TY - BOOK ID - 2993004 TI - The body as material culture : a theoretical osteoarchaeology AU - Sofaer, Joanna R. AU - Cambridge University Press PY - 2006 VL - 4 SN - 0521818222 9780521521468 0521521467 9780521818223 9780511816666 1316042588 0511816669 DB - UniCat KW - Human remains (Archaeology) KW - Menselijke overblijfselen (Archeologie) KW - Menselijke resten (Archeologie) KW - Overblijfselen [Menselijke ] (Archeologie) KW - Resten [Menselijke ] (Archeologie) KW - Restes humains (Archéologie) KW - Skeletal remains (Archaeology) KW - Restes humains (Archéologie) KW - Social Sciences KW - Archeology KW - Bioarchaeology KW - Human skeleton KW - Primate remains (Archaeology) UR - http://www.unicat.be/uniCat?func=search&query=sysid:2993004 AB - Bodies intrigue us. They promise windows into the past that other archaeological finds cannot by bringing us literally face to face with history. Yet 'the body' is also highly contested. Archaeological bodies are studied through two contrasting perspectives that sit on different sides of a disciplinary divide. On one hand lie science-based osteoarchaeological approaches. On the other lie understandings derived from recent developments in social theory that increasingly view the body as a social construction. Through a close examination of disciplinary practice, Joanna Sofaer highlights the tensions and possibilities offered by one particular kind of archaeological body, the human skeleton, with particular regard to the study of gender and age. Using a range of examples, she argues for reassessment of the role of the skeletal body in archaeological practice, and develops a theoretical framework for bioarchaeology based on the materiality and historicity of human remains. ER -