‘Handle with care’: literature,archaeology, slavery

This article examines the relationship between literary and bioarchaeological approaches to slavery, and investigates how the methods and priorities of each discipline might inform each other in understanding what it was like to be enslaved. Both bioarchaeologists and creative writers have attempted to access the inner lives of enslaved people, yet there has been little interaction between them. This paper offers an account of a research project which brought together a literary scholar, two archaeological scientists and seven creative writers to explore how writing might not only communicate a history understood through archaeological evidence, but could itself inform approaches to that evidence. We discuss two key themes which emerged from the project: Conversation and Caring. These themes were crucial to the interdisciplinary process, as it was only through attention to our relationships with each other that we could begin to reassess the nature of material in each of our disciplines.     

Crossing the Threshold: Negotiating Space in the Vernacular Houses of the Isle of Lewis

This paper explores the construction of boundaries and thresholds as a means to examine the ways in which space is delineated and used within the house. Focusing on examples of vernacular housing from the Isle of Lewis, the most northerly of the Western Isles, the types of boundaries and thresholds that existed within the house are examined, alongside their role in establishing, reinforcing and manipulating social relationships among the inhabitants, both human and animal. As the houses in Lewis developed during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries AD, boundaries and thresholds lost or gained significance as they were moved, adapted, added and abandoned. Such developments reflected not only changing social conventions, but also the changing relationship between Lewis tenants and their cattle.     

Recording and Analysis of Ship Graffiti in St Thomas’ Church and Blackfriars Barn Undercroft in Winchelsea,East Sussex,UK

Two assemblages of ship graffiti were recorded using Reflectance Transformation Imaging in the ancient port town of Winchelsea. The engravings show characteristics common to most medieval ship graffiti in England, while displaying different levels of detail, which encouraged a nuanced interpretation. It is suggested that the ship graffiti demonstrate a multifaceted relationship with the sea. The St Thomas’ church graffiti could have been a means of spiritual protection and a devotional practice that cuts across different communities of practice and social groups. The seascape in Blackfriars Barn undercroft can be interpreted as an occasion of informal remembrance of the mustering of a large naval fleet before setting out.     

Multiple osteochondromas in the archaeological record: a global review

Multiple osteochondromas is an inherited autosomal dominant condition of enchondral bone growth. The paper undertakes the first synthesis study of the 16 known cases of the condition that have been identified in the international palaeopathological record. It also includes information derived from two newly discovered cases of the disease in two adult male individuals recovered from the Medieval cemetery at Ballyhanna, Co. Donegal, Ireland. The formation of multiple osteochondromas is the best known characteristic of the disease but it also involves the development of a suite of orthopaedic deformities. These deformities, which include disproportionate short stature, inequality of bone length, forearm deformities, tibiofibular diastasis, coxa valga of the hip and valgus deformity of the knee and ankle, are discussed in relation to the archaeological cases. Numerous synonyms for the disease have been used within the various publications produced by palaeopathologists, and this can generate confusion among readers. As such, the paper recommends that in future palaeopathologists should follow the guidance of the World Health Organization and use the term multiple osteochondromas when discussing the disease.     

When Policy Goes Wrong: The Problem of Transmitted Risk

Why do policies fail? There are many answers to this question, and many ways of answering it. In this paper, we use the tools of policy framing and systems thinking to investigate two recent Australian examples of public policy failure, each involving a different policy milieu and time-span. We show that, in both these cases, unintended consequences arose because governments lost control of the implementation process while remaining politically accountable for the outcomes. We develop the concept of transmitted risk to show how this occurred. We argue that governments expose themselves to this kind of risk when they make policy decisions involving a combination of excessive incentives and poorly controlled third parties.     

Book review

Bruce Grant What Kind of Country? Australia and the Twenty First Century. Ringwood, Vic.: Penguin Books, xii +178pp. $ 11.95.

Phillip W. Jones. Australia's International Relations in Education. Hawthorne, Vic: The Australian Council for Educational Research Ltd, 1986. 123pp. $8.95.

Ronald H. Linden. Communist States and International Change: Romania and Yugoslavia in Comparative Perspective. Boston: Allen & Unwin, xviii+201pp. $87.50.

Christopher Tugendhat Making Sense of Europe. Harmond‐sworth: Penguin Books, 1987.240pp. $12.95.

A. J. Marques Mendes. Economic Integration and Growth in Europe. London; Croom Helm, 1987.141pp. £22.50.

Miles Hewstone. Understanding Attitudes to the European Community: a social‐psychological study in four member states. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1986. xviii+306pp. $98.00.

Sonia Mazey and Michael Newman (eds). Mitterrand's France. London: Croom Helm, 1987. xi+253pp. $105.00.

Tom Gallagher. Glasgow: The Uneasy Peace. Religious Tension in Modern Scotland, 1819–1914. Manchester. Manchester University Press, 1987.ix+382pp.$114.00.

Anthony Hall and James Midgley (eds). Development Policies: Sociological Perspectives. Manchester. Manchester University Press, 1988. 154pp £21.00.

Stewart MacPherson and James Midgley (eds). Comparative Social Policy and the Third World. Brighton, Sussex: Wheatsheaf Books, 1987.228pp. $69.95.

Edward J. Lincoln. Japan: Facing Economic Maturity. Washington, D.C.: The Brookings Institution, 1988. xii+298pp. $US11.95.

Harry Harding. China's Second Revolution: Reform after Mao. Washington, D.C.: The Brookings Institution, 1987. 369pp. $US12.95.

Zakaria Haji Ahmad (ed.). Government and Politics of Malaysia. Singapore: Oxford University Press, 1986. xii + 178pp. No price given.

Raul P. de Guzman and Mila A. Reforma (eds.) Government and Politics of the Philippines Singapore: Oxford University Press, 1988. xii+289 pp. $S45.00.

Fred Greene (ed). The Philippine Bases: Negotiating for the Future. American and Philippine Perspectives. New York: Council on Foreign Relations, 1988. xv+ 158pp. $US9.95.

Ed Garcia and Francisco Nemenzo. The Sovereign Quest. Freedom from Foreign Military Bases. Quezon City: Claretian Publications, 1988. xv+ 120pp. No price given.

Stella R. Quah and Jon S. T. Quah. Friends in Blue: The Police and the Public in Singapore. Singapore: Oxford University Press, 1987. 209 pp. No price given.

Lim Chong Yah and Associates. Policy Options for the Singapore Economy. Singapore: McGraw‐Hill, 1988. xv + 499 pp. No price given.

Muthiah Alagappa. The National Security of Developing States: Lessons from Thailand. Dover, Mass: Auburn House, 1987. xiv + 274 pp. No price given.

R. A. Cramb and R. H. W. Reece (eds). Development in Sarawak. Monash Paper on Southeast Asia, No. 17. Melbourne: Centre of Southeast Asian Studies, Monash University, 1988. 190pp. $16.00.

Mavis Rose. Indonesia Free: A Political Biography of Mohammad Hatta. Ithaca, NY: Cornell Modern Indonesia Project, 1987. vii + 245pp.$US10.50.

Leonard Blusse. Strange Company: Chinese Settlers. Mestizo Women and the Dutch in VOC Batavia. Dordrecht Foris Publications, 1986, xiii + 302pp. Df1.35.

Mary Brooks. Fleet Development and the Control of Shipping in Southeast Asia. Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 1985,x+113pp.$SI8.00.

Robert H. Taylor. The State in Burma. London: C Hurst/Orient Longman, 1987, xvi+395pp. £27.50.

W. David McIntyre. New Zealand Prepares for War — Defence Policy 1919–39. Christchurch: University of Canterbury Press, 1988. 287pp. $NZ44.00.     

Book Reviews

THE DYNAMICS OF THE WESTERN NEW GUINEA (IRIAN BARAT) PROBLEM. Robert C. Bone, Jr. Cornell University, Modern Indonesia Project, Interim Reports Series, 1958, $1.50.

THE WEST NEW GUINEA DISPUTE. J. M. van der Kroef. Institute of Pacific Relations, New York, 1958, $1.50.

THE ECONOMY OP PAKISTAN. J. Russell Andrws and Azizali F. Mohammed. Oxford University Press, 1958. Pp. xviii + 517. Australian price 64/9.

AN ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY OF EAST PAKISTAN. Nafia Ahmad. Oxford University Press, 1958. Pp. xiv + 361. U.K. price 50/‐.     

Reviews

GOEBBELS AND NATIONAL SOCIALIST PROPAGANDA 1925–1945. Ernest K. Bramsted. London, The Cresset Press; East Lansing, Michigan State University Press, 1965, Pp. xxxvii + 488. $12.50 (U.S.).

AUSTRIA, GERMANY, AND THE ANSCHLUSS, 1931–38; Jürgen Gehl. London, Oxford University Press, 1963. Pp. x + 212. 49/9d. (Australian).

RUSSIA AFTER KHRUSHCHEV. Robert Conquest. London, Pall Mall, 1965. Pp. 267. $6.60 Australian.

BEHIND THE IRON CURTAIN. J. S. Roucek and K. V. Lottich. Caxton Press, Caldwell (Idaho, U.S.A.), 1964. Pp. 631. $8.95 (U.S.).

EAST WEST TRADE. A SYMPOSIUM. Philip E. Uren (ed.). Toronto, Canadian Institute of International Affairs, 1966. Pp. 181. Hard cover, $3.00. Paperback, $2.00 (Canadian).

SOUTHEAST ASIA'S SECOND FRONT. THE POWER STRUGGLE IN THE MALAY ARCHIPELAGO. Arnold Brackman. New York, Frederick A. Praeger, Inc., 1966. Pp. xv + 341. $7.00 (Australian).

THE DIMENSIONS OF CONFLICT IN SOUTHEAST ASIA. Bernard K. Gordon. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, Prentice‐Hall, Inc., 1966. Pp. xiv + 201. $2.70 (Australian).

FUNDAMENTALS OF GUERILLA WARFARE. Abdul Haris Nosution. London, Pall Mall Press, 1965. Pp. 324. $4.25 (Australian).

FROM ENMITY TO ALLIANCE. U.S.‐AUSTRALIAN RELATIONS, 1931–1941. Raymond A. Esthus. Melbourne University Press, 1965. Pp. xii + 180. 45/‐ Australian.

AUSTRALIAN CITIZEN. HERBERT BROOKES 1867–1963. Rohan Rivett. Melbourne University Press. London and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1965. Pp. xiv + 218. 65/‐ Australian.

AUSTRALIA AND THE MONARCHY. A SYMPOSIUM. Geoffrey Dutton (ed.). Melbourne, Sun Books, 1966. Pp. 182. $1.00 Australian.

CANADA'S ROLE AS A MIDDLE POWER. J. King Gordon (ed.). Contemporary Affairs Series No. 35, Toronto, The Canadian Institute of International Affairs, 1966. Pp. xiv + 212. Can. $3.50 hard cover, $2.00 paperback.