The Five-Minute Archaeologist in the Southern Levant - Cynthia Shafer-Elliott
22. What Is primary vs. secondary use?
The Five-Minute Archaeologist in the Southern Levant - Cynthia Shafer-Elliott
Erin Darby [+]
University of Tennessee
Erin Darby holds a Doctorate of Philosophy (PhD) in Religion from Duke University, USA, and is currently an associate professor in Religious Studies and the Faculty Director of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships at the University of Tennessee. Her research includes the Hebrew Bible, iconography, and ancient religion, and she serves as the co-director for the ‘Ayn Gharandal Archaeological Project. She has published Interpreting Judean Pillar Figurines: Gender and Empire in Judean Apotropaic Ritual FAT II 69.(Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2014); “What is Primary vs. Secondary Use” and “How is Archaeology Used to Support Nationalism,” in The Five-Minute Archaeologist in the Southern Levant, Edited by Cynthia Schafer-Elliott (London: Equinox, 2016),
86–88, 235–238. She served as the co-editor with Izaak J. de Hulster of Iron Age Terracotta Figurines from the Southern Levant in Context, CHANE 125. (Leiden: Brill, 2022).
Description
How does archaeological context affect the interpretation of material remains? This article introduces the concept that not all contexts are equal and explains the differences between primary and secondary use of ancient artifacts. By investigating how primary and secondary use are identified, archaeologist are better able to evaluate what types of inferences can be drawn from archaeological data.