Archaeology, Heritage, and Moral Terrains: Two Cases from the Mesa Verde Region

<p>Multiple cultural identities converge in Mesa Verde archaeology. Archaeologists have engaged research questions for the last half century, leading to cultural reconstructive summaries about how Pueblo people lived prior to migrating out of the Mesa Verde region. The importance of this narra...

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Main Authors: Steve Wolverton, Robert Melchior Figueroa, Porter Swentzell
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Society of Ethnobiology 2016-12-01
Series:Ethnobiology Letters
Subjects:
Online Access:http://ojs.ethnobiology.org/index.php/ebl/article/view/695
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spelling doaj-ebf35ec282e7436cb8382f912600c9762020-11-25T02:30:40ZengSociety of EthnobiologyEthnobiology Letters2159-81262016-12-017210.14237/ebl.7.2.2016.695203Archaeology, Heritage, and Moral Terrains: Two Cases from the Mesa Verde RegionSteve Wolverton0Robert Melchior Figueroa1Porter Swentzell2Department of Geography and the Environment, University of North Texas, Denton, TX.School of History, Philosophy, and Religion, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR.Indigenous Liberal Studies, Institute for American Indian Arts, Santa Fe, NM.<p>Multiple cultural identities converge in Mesa Verde archaeology. Archaeologists have engaged research questions for the last half century, leading to cultural reconstructive summaries about how Pueblo people lived prior to migrating out of the Mesa Verde region. The importance of this narrative centers on the identity of the researcher as an archaeologist. An increasingly recognized narrative among archaeologists is that of Pueblo identity, in which contemporary Pueblo people claim Mesa Verde villages and landscapes as part of their heritage. Generally speaking, Pueblo people and archaeologists navigate separate moral terrains, which pose multiple obstacles for both archaeologists and Pueblo people pertaining to the past, present, and future of the Mesa Verde region. A conceptual framework from environmental philosophy opens a platform for reconciliation by providing a relational narrative that empowers Pueblo identity and recalibrates archaeology. This environmental justice lens is applied to two archaeological research narratives, one centering on chemical analysis of biomolecular artifact residues and the other on paleohydrology and Pueblo farming.</p>http://ojs.ethnobiology.org/index.php/ebl/article/view/695Archaeological ethicsMoral terrainsEnvironmental justiceHeritageMesa VerdeLived ethic
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Steve Wolverton
Robert Melchior Figueroa
Porter Swentzell
spellingShingle Steve Wolverton
Robert Melchior Figueroa
Porter Swentzell
Archaeology, Heritage, and Moral Terrains: Two Cases from the Mesa Verde Region
Ethnobiology Letters
Archaeological ethics
Moral terrains
Environmental justice
Heritage
Mesa Verde
Lived ethic
author_facet Steve Wolverton
Robert Melchior Figueroa
Porter Swentzell
author_sort Steve Wolverton
title Archaeology, Heritage, and Moral Terrains: Two Cases from the Mesa Verde Region
title_short Archaeology, Heritage, and Moral Terrains: Two Cases from the Mesa Verde Region
title_full Archaeology, Heritage, and Moral Terrains: Two Cases from the Mesa Verde Region
title_fullStr Archaeology, Heritage, and Moral Terrains: Two Cases from the Mesa Verde Region
title_full_unstemmed Archaeology, Heritage, and Moral Terrains: Two Cases from the Mesa Verde Region
title_sort archaeology, heritage, and moral terrains: two cases from the mesa verde region
publisher Society of Ethnobiology
series Ethnobiology Letters
issn 2159-8126
publishDate 2016-12-01
description <p>Multiple cultural identities converge in Mesa Verde archaeology. Archaeologists have engaged research questions for the last half century, leading to cultural reconstructive summaries about how Pueblo people lived prior to migrating out of the Mesa Verde region. The importance of this narrative centers on the identity of the researcher as an archaeologist. An increasingly recognized narrative among archaeologists is that of Pueblo identity, in which contemporary Pueblo people claim Mesa Verde villages and landscapes as part of their heritage. Generally speaking, Pueblo people and archaeologists navigate separate moral terrains, which pose multiple obstacles for both archaeologists and Pueblo people pertaining to the past, present, and future of the Mesa Verde region. A conceptual framework from environmental philosophy opens a platform for reconciliation by providing a relational narrative that empowers Pueblo identity and recalibrates archaeology. This environmental justice lens is applied to two archaeological research narratives, one centering on chemical analysis of biomolecular artifact residues and the other on paleohydrology and Pueblo farming.</p>
topic Archaeological ethics
Moral terrains
Environmental justice
Heritage
Mesa Verde
Lived ethic
url http://ojs.ethnobiology.org/index.php/ebl/article/view/695
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