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Contemporary Polish Archaeology in Global Context

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Comparative Archaeologies

Abstract

I discuss major developments and challenges in archaeological academic research, archaeological heritage protection and management, public engagement in cultural heritage preservation and conservation programs. In principle, the presented challenges relate to socioeconomic conditions of archaeological work in contemporary Poland. Although archaeology in Poland has long tradition, I specifically focus on the impact that social, economic, and political changes have made on the archeological practice in Poland within the last 20 years, that is, after the revolution of 1989 and the fall of communism in Eastern Europe. The transition to market economy affected all aspects of archaeological practice. My discussion incorporates both local and global scales as I briefly discuss Polish archaeology and its involvement in European and world archaeology.

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Notes

  1. 1.

     A comprehensive overview of this tradition can be found in Abramowicz (1991).

  2. 2.

     The Kossina syndrome can be defined as a requirement of defining cultures as coherent entities by using specific artifact types and believe that their areas correspond with the areas of particular communities or people. It further assumes isomorphic relationship between modern and prehistoric ethnic groups.

  3. 3.

     Editor’s note: this statement is in contrast to conclusions offered by other authors from the former communist countries of the Soviet Bloc, who pointed out to a limited role of Marxism in archaeological theory before 1989–1990 – see chapters by Bartosiewicz, Tomaskova, and Novakovic in this volume.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland

    Arkadiusz Marciniak

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  1. Arkadiusz Marciniak
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Correspondence to Arkadiusz Marciniak .

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  1. , Anthropology, Hunter College, Park Ave. 695, New York, 10021, New York, USA

    Ludomir R. Lozny

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Marciniak, A. (2011). Contemporary Polish Archaeology in Global Context. In: Lozny, L. (eds) Comparative Archaeologies. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-8225-4_7

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