Archaeologists investigate Ice Age hominins adaptability to climate change
For further information, please contact:
Joan Robinson
+49-6221-487-8130
joan.robinson@springer.com
17 November 2011 Springer Science+Business Media
Complex computational modeling provides clues to Neanderthal extinction
Computational modeling that examines evidence of how hominin groups evolved culturally and biologically in response to climate change during the last Ice Age also bears new insights into the extinction of Neanderthals. Details of the complex modeling experiments conducted at Arizona State University and the University of Colorado Denver will be published in the December issue of the Springer journal Human Ecology, available online 17 November 2011.
“To better understand human ecology, and especially how human culture and biology co-evolved among hunter-gatherers in the Late Pleistocene of Western Eurasia (ca. 128,000-11,500 years ago) we designed theoretical and methodological frameworks that incorporated feedback across three evolutionary systems: biological, cultural and environmental,” said Michael Barton of Arizona State University and lead author of the study.
“One scientifically interesting result of this research, which studied culturally and environmentally driven changes in land-use behaviors, is that it shows how Neanderthals could have disappeared not because they were somehow less fit than all other hominins who existed during the last glaciation, but because they were as behaviorally sophisticated as modern humans,” Barton continued.
“It’s been long believed that Neanderthals were outcompeted by fitter modern humans and they could not adapt,” said co-author Julien Riel-Salvatore of the University of Colorado Denver. “We are changing the main narrative. Neanderthals were just as adaptable and in many ways, simply victims of their own success.”
The interdisciplinary team of researchers used archeological data to track behavioral changes in Western Eurasia over a period of 100,000 years and showed that human mobility increased over time, probably in response to environmental change. According to Barton, the last Ice Age saw hunter-gathers, including both Neanderthals and the ancestors of modern humans, range more widely across Eurasia searching for food during a major shift in the Earth’s climate.
The scientists utilized computer modeling to explore the evolutionary consequences of those changes, including how changes in the movements of Neanderthals and modern humans caused them to interact – and interbreed – more often.
According to Riel-Salvatore, the study offered further evidence that Neanderthals were more flexible and resourceful than previously assumed.
“Neanderthals had proven that they could roll with the punches and when they met the more numerous modern humans, they adapted again,” Riel-Salvatore said. “But modern humans probably saw the Neanderthals as possible mates. As a result, over time, the Neanderthals died out as a physically recognizable population.”
To reach their conclusion, the researchers ran a computer program for the equivalent of 1,500 generations showing that as Neanderthals and modern humans expanded their yearly ranges, the Neanderthals were slowly absorbed by more numerous modern humans.
“We tested the modeling results against the empirical archaeological record and found that there is evidence that Neanderthals, and moderns, did adapt their behaviors in the way in which we modeled,” explained Barton. “Moreover, the modeling predicts the kind of low-level genetic admixture of Neanderthal genes that are being found in the newest genetic studies just now being published.”
“In other words, successful behavioral adaptations to severe environmental conditions made Neanderthals, and other non-moderns about whom we know little, vulnerable to biological extinction, but at the same time, ensured they made a genetic contribution to modern populations,” Barton said.
Attached files
Ice Age hominins adaptability to climate change Computer agents (colored dots) simulating prehistoric hunter-gatherer groups are superimposed over a map of Late Pleistocene western Eurasia. Grey shows Pleistocene land area with lowered sea levels, black lines show modern coastlines, white areas show ice sheets. The blue dots represent groups of "modern" humans, red dots represent groups of Neanderthals, and yellow dots represent groups with biological mixtures of modern and Neanderthal genes. This is a snapshot of the simulation after hundreds of cycles in which the hunter-gather groups have higher mobility in response to changing glacial climate. The data and corresponding analyses were cited by archeologists from Arizona State University and the University of Colorado Denver in findings published in the December issue of the journal Human Ecology, available online November 17, 2011. Graphic by Michael Barton/Arizona State University
Full bibliographic information
Barton CM et al. (2011) Modeling Human Ecodynamics and Biocultural Interactions in the Late Pleistocene of Western Eurasia. Human Ecology. DOI 10.1007/s10745-011-9433-8
Notes for editors
The full-text article and an illustration are available to journalists on request.
Joan Robinson, Springer, Joan.Robinson@springer.com, tel +49-6221-4878130 (Germany)
Earliest Sample of Minoan Hieroglyphics Found in Western Crete
Posted on 17 November 2011 by Stella Tsolakidou
A four-sided red jasper sealstone is among the finds unearthed during this season’s excavation of the Minoan peak sanctuary at Vrysinas, located south of the city of Rethymnon. The whole area was officially announced and included in the archaeological sites list by the Central Archaeological Council of Greece.
The sealstone, which is carved on all four surfaces with characters of the Minoan Hieroglyphic script, constitutes the sole evidence to date for the presence of this earliest Minoan style of writing in Western Crete.
The excavation, which began in 2004, is conducted by the Ephorate of Prehistoric and Classical Antiquities under the supervision of the archaeologist Helena Papadopoulou in collaboration with Prof. Iris Tzachili from the Department of History and Archaeology of the University of Crete.
A preliminary study of the artefacts recovered thus far - including some 800 clay votive statuettes and a significant number of ceramic vessels - indicates that the peak sanctuary was in use throughout the First Palace period (1900-1700 BC) and continued until at least the beginning of the New Palace phase, after which time it was relocated to a lower part of the plateau.
The Vrysinas sanctuary is believed to have been the most sacred peak in Western Crete. The site’s undeniable ritual context puts it on a par with other important Minoan peak sanctuaries like those at Iouktas, Petsofas and Traostalos Kofinas in central and eastern Crete.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-11/uob-aei111411.php
An excavation is no camping trip
Bonn archeologists discover a huge ancient Greek commercial area on Sicily
Public release date: 14-Nov-2011
Contact: Dr. Gabriel Zuchtriegel
gabriel.zuchtriegel@uni-bonn.de
49-228-737-739
University of Bonn
The Greeks were not always in such dire financial straits as today. But is it necessary to look as far back as these Bonn archeologists did in order to see a huge, flourishing Greek commercial area? They have just discovered a very large commercial area from the ancient Greek era during excavations on Sicily.
Led by Professor Dr. Martin Bentz, Bonn archeologists began un¬earthing one of Greek antiquity's largest craftsmen's quarters in the Greek colonial city of Selinunte (7th-3rd century B.C.) on the island of Sicily during two excavation campaigns in September 2010 and in the fall of 2011. The project is conducted in collaboration with the Italian authorities and the German Archaeological Institute. Its goal is to study an area of daily life in ancient cities that has hitherto re¬ceived little attention.
"To what extent the ancient Greeks already had something like "commercial areas" has been a point of discussion in expert circles to this day," said Bonn archeologist Dr. Gabriel Zuchtriegel, a research associate who coordinates the Selinunte project together with Dr. Jon Albers from the Institut für Klassische Archäologie der Universität Bonn at the Chair of Prof. Dr. Martin Bentz. " A concentration of certain 'industries' and craftsmen in special districts does not only presuppose proactive planning; it is also based on a certain idea of how a city should best be organized – from a practical as well as from a social and political point of view. E.g., who will be allowed to live and work where?" The University of Bonn excavations are now contributing to finding a new answer to such questions.
Concentration in a certain city district applied primarily to potteries in Selinunte, which were massed on the edge of the settlement in the very shadow of the city wall. "Consequently, their smoke, stench and noise did not inconvenience the other inhabitants as much," ex¬plained Dr. Zuchtriegel. "At the same time, this allowed several crafts¬men to use kilns and storage facilities together." The exca¬vations showed that the potters joined cooperatives that shared in the use of gigantic kilns with a diameter of up to 7 meters. The crafts¬men's district in Selinunte probably stretched for more than 600 meters along the city walls and is thus among the largest ones known today.
The excavations are in the hands of faculty and students from Bonn and Rome – and they are exhausting. For excavations go on in August and September, when the heat reaches its peak - but in exchange, there is very little rain. "This work is a challenge for all involved," commented dig manager Bentz. "This is no camping trip." But for students, it is a great opportunity to learn archeological methods by doing. The Bonn researchers were surprised to find even older remnants of workshops under the 5th c. kilns. While these finds have not been completely excavated yet, indications are - so the archeologists - that pottery workshops existed in the same location during the city's early phase in the 6th century B.C. This means that craftsmen were probably intentionally housed on the edge as early as during the design of the city, which was – like many colonies – planned on the drawing board.
The finds from the craftsmen's district are not exactly treasures, but they are still valuable for reconstructing the past. In the early phase, widely ranging finds of clay vessels, tiles and bronzes – among them also imports from Athens and Sparta – indicate that living and work quarters were housed together. Over the course of the 5th century, the two areas were separated increasingly.
"We hope to improve our understanding of that in future," said Prof. Bentz. But so far, he continued, little was known about the social conditions prevailing during the founding of a colony. What was certain is that often, it was hunger and need that drove settlers to emigrate and found a new city. Why and under what conditions some of them became potters, other farmers, and others yet rich landowners who could afford to participate in the Olympic games – these are questions that the excavations can shed some light on.
Photo: http://www3.uni-bonn.de/Pressemitteilungen/311-2011
http://www.stonepages.com/news/archives/004603.html
Twigs help identifying a 'genuine Iron Age broch'
15 November 2011
Radiocarbon dating of burnt twigs found inside a broch at Clachtoll in Assynt (Highland, Scotland) suggest its interior remained untouched after it was built in the Iron Age. Brochs were often modified during later periods of use. One at Nybster in Caithness has evidence of possible Pictish and medieval occupation. The dating of twigs possibly used for woven mats points to the Assynt site remaining unaltered until it collapsed.
Archaeologists involved in a community project called Life and Death in Assynt's Past had expected the burnt wood to date from 300 to 1000 CE, during the building's final phase of occupation. However, tests at AOC Archaeology's laboratory in Midlothian dated it to 111 BCE and 55 CE, suggesting generations of families left the interior unaltered from the time it was created. A spokeswoman for the project said: "The possibility that we have a genuine Iron Age broch interior, untrammelled by later modification of admixture, is very exciting indeed."
Built of stone, circular tower-like brochs were impressive homes in some of Scotland's Iron Age communities. The broch at Clachtoll was built using stones weighing up to 100kg each.
Edited from BBC News (14 November 2011)
Temple of Mithras to be restored to its original location
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Plans to dismantle and move the reconstructed Roman Temple of Mithras to temporary storage, ahead of a more faithful reconstruction, will begin on the 21 November 2011 by Museum of London Archaeology.
The temple, which is located at Walbrook Square, was discovered by chance in 1952 by archaeologist WF Grimes as the site was being prepared for redevelopment.
On the final day of excavation – September 18th 1954 – the marble head of the god of Mithras was unearthed. Several more amazing artefacts, including some sculptures, were later found – these are now on display in the Museum of London’s Roman gallery.
In 1962 the temple was reconstructed on a podium adjacent to Queen Victoria Street, 90 metres from its original site. Image: © Museum of London Archaeology
The temple was dismantled at that time and the Roman building material put into storage. In 1962 the temple was reconstructed on a podium adjacent to Queen Victoria Street, 90 metres from its original site, nine metres above its original level and set in modern cement mortar.
In December 2010, Bloomberg LP, purchased the Walbrook Square site to build its new European headquarters building. Listed building consent was granted for the dismantling of the current Temple of Mithras reconstruction and expert stone masons have been commissioned by Bloomberg to carefully extract the Roman stone and tile from the 1960s cement mortar. The temple is due to be carefully packaged up and moved to storage for the second time.
Bloomberg LP will restore the temple to its original Roman location and in a more historically accurate guise. Upon completion of Bloomberg’s new development, the new reconstruction of the Temple of Mithras will be housed in a purpose-built and publicly accessible interpretation space within their new building.
Source: Museum of London Archaeology press release
"Lost" Fortresses of Sahara Revealed by Satellites
Well-preserved settlements of mysterious civilization discovered in Libya.
James Owen
for National Geographic News
Published November 11, 2011
Real-life "castles in the sand" made by an ancient culture have been revealed in the Sahara, archaeologists say.
New satellite photographs show more than a hundred fortress settlements from a "lost" civilization in southwestern Libya.
The communities, which date to between about A.D. 1 and 500, belonged to an advanced but mysterious people called the Garamantes, who ruled from roughly the second century B.C. to the seventh century A.D.
Researchers uncovered the Garamantes' walled towns, villages, and farms after poring over modern satellite images—including high-resolution pictures used by the oil industry—as well as aerial photos taken during the 1950s and 1960s. (See pictures of Libya's remote Sahara.)
Located about 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) south of Tripoli, the fortresses were confirmed based on Garamantes pottery samples collected during an early-2011 expedition. That field trip was cut short by the civil war that would end the 42-year regime of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.
"We were astonished to see the level of preservation" of the ancient mud-brick compounds, said project leader David Mattingly, of the U.K.'s University of Leicester.
"Although the walls of these sites have slumped a little bit, mainly due to wind erosion, they are still standing 3 to 4 meters [10 to 13 feet] high in places," he said.
Archaeologists could have easily mistaken the well-planned, straight-line construction for Roman frontier forts of similar design, Mattingly observed.
"But, actually, this is beyond the frontiers of the Roman Empire—these sites are markers of a powerful native African kingdom," he said.
What's more, the scientists were surprised that the sites—which include cemeteries and agricultural fields—are so tightly clustered.
For instance, an area of 1.5 square miles (4 square kilometers) contained at least ten village-size settlements—"that's an extraordinary density," Mattingly said.
Previous knowledge of the Garamantes is based mainly on excavations at their capital, Jarma, some 125 miles (200 kilometers) to the northwest, as well as on ancient Roman and Greek texts.
"We've built up a picture of them as being a very sophisticated, high-level civilization," Mattingly said. (Read about the "lost lords of the Sahara" in National Geographic magazine.)
"They've got metallurgy, very high-quality textiles, a writing system ... those sorts of markers that would say this is an organized, state-level society," he said.
Cash-strapped heritage authorities in Libya have been unable to conduct field research, leaving a gap in knowledge of the ancient civilization, according to University of Oxford archaeologist Philip Kenrick, who was not involved in the new research.
That's why Mattingly and his team—aided by a $3.4-million grant from the E.U.'s European Research Council—have "been breaking new ground on an unprecedented scale," Kenrick said.
Ancient Culture Created Green Sahara
The newfound remains are also a testament to the Garamantes' advanced irrigation technology, which enabled them to create green oases in the desert. (See "High-Tech Energy 'Oasis' to Bloom in the Desert?")
"It's a deep Saharan, hyper-arid environment, and it's only people's ability to exploit groundwater that can change that," project leader Mattingly said.
The Garamantes mined reservoirs of prehistoric water using underground canals to cultivate Mediterranean crops—such as wheat, barley, figs, and grapes—and sub-Saharan African sorghum, pearl millet, and cotton.
Mattingly and colleagues have calculated that 77,000 man-years of labor went into constructing the underground water channels—a figure that doesn't include digging the wells or maintenance. A man-year is a unit of the work done by a person in a year.
Ancient Africans Ran Out of Water?
What happened to the Garamantes remains a riddle, but Mattingly's team suspects that the desert communities declined once groundwater supplies diminished.
Paul Bennett, head of mission of the U.K.-based Society of Libyan Studies, agreed that's a likely scenario.
"Groundwater is a nonrenewable source—as soon as you've tapped the reservoir and emptied it, it's not going to fill again," said Bennett, who was not involved in the new research.
The collapse of the Roman Empire, and increasing conflict in the Mediterranean region, would've also seriously affected the trans-Saharan trade upon which the desert civilization depended, added Oxford's Kenrick.
http://www.livescience.com/17083-monkey-shaped-skull-mayan-afterlife.html
Monkey-Shaped Skull Was Sports Gear for Mayan Afterlife, Expert Says
Owen Jarus, LiveScience ContributorDate: 17 November 2011 Time: 12:34 PM ET
A toothy Mayan skull, made of limestone and in the shape of a monkey head, is set to go on display at a Maya exhibition at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto Canada.
But unlike the famous crystal skulls, which are widely regarded as fake, this one is believed to be real.
The skull is roughly life-size and small enough that you can hold it in your hands. It has eight inlaid white teeth made of shell in two groups of four, with a black tooth made of iron pyrite in the middle. The mouth of the skull is wide open, and the eyes may have originally had shells in them.
"This was something that was given to the museum in the early 1970s," exhibition curator Justin Jennings told LiveScience.
A key trait that separates it from its fake crystal counterparts is that it's made of limestone, a material commonly used for art among the ancient Maya. Many artifacts from the Mayan city of Palenque were manufactured using it. Also monkeys were common motifs in Mayan art, their gods being sometimes drawn in the form of the animal.
Museum researchers believe that the skull would have been placed in a tomb sometime between A.D. 250 and 600, a time when the Maya civilization was flourishing. Jennings said that the skull may have been a symbolic representation of a piece of clothing worn while playing a ball game popular among the Maya.
The ball games were played on a narrow court using a hard rubber ball. Two opposing teams had to pass the ball by using their hips, elbows and knees (no hands were allowed). Evidence from Mayan art suggests that the losing team was sometimes sacrificed at the end.
To minimize injury, and make it easier to slide, the Mayans wore different types of clothing to protect themselves. The monkey skull may represent a hand guard, something worn around the wrists that would have made it possible for players to slide without injuring themselves. The cloth versions would not have been as artistic as the stone versions put in the tombs and may not have included a depiction of a monkey’s skull.
"The stone versions are put in the tomb because when (the Maya) go to the afterlife they're going to be playing the ball game," said Jennings. "They're playing it in life and they're playing it in death."
The exhibition, which features the skull along with more than 200 other artefacts, starts at the museum on Saturday, Nov. 19, and runs through April.
http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20111116/API/1111161061?tc=ar
17th century shipwreck found off Swedish coast
By MALIN RISING
Associated Press
Published: Wednesday, November 16, 2011 at 11:03 a.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, November 16, 2011 at 11:03 a.m.
STOCKHOLM - A shipwreck discovered in the murky waters of the Baltic Sea is believed to be a legendary 17th century warship whose captain went down with it in battle rather than surrender to the enemy.
Deep Sea Productions, an underwater research team, said Wednesday it believes the 25-meter (82-feet) wooden wreck it found off the island of Oland this summer is the ship Svardet, which sank when Sweden was defeated by a Danish-Dutch fleet in a 1676 naval battle.
Malcolm Dixelius, a member of the research team, said that wood samples show the wreck is from the 17th century. He also said the stern of the ship is missing, which is consistent with historical reports that Svardet went under after a fire and explosion at the stern.
Thousands of other wrecks - from medieval vessels to warships sunk during the world wars - have been found in the Baltic Sea, which doesn't have the ship worm that destroys wooden wrecks in saltier oceans.
Marine Archaeology Professor Johan Ronnby said he is convinced the newly discovered wreck is that of Svardet, making it one of four giant warships from the 16th and 17th centuries that have been recovered in the Baltic Sea.
Earlier this year, the same research team discovered the 16th century warship Mars at a nearby location. The ship Kronan was discovered in 1981, yielding more than 30,000 archaeological artifacts.
Among the four is Sweden's most famous maritime discovery, the 17th century royal warship Vasa, which was raised from the seabed in the Stockholm harbor in 1961 and can be viewed in a popular museum.
Svardet and Kronan were lost in the same fight, described as the largest naval battle in the history of the Baltic Sea.
Johnny Rotten's graffiti: the new heritage?
For further information, please contact:
David Garner
00 44 (1) 904 322153
david.garner@york.ac.uk
18 November 2011 York, University of
Archaeologists typically record and analyse the traces of past human activities. The caves of Lascaux in southern France are celebrated as a place where early humans made their marks on cave walls. The cave is now protected, and an exact replica is what the public now encounter.
But a new study by archaeologists has been examining marks made much more recently --graffiti by the Sex Pistols now discovered on the walls of the flat the punk group rented in London in the mid-1970s. The authors of a paper in the latest issue of the journal Antiquity argue that both are pieces of art and both lend themselves to archaeological investigation.
Dr John Schofield, of the Department of Archaeology at the University of York, and independent researcher Dr Paul Graves-Brown, suggest that the intact Sex Pistols graffiti may be of greater significance than the discovery of early Beatles recordings. They say the graffiti found behind cupboards in the property in Denmark Street in London is “a direct and powerful representation of a radical and dramatic movement of rebellion.”
The researchers carried out a detailed analysis of the graffiti’s content and its cultural significance. Though they concede it could be considered rude, offensive and uncomfortable, they contend that its presence confirms the Denmark Street flat as an important historical and archaeological site in a street known as London’s ‘Tin Pan Alley’
Their findings appear in the latest issue of Antiquity – less than a fortnight before the 35th anniversary of the day the Sex Pistols earned national notoriety by swearing on prime-time television.
The graffiti is in the upper room of a two-storey 19th century property in the West End now used as offices. John Schofield and Paul Graves-Brown photographed and made a complete digitised tracing of the material. The bulk of the graffiti is by John Lydon (aka Rotten) and consists of eight cartoons depicting himself and other members of the band, as well as their manager, Malcolm McLaren, and other Pistols’ associates.
Dr Schofield says: “The tabloid press once claimed that early Beatles recordings discovered at the BBC were the most important archaeological find since Tutankhamun’s tomb. The Sex Pistols’ graffiti in Denmark Street surely ranks alongside this and — to our minds — usurps it.”
The researchers refer to the site as ‘anti-heritage:’ because it contradicts what agencies and heritage practitioners typically value or wish to keep, and even what is generally regarded as landscape and place. And they agonise over whether or not the Denmark Street property should become a conventional heritage site with a blue plaque to mark its historical significance.
But as the authors say: “We feel justified in sticking our tongues out at the heritage establishment and suggesting that punk’s iconoclasm provides the context for conservation decision-making. Our call is for something that directly follows punk’s attitude to the mainstream, to authority; contradicting norms and challenging convention.
“This is an important site, historically and archaeologically, for the material and evidence it contains. But should we retain it for the benefit of this and future generations? In our view, with anti-heritage, different rules apply. The building is undoubtedly important, and could meet criteria for listing or for a blue plaque, if not now then in time.”
But they “recoil from the suggestion”. Instead, they argue, there appears to have been an informal consensus as to the importance of the site, and, in the spirit of punk, “perhaps this DIY approach to heritage management is all that the site needs.”
http://www.pasthorizonspr.com/index.php/archives/11/2011/the-lascaux-of-punk?
So could Denmark Street be Punk’s Lascaux?
Full bibliographic information
The article ‘The filth and the fury: 6 Denmark Street (London) and the Sex Pistols’ appears in the latest issue of Antiquity.
Dr John Schofield and Dr Paul Graves-Brown
Archaeologists typically record and analyse the traces of past human activities. The caves of Lascaux in southern France are celebrated as a place where early humans made their marks on cave walls. The cave is now protected, and an exact replica is what the public now encounter.
But a new study by archaeologists has been examining marks made much more recently – graffiti by the Sex Pistols now discovered on the walls of the flat the punk group rented in London in the mid-1970s. The authors of a paper in the latest issue of the journal Antiquity argue that both are pieces of art and both lend themselves to archaeological investigation.
The building is undoubtedly important, and could meet criteria for listing or for a blue plaque, if not now then in time
Dr John Schofield, of the Department of Archaeology at the University of York, and independent researcher Dr Paul Graves-Brown, suggest that the intact Sex Pistols graffiti may be of greater significance than the discovery of early Beatles recordings. They say the graffiti found behind cupboards in the property in Denmark Street in London is “a direct and powerful representation of a radical and dramatic movement of rebellion.”
The researchers carried out a detailed analysis of the graffiti’s content and its cultural significance. Though they concede it could be considered rude, offensive and uncomfortable, they contend that its presence confirms the Denmark Street flat as an important historical and archaeological site in a street known as London’s ‘Tin Pan Alley’.
Their findings appear in the latest issue of Antiquity – less than a fortnight before the 35th anniversary of the day the Sex Pistols earned national notoriety by swearing on prime-time television.
The graffiti is in the upper room of a two-storey 19th century property in the West End now used as offices. John Schofield and Paul Graves-Brown photographed and made a complete digitised tracing of the material. The bulk of the graffiti is by John Lydon (aka Rotten) and consists of eight cartoons depicting himself and other members of the band, as well as their manager, Malcolm McLaren, and other Pistols’ associates.
Dr Schofield says: “The tabloid press once claimed that early Beatles recordings discovered at the BBC were the most important archaeological find since Tutankhamun’s tomb. The Sex Pistols’ graffiti in Denmark Street surely ranks alongside this and — to our minds — usurps it.”
The researchers refer to the site as ‘anti-heritage:’ because it contradicts what agencies and heritage practitioners typically value or wish to keep, and even what is generally regarded as landscape and place. And they agonise over whether or not the Denmark Street property should become a conventional heritage site with a blue plaque to mark its historical significance.
But as the authors say: “We feel justified in sticking our tongues out at the heritage establishment and suggesting that punk’s iconoclasm provides the context for conservation decision-making. Our call is for something that directly follows punk’s attitude to the mainstream, to authority; contradicting norms and challenging convention.
“This is an important site, historically and archaeologically, for the material and evidence it contains. But should we retain it for the benefit of this and future generations? In our view, with anti-heritage, different rules apply. The building is undoubtedly important, and could meet criteria for listing or for a blue plaque, if not now then in time.”
But they “recoil from the suggestion”. Instead, they argue, there appears to have been an informal consensus as to the importance of the site, and, in the spirit of punk, “perhaps this DIY approach to heritage management is all that the site needs.”