Maritime cultural landscapes are collections of submerged
archaeological sites, or combinations of terrestrial and submerged
sites that reflect the relationship between humans and the water.
These landscapes can range in size from a single beach to an entire
coastline and can include areas of terrestrial sites now inundated
as well as underwater sites that are now desiccated.
However, what binds all of these sites together is the premise
that each aspect of the landscape -cultural, political,
environmental, technological, and physical - is interrelated and
can not be understood without reference to the others. In this
maritime cultural landscape approach, individual sites are treated
as features within the larger landscape and the interpretation of
single sites add to a larger analysis of a region or culture. This
approach provides physical and theoretical links between
terrestrial and underwater archaeology as well as prehistoric and
historic archaeology; consequently, providing a framework for
integrating such diverse topics as trade, resource procurement,
habitation, industrial production, and warfare into a holistic
study of the past.
Landscape studies foster broader perspectives and approaches,
extending the study of maritime cultures beyond the shoreline.
Despite this potential, the archaeological study of maritime
landscapes is a relatively untried approach with many questions
regarding the methods and perspectives needed to effectively
analyze these landscapes.
Thechapters in this volume, which include contributions from the
United States, the United Kingdom, Norway, and Australia, address
many of the theoretical and methodological questions surrounding
maritime cultural landscapes. The authors comprise established
scholars as well as archaeologists at the beginning of their
careers, providing a healthy balance of experience and innovation.
The chapters also demonstrate parity between method and theory,
where the varying interpretations of culture and space are given
equal weight with the challenges of investigating both wet and dry
sites across large areas.
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