Excavations at the Iron Age Village Site of Fibobe II, Central Zambia

The period from c. AD 900 to AD 1300 in southern Africa is characterized by transitions from small-scale Iron Age mixed economy communities to the beginnings of more intensive food production and eventually the emergence of complex polities. In Zambia, this coincides with the appearance of larger and more permanent agro-pastoralist villages that began participating in Indian Ocean trade networks. Unlike other parts of southern Africa where stone architecture became common, the predominance of wattle-and-daub type construction methods across Zambia have often impeded preservation of Iron Age activity areas. It has therefore been difficult to reconstruct how economic and land-use changes between the Early and Later Iron Ages impacted family and community relationships reflected in intra-site and intra-household spatial organization. Fibobe II, in the Mulungushi River Basin of Central Zambia, is a rare example of an Early-to-Mid Iron Age village site where these spatial patterns may be discernable due to preservation of activity spaces and vitrified remains of wattle-and-daub structures. This paper reports on new investigations following original testing of the site in 1979, confirming preservation of an Iron Age hut with distinct patterning of features, artifacts, and charcoal. These results reaffirm the unique nature of Fibobe II and indicate the potential for programs of household archaeology aimed at studying this important and understudied period in Zambian prehistory.

GAMBARAN ORGANISASI RUANG PADA RUMAH LAKSMANA MAEDA DI MENTENG, JAKARTA, BERDASARKAN HOUSEHOLD ARCHAEOLOGY

Maeda’s house is one of colonial houses with layout and furnitures that are still remained and maintained today. Through Maeda’s house, we could still study its inhabitants social values that are reflected from their remains. This study seeks to reconstruct the social values that existed at that time, through the spatial arrangement of Maeda’s house using household archaeology. The method used in analysing this problem consists of data collection, analysis and interpretation. Based on the studies that have been carried out, it can be seen that the spatial arrangement in Maeda’s house is related to the social class of its residents. Spatial planning in this case also includes accessibility, room size and facilities. This study also provides an overview of the hierarchical figure of Maeda in managing his house, as well as showing examples of the arrangement of luxury houses in Menteng during his time. Rumah Laksamana Maeda merupakan rumah yang kaya akan sejarah dalam perjalanan Indonesia menjadi negara. Salah satu kelebihan yang dimiliki oleh Rumah Laksamana Maeda adalah tata ruang dan perabotannya yang masih terjaga hingga sekarang. Rumah Laksamana Maeda dapat dikatakan masih mencerminkan nilai sosial yang ada pada masa itu. Kajian ini berusaha untuk merekonstruksi nilai sosial yang ada pada masa itu, melalui penataan ruang rumah Maeda dengan menggunakan paradigma arkeologi rumah. Metode yang digunakan dalam menjawab masalah ini terdiri dari pengumpulan data, analisis dan interpretasi. Berdasarkan kajian yang telah dilakukan, dapat diketahui bahwa penataan ruang di rumah Maeda berkaitan dengan kelas sosial para penghuninya. Penataan ruang dalam hal ini adalah juga termasuk aksesibiltas, ukuran ruang dan fasilitas. Kajian ini juga memberikan gambaran mengenai sosok Maeda yang bersifat hirarkis dalam menata rumahnya, sekaligus juga menunjukkan contoh pola penataan rumah mewah di Menteng pada masanya.

The Archaeology of Monastic Households

This chapter explores the buildings and artefacts of late antique monastic sites in Egypt and Palestine. It uses household archaeology to examine the daily behaviours of those who lived in monastic settlements. Household archaeology combines methodologies from archaeology, anthropology, geography, and history. Its application enables us to read the archaeology of monasticism with greater sophistication, so that the artefacts and the places of ordinary life can be interpreted alongside other sources, such as liturgy, images, and texts. Archaeological remains offer an additional lens for reading monastic settlements as complex households or homesteads, and they permit us to write a more nuanced history of monastic life.