Organisation politique et archéologique
Résumé
"The archaeology of politics is a domain of research that has long been considered, at least in France, difficult to access, in the absence of ad hoc theoretical references (or models), and analytic methods adapted to, or even clear markers of, this dimension of life in society in the archaeological record. While it is true that the division, sometimes blurry, between social organizations and political systems can complicate reconstructions, archaeology of the political sphere proper provides crucial information. We offer here a brief “state of the art” on this domain, following two axes of investigation supplemented by an addendum. 1/ The forms of political organization that originated in the past —in reality, well before the emergence of states— need to be constantly redefined, and not only because the variability of the systems identified does not correspond well to the simple (or even the detailed) typologies that have been proposed. In addition, an examination of the material markers of political structures brings to light, in addition to the data that are traditionally called upon, new fields that are beginning to open and that will certainly develop further in the future, such as the study of kinship via biological anthropology, applicable to questions of successions, notably in dynasties. 2/ The study of political dynamics constitutes another problem orientation that is also essential, because it is archaeology that traces the forms of the emergence of politics within pre-and protohistoric societies. Beyond simply identifying the evolution through which a given region may pass, it is, in fact, the why and how of the appearances, disappearances, and transformations of political systems that must also be investigated, taking into account the complementary relationship between the processes and their agents (or actors). 3/ Finally, the archaeology of political structures and their functions in more recent periods must not neglect the clarification of these relationships that the discipline gains through reference to history and written sources on the subject." (source éditeur)
lecture en ligne ici : https://books.openedition.org/editionscnrs/11284