Archaeology Gone Astray
The conference Archaeology Gone Astray: Forgeries, Misinterpretations, and Other Field Stories, organized by the UISPP Commission on the History of Archeology, is dedicated to the less glorious—but undeniably fascinating—chapters in the history of archaeology. We’ll delve into everything, from notorious forgeries and spectacular blunders to interpretive dead ends and moments of… let’s say, excessive enthusiasm in the field. The event offers a space for reflection, self-reflection, and a bit of humor—because, like any living science, archaeology sometimes takes a wrong turn. Yet, even when it goes astray, it always leads to something interesting. While the main theme centers on the field’s twists, turns, and detours, the program will also feature an open session for participants who wish to present their current research projects.
Łódź and the history of archaeology
For many years, Łódź has been one of the key centres for research into the history of archaeology in Poland. It was in this city that Andrzej Abramowicz (1926–2011) carried out his scholarly work. As one of the first archaeologists in the country to reflect deeply and systematically on the development of his discipline, Abramowicz left a significant intellectual legacy: 12 books (including a three-volume memoir), nearly 60 articles, and 28 reviews — which remain foundational for the study of Polish archaeology’s history. His major works include: The Age of Archaeology: Problems of 19th-Century Polish Archaeology (1967), Urns and Ceraunia (1978), the three-volume History of Antiquarian Interests in Poland (Vol. I – 1983, Vol. II – 1987), History of Polish Archaeology: 19th and 20th Century (1991), and History of Polish Archaeology: Beginnings (1992). Beyond his writings, Abramowicz also mentored a generation of scholars, helping to sustain and expand research on the history of archaeology both within and beyond the Łódź archaeological community.
Venue
The conference will be held at the Institute of Archaeology, University of Łódź.
Address: Narutowicza 65, Łódź, Poland.
Registration is via the conference website.
Programme
Conference Opening
Forgeries, Misinterpretations, and Other Field Stories
- Tim Murray (University of Melbourne). Archaeologies as wished for. The power of ‘alternative’ histories
- Eliska Petrekova (Masaryk University Brno, Department of Archaeology and Museology). When the artist restores the artefact: The case of the painted vases from Ceglie in Baron Koller’s collection
- Jakub Linetty (Museum of the First Piasts at Lednica). Mysterious Slavic universe of Tadeusz Wolański
- Adrianna Szczerba (University of Lódź). Slavic runes in dispute: from 19th-century polemics to contemporary revivals
- Marzena Woźny (Archaeological Museum in Kraków). Gotfryd Ossowski (1835–1897) and the archaeological forgery from the Mnikowska Valley
- Anna Juga-Szymańska (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Archaeology). Don’t believe your eyes. The alleged files of Włodzimierz Antoniewicz
- Sébastien Plutniak (CNRS, France). On the scientific fringes of archaeology: the contents and reception of open and unsupervised scholarly communication platforms
- Bartłomiej Wyrwas (University of Lódź). Misreadings in Polish archaeology: a selection of examples
Current Research Projects
- Margarita Díaz-Andreu (ICREA and University of Barcelona). Lost melodies: a history of the archaeological study of music and sound
- Santiago Olcina Lagos (University Institute for Research in Archaeology and Historical Heritage, University of Alicante). The dissemination of pre-Hispanic archaeology at the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition in Seville: a first approach
- Ludwika Jończyk (University of Warsaw, Faculty of Archaeology), Justyna Liguz (Kwidzyn Castle). Investigating the investigator: Herbert Heym and the afterlife of unpublished East Prussian research
- Harald Gropp (ZAW Heidelberg). Nebra and Coligny and the discussion of archaeoastronomical artefacts
Poster Session
- Petr Kostrhun (Moravian Museum). Moravian Glozel
- Harald Gropp (Heidelberg University). Basic material on the sky disc of Nebra and the calendar of Coligny
- Harald Gropp (Heidelberg University). Local archaeological activities vs. official excavations
- Magdalena Malak (Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń). Roman Jakimowicz (1889-1951) – first Director of the State Archaeological Museum in Warsaw and the first head of the Department of Prehistory at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. But what else?
Discussion and Conference Summary
Commission for the History of Archaeology UISPP Regular Meeting
For UISPP members only.
Publication
The papers will be published in the open-access, peer-reviewed journal Archaeologia Polona.
Organizing committee
This conference is organized by the UISPP History of Archaeology commission.
- Adrianna Szczerba (Institute of Archaeology, University of Łódź, member of the UISPP Commission on the History of Archeology)
- Marzena Woźny (Archaeological Museum in Cracow, Vice-President of the UISPP Commission on the History of Archeology)
- Jakub Linetty (Museum of the First Piasts in Lednica, member of the UISPP Commission on the History of Archaeology)