Archaeology and Social Relations is an edited version of the author’s doctoral thesis … . The work is extremely well researched, structured, and referenced … . is both a very welcome book and an important one. … The book joins a number of recent works on maritime archaeology that make an extremely important contribution to the broad ‘historical archaeology’ of the modern (i.e. capitalist, consumer-driven) world … ." (Joe Flatman, Journal of Maritime Archaeology, Vol. 3, 2008) "Springer Press has added yet another fine piece of scholarship to its growing series in underwater archaeology. Virginia Dellino-Musgrave’s book contributes to the quality and calibre of this series as the eleventh monograph. … it explores 18th-century British social relations within the context of maritime archaeology and history. … this book is an excellent piece of scholarship. Dellino-Musgrave should be commended for her contributions to maritime archaeology. This work can certainly be classified as a ‘must read by all’ in current literature." (Jennifer McKinnon, The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, Vol. 36 (2), 2007) From the Back Cover Global processes such as capitalism and colonialism are influenced by local forces and manifested in events at a local level. The study of local practices can thus provide new insights into broader social relations. This book analyses British action at the end of the 18th century in the Southern hemisphere. Two Royal Navy ships, one off the Argentinean coast and one off the Southeast Australian coast are examined. By applying the concept of praxis, British action is integrated in both land and maritime spaces. A closer look into the associated experienced landscapes enhances our understanding of how social identities were projected at local and global levels. This book goes beyond a descriptive analysis of wrecks by exploring them and their cargoes as embodiments of 18th century social relations. Maritime Archaeology and Social Relations challenges traditional maritime approaches providing a different perspective that emphasises the richness, diversity and complexity of British action.