Archaeological Heritage Management at the Memphis and its Necropolis World Heritage Site

This research explores archaeological heritage management at the Memphis and its Necropolis – the Pyramid Fields from Giza to Dahshur World Heritage Site in Egypt. The case study methodology involved a structured questionnaire in order to gather data from key stakeholders. The results suggest only partial implementation of the World Heritage Site (WHS) management plan due in part to financial constraints, while strategies to raise visitor numbers remain limited. Actions are required to promote tourism, and to find resources for site enhancements. Current site management responsibilities appear centralised, with a need to develop an integrated management plan for the WHS. There could be better understanding of the needs of visitors and how these can be met. The study recommends development of a more Integrated Management Plan for the site, perhaps also involving some restructuring of key (state) organisations and/or specifically the creation of an entity responsible for management of the site.     

An investigation into the testamentary content of Stafford wills 1761–1860*

This research investigates the testamentary elements contained in the wills of Stafford residents during the period 1761–1860, a period of paradigm change which resulted in Stafford transforming from a small County Town with a population of almost four thousand in 1801, to an industrial centre of over twelve thousand by 1860. The article explores only a small portion of the testamentary content found in Stafford wills, but the results give a unique insight into aspects of life not always covered by other historical documents. Industrialisation resulted in cheaper goods being made available to more people, so the testamentary elements of Stafford wills were investigated to see if bequests of personal and household items increased. The nineteenth century also raised many social concerns, of which funerals were one. The first half of the nineteenth century was known for its extravagant and expensive funerals, so testator’s instructions were investigated to see what type of funeral arrangements were requested. The results highlight that changes cannot always be identified unless research covers a long enough timespan. Also, that despite campaigns to promote will making, in Stafford the number of testators as a percentage of the population declined in the nineteenth century. Industrialisation and the availability of cheaper goods also did not, as might have been expected result in an increase in testamentary bequests of specific ‘things’, but rather a decline. Using the preamble of a will for funeral arrangements also became less common in the nineteenth century.     

Turning the Spirits into Witchcraft: Pentecostalism in Fijian Villages1

Since Independence in 1970, Pentecostal churches have undergone unprecedented growth in Fiji. They claim to revive and purify Christianity and openly demonise many traditional ideas and practices that have been incorporated into the teachings and practices of the indigenous orthodox church of Methodism. The repercussions are that families with pre‐Christian esoteric knowledges are now perceived as cursed and therefore more likely to suffer illness and early death. Moreover, according to the Pentecostal churches, these conditions can only be healed by converting to Pentecostalism. However, in the villages, this conversion also brings conflict and sometimes splits villages completely, as in the case with a village on Beqa Island, or results in violence, as in the case of a village in Naitasiri. Both cases are discussed in this paper.     

Sowing the Seeds of Modernity on the Ottoman Frontier: Agricultural Investment and the Formation of Large Farms in Nineteenth-Century Transjordan

In the nineteenth century, the Ottoman Empire initiated a series of modernization reforms. In an effort to address the economic viability of the state, it turned its attentions to its frontiers, in an attempt to bring these regions back into the fold of the empire. In Transjordan, the state targeted Bedouin subjects; as part of the Ottoman project of modernity, efforts were made to settle nomadic pastoralists and transform pastureland into agricultural spaces. The rural countryside was opened to capitalist investment in agriculture. However, agricultural intensification, and the establishment of large farms created a crisis of modernity for many Bedouin. The intensification of agriculture brought increased taxation, diminished control over production, indebtedness, and ultimately the appropriation of land. But some Bedouin used the built environment and natural landscape to confront the Ottoman project of modernity as it unfolded on the frontier.     

(Troubling) spaces of mountains and men: New Zealand's Mount Cook and Hermitage Lodge

In this paper we trace one pervasive expression of hegemonic New Zealand national identity that developed around the sport of mountaineering from the 1880s, culminating in Sir Edmund Hillary's historic first climb of Mount Everest in 1953. The image of the masculine mountaineering hero, developed on and around New Zealand's highest peak, Mount Cook, is, however, inherently unstable, and we focus on two sites of potential disruption. First, we examine the experiences of white mountaineering women on Mount Cook. These women both embraced the masculinist identity of hero and destabilized it. Women's mountaineering points to the active and complex construction (rather than simple reproduction) of imperialisms, nationalisms and masculinities. Second, we examine the role played by the Hermitage Lodge situated at the base of Mount Cook. Narratives about mountaineering too often ignore the huts, lodges, the places of staying behind. The roles performed by women (and some men) who never had the opportunity and/or the desire to climb but instead 'kept the home fires burning' and supported the efforts of others can be examined as a way of productively challenging the entrenchment of national identity around the masculine mountaineering hero.