Update for Arch & Anth Centennial 27-28 February, 2015
We are delighted to say that the Archaeology and Anthropology at 100
Day is developing well, and there is enormous enthusiasm. We are
expecting a large attendance, from the year 1948 to 2015.
The popularity of the event means that we are still working on the final
details so that as many people as possible can contribute.
Our proposed programme is as follows:
FRIDAY 27 FEBRUARY afternoon and evening
An evening drinks reception on Friday 27th February (5pm to 8 pm), in
the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, hosted by Nick Thomas,
the current Director, with Sir David Wilson and Debbie Swallow.
Prior to that, for those arriving in time, there will be gallery talks about
the new displays in the museum over the course of the afternoon.
It is planned that the McDonald Institute will host a conversation about
its founding and history over the course of the same afternoon.
SATURDAY 28 FEBRUARY all day and evening dinner
A day of talks and discussion will follow on the Saturday 28th (9.30 am –
6.30 pm) in the Magdalene Cripps Centre:
Two plenary sessions will open and close the day. The opening one is by
‘Ancestors’, talks and contributions from graduates from the 1950s and
1960s – Jean La Fontaine, Ian Tattersall and John Mulvaney. In the
closing one , ‘Whither Arch & Anth?, younger graduates will talk about
how they see the subjects developing in Cambridge and beyond. At both
sessions, there will be plenty of time for contributions and reminiscing.
In between, there will be seven smaller panels each with about 6
principal members on particular themes, run in parallel, four in the
morning and three in the afternoon, on:
Theory
Fieldwork
Science and Deep Time
Africa
The Mediterranean
Beyond the Academy
Collaboration and Engagement
The Life of the Tripos
For each session, we are asking two people to chair the sessions, to
provide a brief and personal introduction, and then to invite contributions
from all present.
We have asked one person to be rapporteur, who will give a brief and
entertaining summary back to the conference as a whole.
At the end of the day, three senior academics from the Department will
reflect on the day and look ahead to the future of Arch and Anth in
Cambridge.
Evening dinners will be held in Magdalene, St. Johns and Downing – we
expect there to be far too many to dine all together in one place.
VENUE
The main session will be held in the Magdalene College Cripps Building.
This is a very elegant building on Chesterton Lane:
https://map.cam.ac.uk/Cripps+Court+%28Magdalene+College%29#52.
212431,0.116585,18
with both a large central room, and smaller rooms for the panels. Pamela
Smith and her Personal Histories Team will also be on hand to record
anyone who wants to talk about their time at Cambridge (and
afterwards), as part of her ground-breaking oral history of the Faculty
(contact her if you want to be recorded (pjs1011@cam.ac.uk). Alan
MacFarlane will also be there to show his superb digital intellectual
history of Arch & Anth.
SPIRIT OF THE EVENT
In developing the day, we are aware that Archaeology and Anthropology
covers an enormous range of topics, ideas, people and events, spread
over the entire 100 years. It is not possible to capture all of this, so we
want to use the limited time to explore as many as possible, and to
encourage as many as possible to contribute.
No agenda is fixed beforehand, but we have some questions which panel
members might be find useful.
1 Experiencing Arch &Anth:
What was Arch&Anth like for you?
Who were the particular people teaching who were inspiring, interesting,
difficult in regard to that topic (e.g. theory, fieldwork)?
Were you part of a cohort sharing these challenges (and who were they?)
2 Life with and after Arch&Anth: intellectual questions and their impact:
What were the 'big questions' during my period?
How did the undergraduate experience contribute to and shape your
subsequent career?
What was special about 'Cambridge Arch & Anth' in respect of the
particular topic when compared with other disciplines in Cambridge, or
compared with courses in other universities?
If you yourself want to or know of others who wish to contribute from the
floor to a particular session, please tell us
(personalhistoriesproject@gmail.com), so that the chairs of the session
can be alerted.
Updates will be made on the website:
http://www.arch.cam.ac.uk/about-us/personal-histories/events
And mirrored here:
http://www.socanth.cam.ac.uk/2014/12/celebrations-for-centennial-of-the-archaeology-and-anthropology-tripos/