‘Order’-ing Excavations: Constitution of Archaeology as Legal Evidence in the Ayodhya Case

This paper examines the case of the court-ordered excavations at Ayodhya to understand the process by which archaeological evidence as expert opinion was reconfigured into judicial evidence in a civil lawsuit. Being an exceptional site of enquiry where two institutions of the Indian state — the High Court of Allahabad and the Archaeological Survey of India — come together, the Ayodhya case allows us to complicate the uses and abuses of archaeology. An examination of the orders and documents related to the excavations and the judgment made by the Allahabad High Court shows the production of archaeological knowledge at Ayodhya as highly mediated. The paper argues that this process is determined by the notions shared by both the institutions about archaeology-as-science and about scientific/archaeological expertise, regulated at each stage through judicial interventions and informed by the role that the Archaeological Survey of India and the archaeology profession has played in the production of a nationalist past in India. The employment of archaeology as legal evidence in the Ayodhya case is contingent upon the masking of these mediating roles.     

A Sacred Space for Women: Hymnody in Emma Hale Smith's Theology

Emma Smith oversaw the compilation of the first Mormon hymnal in 1835 and then prepared a second hymnal in 1841. This article contextualises and discusses Smith's significant assignment, and considers how a woman's hymn selections influenced early Mormonism. It also considers what Smith's hymnals reveal about her own life story and what her life story reveals about her hymn selections. While Smith's first hymnal highlights the emphasis she placed on immediately establishing a city of Zion in preparation for the millennial reign of a triumphal Christ, her second hymnal underscores the need to develop and foster a personal relationship with a merciful Saviour. Smith's 1835 hymnal emphasises being a Zion people immediately, whereas her 1841 hymnal, compiled in the context of intense personal and collective trials and religious persecution, highlights the importance of striving to become a more Zion‐like people over time. The different doctrinal emphases reflects their respective Mormon cultures at the time of compilation, and captures how the church responded to and grappled with its failure to establish Zion immediately. As a compiler of hymns, Smith clearly plays a significant role in Mormon history, while also demonstrating how women could impact their particular religious communities.     

Martianus, Aventius and Isidore: provincial councils in seventh-century Spain

In Spain around 624, Bishop Martianus was deposed by a church council led by Bishop Isidore of Seville. The fact that Martianus had been framed came to light at another council in 633, which then issued canons meant to prevent future abuses, and to institutionalize provincial councils as centrally-controlled tribunals for local dispute settlements. These events illuminate the problems involved in the Visigothic church's programme for kingdom-wide religious uniformity.     

Buyer Engagement and Labour Conditions in Global Supply Chains: The Bangladesh Accord and Beyond

The Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh (‘the Accord’) has received both praise and criticism concerning its implications for corporate responsibility and power. This article contributes to the debate by situating the Accord within a broader set of activities that buyers are engaged in to promote better labour conditions in their supply chains. The authors identify three approaches of buyer engagement: auditing, capacity building and advocacy. Drawing on interviews conducted with European brands and retailers, the article shows how buyers perceive the merits and challenges of these approaches, and whether and how they discharge responsibility and power through these activities. The study shows that the Accord is seen primarily as part of the auditing approach with a key feature being its use of collective leverage as a means of enforcement. While greater buyer power has not necessarily been accompanied by greater responsibility, the article highlights heterogeneity among buyers in how they take up different approaches, painting a more nuanced picture of buyer responsibility and power.