Network for Sustainable Archaeological Practices
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netsap.bsky.social
Network for Sustainable Archaeological Practices
@netsap.bsky.social
150 followers 290 following 21 posts
NetSAP is a collective focused on sustainability in archaeology and related fields. We aim to provide a platform for discussions and dialogue on topics that all revolve around sustainable practices.
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[CALL FOR PAPERS] The NetSAP Workshops: "The ethical challenges of the study of ancient West Asia by the West"

📆 11-12 June 2026
📌 Liège University (Belgium)
▶️ Deadline for abstracts: November, 28th
Call for paper for the NetSAP Workshop in Liège: ‘Ethics’, a philosophical reasoning first, is the study of the balance between action and moral conduct. In the fields of history, art history and archaeology, ethics appears as an established concept, as in every academic discipline. However, archaeology in West Asia presents very specific challenges that other facets of history do not face (engaging with local excavators, the need for huge budgets, destruction and restoration processes, etc.). On the philological side, which most relies on museum collections, specific questions arise due to the enormous number of inscribed tablets obtained through irregular excavations (provenance of collections, decision to publish or not, museum bias, etc.). When asked about the value and significance of their so-called ‘useless sciences’ (ironic title given by Jean Bottéro), researchers working on Antiquity generally answer that it is important to move forward into the future by knowing the past. However, the responsibilities inherent in these praiseworthy objectives are not necessarily addressed. These include facing the fact that our fields of study are confronted with the manipulation of archaeological findings for political ends, culturocide, the monopolisation of data by those in positions of power, collaboration with communities that have been weakened by the colonial era,…We could also question the lack, in historical sciences curricula, of lessons on ethics and appropriate behaviour when conducting excavations abroad. In light of this observation, the workshop organized by Network for Sustainable Archaeological Practices humbly aims to address the challenges of Westerners studying West Asia and try to offer meaningful perspectives. What is ethical can be defined as ‘dealing with the principles of morality; pertaining to right and wrong in conduct; being in accordance with the rules or standards for right conduct or practice, especially the standards of a profession’1. Defining good conduct in our profession may involve, among other things, what position to take when faced with certain issues: - How do archaeologists and historians engage with conflict? How can archaeology meaningfully engage with conflict? - How do archaeologists and historians deal with museums: their history and the way collections are conserved, especially outside countries of origin? How should one deal with the incessant production of data, and implement sustainable approaches to managing it? - How do archaeologists collaborate with teams of “workers” in unbalanced working conditions and a colonial tradition? What about the paternalistic relationship to local teams? - How do archaeologists and historians position themselves in the looting of antiquities and trafficking market? What about the study of artefacts with questionable provenance? - How do archaeologists respond when modern development projects threaten heritage sites, ecosystems, and communities? What role should they play in safeguarding cultural landscapes and in advocating for those displaced or marginalised by such projects? These are some of the questions we would like to address, but we welcome papers that explore other angles and perspectives we may not have considered. Send to netsustainap@gmail.com
November 10, 2025 at 3:33 PM
netsap.bsky.social
📣 TODAY, 25 August 2025, 4PM-6PM (CET)

The Forum for Anti-Colonial Inquiry in the Humanities and Social Sciences (FAIHS) is meeting for its first Jour Fixe to discuss on 'Anti-Colonial Perspectives on Premodern History'

🔗 tinyurl.com/faihs1
Invitation to the 1rst Jour Fixe of the Forum for Anti-Colonial Inquiry in the Humanities and Socials Sciences. When: Monday 25th of August, 4PM to 6PM Central European Time. Topic: Anti-Colonial Perspectives on Premodern History Abstract: The input for the session will consist of a very brief overview of useful resources and existing networks which focus on premodern history from an anti-colonial perspective (e.g., Everyday Orientalism, the Critical Ancient World Studies Collective). This aims at starting a conversation and explore potential cooperation partners, as well as to share resources on the topic. Participants are welcome to think about their own additions to the conversation (blogs, readings; networks, collectives).
August 25, 2025 at 7:44 AM
netsap.bsky.social
⏪NetSAP was at the 14th ICAANE in Lyon, with a workshop entitled: "Digging through the Stores: Challenges and Prospects of New Research on Old Collections"
With 10 presentations by curators and researchers, the discussion was rich, focusing on the future prospects for museums and their collections!
Program of the NetSAP Workshop at the 14th ICAANE: 09:00 - 09:30 | The Re-edition of Mesopotamian Celestial Divination: from Tablets to Internet Maria Teresa RENZI-SEPE - Freie Universität Berlin, Germany 09:30 - 10:00 | JUMP (Tall-e Jari B & Tall-e Mushki Pottery Restudy Project): Shedding New Light on Old Collections in the University Museum, the University of Tokyo Takehiro MIKI - Keio University, Japan 10:00 - 10:30 | Old Conflict, Old Collections: Working around the Cypriot Problem to study the Early Bronze Age Transition Maria HADJIGAVRIEL - Leiden University , Netherlands 10:30 - 11:00 | A Case Study on the Handling of "Old Collections". The Seleucid-Parthian Period Pottery from Babylon in the Vorderasiatisches Museum (VAM) in Berlin Elisabeth KATZY - Berlin, Germany 11:30 - 12:00 | ‘Minor Objects' and their Stories: Reassessing and Reinterpreting Clay Figurines from Ur in the Collections of the British Museum Enrica INVERSI - Freie Universität Berlin, Germany - The British Museum, United Kingdom 12:00 - 12:30 | Something Old, Something New: Recontextualizing the Assyrian Roundel from Tell Tayinat Kiersten NEUMANN - University of Chicago, United States 14:00 - 14:30 | The Halaf-Ubaid Transition in Northeastern Mesopotamia: The Potential of Museum Collections Michael CAMPEGGI - University of Milan, Italy 14:30 - 15:00 | Urartian inscriptions in the museums of Iran: Challenges and results Maryam DARA - Assistant Professor of RICHT, Iran 15:00 - 15:30 | Re-assembling and re-telling Kish: new approaches to research and display in the Ashmolean Museum Nancy HIGHCOCK - Ashmolean Museum, United Kingdom 16:00 - 16:30 | Impressive impressions: Seals and their impressions in museums and what to do with them Pinar DURGUN - The Morgan Library and Museum New York, United States
June 16, 2025 at 12:27 PM
netsap.bsky.social
📣 Save & share the date for our 5th webinar!

"Heritage of Colonialism in Archival Research" with Heidi Miller & Erhan Tamur

📆 May 14, 6PM CET

🔗 Flash the QR code or register at netsustainap@gmail.com
Miller's abstract: The discovery and publication of the Bronze Age civilization of the Indus River Valley took place during the early 20th century while the Indian Subcontinent was under British colonial rule. I contend that the first interpretations of the Indus Valley Civilization (also referred to as the Harappan) reflect the orientalist ideals of a static indigenous culture. This view was perpetuated by the colonial government which emphasized the unchanging nature of both the modern and ancient populations. In this presentation, I will describe the orientalist view of culture and history in South Asia, and then detail how the first interpretations of the Bronze Age Indus Valley Civilization reflect such ideals. Following this I will deconstruct the premise of the unchanging nature of the Indus Valley Civilization by using the same collections and documents (now archived) that were used to create this interpretation. and thus illustrate how variable the Indus Civilization actually was." Tamur's abstract: "How meaningful are efforts to decolonize Ancient Western Asian (“Near Eastern”) art and archaeology—a discipline that is inherently a product of nineteenth-century European colonialism? Rather than dismissing such efforts as futile instances of “incremental change,” I regard them as potentially meaningful sites of intervention. In this talk, I will take as an example the foundational and still resilient narrative of the “discovery” of Mesopotamia, featuring a European archaeologist operating singlehandedly in a presumed terra incognita. By drawing on my recent research on Tello (ancient Girsu), I will explore the relationship between coloniality and the archive, and demonstrate the potential of critical engagement with systematically neglected sources and histories."
May 6, 2025 at 10:13 AM
netsap.bsky.social
📣 4th NetSAP Online Webinar "Thoughts on Archives" part. II

Jean-Jacques Herr (Archaïos-Unistra) and Barbara Couturaud (Musée du Louvre) will present The "Archives of Khorsabad" Project: An Archaeological Investigation

📆 April 18, 5PM (CET)

🧭 Please register by mail
April 7, 2025 at 9:17 AM
netsap.bsky.social
📣 3rd NetSAP Online Webinar "Thoughts on Archives" part. I

Georg Cyrus (Freie Universität Berlin) "Squatting Nimrud – an Assyrian metropolis in postimperial times"

📆 April 18, 6PM (CET)

🧭 Please register by mail
April 7, 2025 at 9:17 AM
netsap.bsky.social
The days are getting longer and we are happy to share our spring program 🌸

📆 Save the dateS!

👉 To attend the online webinars, please send us a direct message or an email at netsustainap@gmail.com

#archaeology #sustainability #culturalheritage #archives #antiquities
April 7, 2025 at 9:14 AM
netsap.bsky.social
📣Next June, NetSAP will be at the 14th ICAANE in Lyon!
Feel free to join us for our workshop "Digging through the Stores: Challenges and Prospects of New Research on Old Collections"

You can find more information about the workshop and the preliminary program below ⬇️
Archaeology has long been centered around discoveries through excavations and surveys. Over a century of archaeological fieldwork in Western Asia has produced substantial material necessitating analysis, appropriate conservation, and long-term storage. Nevertheless, the disparity between the material generated by fieldwork and the available resources and facilities for storing, studying and curating collections has led to a "conservation crisis" in archaeological repositories and museums. To facilitate accessibility for researchers and the public, museums and research institutes are digitizing their collections and creating online databases. However, many "old collections" remain un(der)studied in stores, holding potential for discoveries and new knowledge. These collections present specific challenges; some may lack provenance, while others originated before modern fieldwork techniques and documentation standards were established. In this workshop, we will explore the potential and challenges of collections from the 19th and 20th centuries. We will tackle the following questions: - How can “old collections” be used to address new research inquiries? - What obstacles do legacy collections present to research, and what new methodological and theoretical approaches have been implemented to overcome them? - What factors affect the visibility of existing and/or un(der)studied collections? How can their accessibility to researchers be facilitated? - How can new research on legacy data inspire innovative ways of communicating and displaying the past in and beyond museums? This workshop will provide a platform for PhD students, early career and senior researchers to discuss and compare research practices and methodological approaches. This is not just a practical issue in the study of old data; new research on “old collections” relevant to ongoing and future fieldwork and museum work. Program of the NETSAP Workshop - The Halaf-Ubaid Transition in Northeastern Mesopotamia: The Potential of Museum Collections Michael Campeggi, Università Milano, Italy - JUMP (Tall-e Jari B & Tall-e Mushki Pottery Restudy Project): Shedding New Light on the Old Collections in the University Museum, the University of Tokyo Takehiro Miki, Keio University, Japan - Old Conflict, Old Collections: Working around the Cypriot Problem to Study the Early Bronze Age Transition Maria Hadjigavriel, Leiden University, the Netherlands - A Case Study on the Handling of "Old Collections". The Seleucid-Parthian Period Pottery from Babylon in the Vorderasiatische Museum (VAM) in Berlin Elisabeth Katzy, Pilecki Institut Berlin, Germany - ‘Minor Objects' and their Stories: Reassessing and Reinterpreting Clay Figurines from Ur in the British Museum Enrica Inversi, British Museum, United Kingdom, and Freie Universität Berlin, Germany - The Elephant in the Room: New Research on Ivories from Nimrud in the British Museum Hannah Gwyther, British Museum, United Kingdom - Something Old, Something New: Recontextualizing the Assyrian Roundel from Tell Tayinat Kiersten Neumann, ISAC Museum Chicago, USA - Re-assembling and Re-telling Kish: New Approaches to Research and Display in the Ashmolean Museum Nancy Highcock, Ashmolean Museum, United Kingdom - Unveiling the Past: Advanced Technologies and New Perspectives on the Mesopotamian Collection at the Museum of Antiquiti of Turin Elena Devecchi, Filippo Diara, Stefano de Martino, University of Turin, Italy - Impressive Impressions: Seals, Impressions, and Copies in Museum Collections and What to Do with Them Pinar Durgun, The Morgan Library and Museum, USA - Urartian Inscriptions in the Museums of Iran: Challenges and Results Maryam Dara, Research Institute of Cultural Heritage and Tourism, Tehran, Iran - The Re-edition of Mesopotamian Celestial Divination: from Tablets to Internet Maria Teresa Renzi-Sepe, Freie Universität Berlin Germany
March 18, 2025 at 2:49 PM
netsap.bsky.social
11/27/2024: Pitfalls and Possibilities of Digital Archaeology

▫️Prof. Dr. Elisa Rossberger (Berlin) "Towards an Annotated Corpus of Ancient West Asian Imagery: Changes and challenges"
▫️Dr. des. Katarzyna Langenegger (Bern) "BAD: Don't reinvent the wheel. Linked database for archaeological Projects"
Poster of the NetSAP November meeting: Possibilites and Pitfalls of Digital Archaeology. Description of Katarina Langenegger's lecture: "BAD: Don't reinvent the wheel. Linked database for archaeological Projects" "The Bernese Archaeological Database (BAD), initiated in 2023, aims to develop a graph database model based on existing relational data from projects like Sirkeli Höyük and Gonur Depe at the University of Bern. This project integrates both current and historical, unstructured data. The main challenge is creating a universally usable database while navigating technological and legal differences across countries. It will link to external sources using vocabularies such as the Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names® and CONA."
January 8, 2025 at 11:13 AM
netsap.bsky.social
Hi BlueSky 👋
We are NetSAP, the Network for Sustainable Archaeological Practices.

We are a group of early career scholars, specialized in the archaeology of Western and Central Asia from the Palaeolithic to modern times.

Please find below what we do ⬇️

#AncientBlueSky🏺
NetSAP mission statement : The Network for Sustainable Archaeological Practices (NetSAP) was founded in 2023 by a group of early career researchers specialized in the archaeology of Western and Central Asia from the Palaeolithic to modern times. As a collective, we focus on sustainability in archaeology and related fields. We aim to provide a platform for discussions and dialogue on topics that all revolve around sustainable practices in archaeological research and related fields. This includes but is not limited to: - ethics of and in archaeology and museums studies - methodology to achieve best practices in fieldwork and post-excavation research - cultural heritage, conservation and communication practices - museums, outreach and collaboration with the broader public - old data research and effects of long-term storage - accessibility of data and results - environmental, climate and social impact of archaeology - incorporation of new technologies We support sharing knowledge, transparency and accessibility of data, and collaborations between individuals, museums, universities and other non academic institutions. We encourage the connection and exchange between students, young and senior researchers of all fields, and everyone committed to inclusive discourse. The NetSAP is mainly built around webinars held every three months, revolving around a predefined theme and associated readings. In addition, every two years, an in person or hybrid meeting is organized as a workshop. Themes are always methodologically oriented and we aim to tackle topics that are of importance across disciplines, and to bring together researchers from archaeology, history, philology, etc. Where to find us? - On BlueSky: @netsap.blsky.social - On Academia: Network for Sustainable Archaeological Practices You can also contact us by mail: netsustainap@gmail.com
December 19, 2024 at 2:17 PM