Mortuary Practices and Social Identities in the Middle Ages

by Duncan Sayer (Editor), Howard M.R. Williams (Editor)

This book sets a new agenda for mortuary archaeology. Applying explicit case studies based on a range of European sites (from Scandinavia to Britain, Southern France to the Black Sea), 'Mortuary Practices and Social Identities in the Middle Ages' fulfills the need for a volume that provides accessible material to students and engages with current debates in mortuary archaeology's methods and theories. The book builds upon Heinrich Härke's influential research on burial archaeology and early medieval migrations, focusing in particular on his ground-breaking work on the relationship between the theory and practice of burial archaeology. Using diverse archaeological and historical data, the essays explore how mortuary practices have served in the make-up and expression of medieval social identities. Themes explored include masculinity, kinship, ethnicity, migration, burial rites, genetics and the perception of landscape.

Genres: Archaeology

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Rebekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

An interesting and well written collection of papers relating to Early-Middle Anglo-Saxon funerary and mortuary rites.

Not a book for the average bed-time reader, but if you are interested in the archaeology of this period, then it is well worth a look. The language is not excessively technical, but there were a few terms I needed to search, so keep a good dictionary on hand.