Cargo Mysteries in Ancient Mediterranean

By Kelly A Laughlin

This book embarks on a captivating exploration of the remnants left behind by sunken ships. These shipwrecks yield a rich assemblage of artifacts, initially intended to be temporary cargo, ship equipment, or personal belongings. While these artifacts offer glimpses into the agents involved in trade and the materials being exchanged, they often suffer from decontextualization, having been separated from their original cultural contexts and uses.

The central goal of this dissertation is to construct a theoretical model for the comprehensive reintegration of shipwrecked items into a holistic understanding of the past. This is achieved by placing a strong emphasis on the materiality and agency of these objects, employing the concept of "cha ne op ratoire" or work sequence. This innovative framework elucidates the behavioral and technical actions that contribute to an object's social significance throughout its entire interconnected sequence, starting from the transformation of raw materials into a finished object.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 3658290536
• ISBN13: 9783658290535
• Release Date: September 2023
• Publisher: Kelly A. Laughlin
• Length: 282 Pages
• Weight: 0.84 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"