Recreating European Identity in Situations of Cultural Change

With National Science Foundation support, Dr. Peter Wells and a graduate student assistant will study archaeological materials in German museum collections. They will focus on artifacts which date to late pre Roman and early Roman periods, assess the nature and extent of these collections and use this information as the basis for the formulation of a larger project. These data will allow Dr. Wells to select potential sites for future excavation. Between 58 BC and 83 AD the Roman empire extended northwards into temperate Europe and incorporated local groups. Dr. Wells is interested in the process of incorporation and the kinds of changes and accommodations which are made by both cultures in this interaction. Limited historical documentation exists and these data will increase the potential contribution of the archaeological research. The work has the ultimate potential to add, not only to scientific understanding of cultural interaction between dominant and subservient groups but also to contribute to archaeological technique and methodology. Archaeologists attempt to reconstruct cultural process on the basis of excavated material remains and this can be complicated to do. In the Roman case, documents provide some historic control. Through study of the material correlates of Roman incorporation, Dr. Wells hopes to develop markers which may prove of interpretive use in other archaeological contexts.