Judaica as Portable Antiquities in England and Wales
This article examines the use of the database of the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) for England and Wales, which records archaeological finds made by the public (particularly metal detector users). The PAS database is generally considered a valuable resource for archaeological research, but its...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | deu |
| Published: |
Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of Sciences
2023-12-01
|
| Series: | Fasciculi Archaeologiae Historicae |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.iaepan.pl/fah/article/view/3655 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849428316354772992 |
|---|---|
| author | Paul Barford |
| author_facet | Paul Barford |
| author_sort | Paul Barford |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
This article examines the use of the database of the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) for England and Wales, which records archaeological finds made by the public (particularly metal detector users). The PAS database is generally considered a valuable resource for archaeological research, but its use as such is rarely critically examined. In this case study, artefacts related to the specific material culture of the historically-attested Jewish community in Britain are examined as a potential source of archaeological information about a specific historical social group. The article highlights several challenges in interpreting records deriving from information received from collectors and hobbyists as a substitute for data recovered by archaeological methods. Several false leads and misinterpretations have been identified, and the lack of contextual information for the artefacts is especially problematic. The PAS records are of limited utility as a standalone source of evidence, and cannot lead to meaningful conclusions about Jewish lives in Britain. The artefacts primarily serve as material illustrations of existing written records rather than independent sources of information.
|
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-de07296e6d104bf08d239aa9986a4ebe |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 0860-0007 2719-7069 |
| language | deu |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of Sciences |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Fasciculi Archaeologiae Historicae |
| spelling | doaj-art-de07296e6d104bf08d239aa9986a4ebe2025-08-20T03:28:43ZdeuInstitute of Archaeology and Ethnology Polish Academy of SciencesFasciculi Archaeologiae Historicae0860-00072719-70692023-12-013610.23858/FAH36.2023.011Judaica as Portable Antiquities in England and WalesPaul Barford0Independent researcher This article examines the use of the database of the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS) for England and Wales, which records archaeological finds made by the public (particularly metal detector users). The PAS database is generally considered a valuable resource for archaeological research, but its use as such is rarely critically examined. In this case study, artefacts related to the specific material culture of the historically-attested Jewish community in Britain are examined as a potential source of archaeological information about a specific historical social group. The article highlights several challenges in interpreting records deriving from information received from collectors and hobbyists as a substitute for data recovered by archaeological methods. Several false leads and misinterpretations have been identified, and the lack of contextual information for the artefacts is especially problematic. The PAS records are of limited utility as a standalone source of evidence, and cannot lead to meaningful conclusions about Jewish lives in Britain. The artefacts primarily serve as material illustrations of existing written records rather than independent sources of information. https://journals.iaepan.pl/fah/article/view/3655Jewish archaeologykosherseal matricesEnglandWalesmetal detecting |
| spellingShingle | Paul Barford Judaica as Portable Antiquities in England and Wales Fasciculi Archaeologiae Historicae Jewish archaeology kosher seal matrices England Wales metal detecting |
| title | Judaica as Portable Antiquities in England and Wales |
| title_full | Judaica as Portable Antiquities in England and Wales |
| title_fullStr | Judaica as Portable Antiquities in England and Wales |
| title_full_unstemmed | Judaica as Portable Antiquities in England and Wales |
| title_short | Judaica as Portable Antiquities in England and Wales |
| title_sort | judaica as portable antiquities in england and wales |
| topic | Jewish archaeology kosher seal matrices England Wales metal detecting |
| url | https://journals.iaepan.pl/fah/article/view/3655 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT paulbarford judaicaasportableantiquitiesinenglandandwales |