Archaeology and Junk

Deetz, pg. 104
Photo Courtesy of Sarah Sutton 

While it is known that using material culture in historical research is extremely important, James Deetz took that idea to a whole new level in his book In Small Things Forgotten: An Archaeology of Early American Life. First, allow me to explain the difference between historical archaeology and ancient archaeology which Deetz outlined:

Ancient, or Prehistoric, archaeology uses the same techniques as historical archaeology, but focuses on societies which did not leave behind written records. This type of archaeology gives heavy consideration to tools, pottery, food remains, and dwellings. According to Deetz, ancient archaeology isn't necessarily a global study, and the people who left behind the artifacts remain largely anonymous.

Historical archaeology on the other hand focuses on "literate" societies. This does not necessarily mean that all of the people could read or write - in fact most could not. It just means that there were people who left behind historical record; this could be court cases, shop records, or diaries. Historical archaeology is used to fill the gaps of those historical records, and provide evidence to historians. This type of archaeology looks at all types of objects, from pottery shards to spoons to food remains.

Archaeologists often look to dump pits and areas where trash was deposited to find small, everyday items from the past. These items are often overlooked in favor or larger, more "important" artifacts like homes, art, and clothing. The small discarded items actually provide a lot of evidence about the culture to which they belonged. Deetz wrote about the importance of finding a fork, and what that meant culturally, as well as the importance of different types of pottery and stoneware. The most interesting "small thing" that Deetz looked at were the grave stones.

Deetz, pg. 109
Photo Courtesy of Sarah Sutton

Grave stones in colonial New England showed a clear progression through time representing the change from Orthodox Puritanism to a more secular and individualized culture. Over time, the wealthy and fashionable elite who lived in urban centers of the colonies developed a taste which changed from wanting grave stones with death heads with wings, to cherubs with wings, then to the willow-and-urn design. This change in taste moved throughout the colonies, spreading slowly from urban centers to rural areas. I found it interesting that when the Puritans first settled in Plymouth, they preferred the death head with wings on their grave stones because it was a conservative representation of the afterlife - they did not dare to create an idyllic image of a heavenly creature. Once the settlers became more interested in a "softer" image, they decided to change over to the style of the cherub with wings. This was at the time of the Great Awakening, when Orthodox Puritanism was in decline. The next stage, willow-and-urn, came along at a time of increased connection outside of the colonies. There was an increase in individual recognition by writing on the stones the accomplishments of the deceased, as well as using the grave stones for nontraditional purposes. For example, many willow-and-urn grave stones did not park an actual grave, but were instead erected to commemorate (In Memory Of...) a deceased person who was either buried elsewhere, or was lost at sea, or missing. This shows a clear progression from strict religious meanings and regulations, to a more secular taste in grave stones.

Another important section of Deetz's book is the portion written for the 1996 edition. The latter section of the book shows an important case study on African American material culture. Deetz looks to African American homes, slave quarters, and the introduction of front porches to show how many of the things we consider to be of English descent are actually creolized inventions. I had no idea that there was so much evidence pointing to front porches actually being something carried over from west Africa. There is a lot of evidence also showing that slave quarters utilized indoor and outdoor space to create a more versatile living space. Much of the cooking was done outside, as was traditional to west Africa, and gardens and the woods were used for privacy and further living space. Deetz's study of African American grave sites, and outdoor living space corresponds to Grey Gundaker's article, "Tradition and Innovation in African-American Yards". This article interpreted the decoration of Southern African American yards to relate directly to the ornamentation of African graves and traditional practices of African Americans. This was fascinating because Gundaker decided to look at what most people consider "junk", and really dive into the meaning behind all of that stuff. He was able to find direct ties to African heritage in the symbolism of white tires, circles with water, "bottle trees", and even broken glass and pottery in yards. The only thing I wish this article included was more personal insight. A more in-depth interview with the home-owners would have helped me understand their motivations better. Were the people decorating yards doing this with the intention of invoking African culture? Where did they learn to do this? Has this been going on for the last two centuries without breaks? I wish there was more information on the tradition of the yard decoration.

"African American material culture holds the promise of bringing people who had been marginalized in the writing of their contemporaries back into the picture". (Deetz 213)