Books by Zbigniew Kobylinski
Staniewska A., Domańska E. (red.), Ekshumacje polityczne: teoria i praktyka, Gdańsk-Lubin: słowo/obraz terytoria, Muzeum Historyczne w Lubinie 2023. Dostępna w przedsprzedaży., 2023
Pierwsza w Polsce publikacja dotycząca ekshumacji politycznych, które zostały ukazane w perspekty... more Pierwsza w Polsce publikacja dotycząca ekshumacji politycznych, które zostały ukazane w perspektywie zarówno globalnej, jak i lokalnej, humanistycznej i przyrodniczej. Zebrane w książce artykuły oferują innowacyjne i panoramiczne ujęcie rozmaitych przypadków ekshumacji politycznych i praktyk odsłaniania grobów. Wiążą różne zdarzenia, ludzi i miejsca, a także teorie, metody i tendencje badawcze. Praca włącza się w dynamicznie rozwijające się w Polsce i na świecie studia nad martwym ciałem i szczątkami, badaniami grobów masowych i ekshumacji, które traktowane są jako wyznaczniki kondycji współczesnego świata i człowieka.
SPIS TREŚCI:
Alexandra Staniewska, Ewa Domańska, Ekshumacje polityczne jako zjawisko społeczne i wielodziedzinowe pole badań (s. 13)
CZĘŚĆ I – TEORIE, METODY, PODEJŚCIA BADAWCZE
– Élisabeth Anstett, Co to jest grób masowy? Ku antropologii postępowania ze szczątkami ludzkimi we współczesnych kontekstach zbrodni masowych (s. 65)
– Erin Jessee, Mark Skinner, Typologia grobów masowych i związanych z nimi miejsc (s. 82)
– Christopher J. Knüsel, John Robb, Tafonomia funeralna: przegląd celów i metod (s. 93)
– Leszek Majgier, Oimahmad Rahmonov, Nekrosole wybranych cmentarzy Krainy Wielkich Jezior Mazurskich (s. 157)
– Józef Żychowski, Przegląd wyników badań prowadzonych na świecie nad wpływem cmentarzy na chemizm wód podziemnych (s. 173)
– Zbigniew Kobyliński, Źródła archeologiczne czy święte kości przodków: kulturowe uwarunkowania traktowania szczątków ludzkich z wykopalisk (s. 198)
– Alfredo González‐Ruibal, Etyka archeologii (s. 225)
CZĘŚĆ II – PERSPEKTYWA GLOBALNA:
– Clyde Collins Snow, Przedmowa do książki Archeologia sądowa: perspektywa globalna (s. 253)
– Francisco Ferrándiz, Życia po życiu: społeczna autopsja ekshumacji grobów masowych w Hiszpanii (s. 266)
– Sarah Wagner, Problemy z niekompletnymi i przemieszanymi szczątkami:
porównanie zaginionych ze Srebrenicy i ofiar wojny koreańskiej (s. 292)
– Élisabeth Anstett, Szczątki ludzkie z Gułagu. Ujęcie antropologiczne (s. 316)
– Małgorzata Wosińska, Upamiętnianie ludzkich szczątków jako strategia emancypacyjna. Ludobójstwo w Rwandzie a Holokaust (s. 333)
– Dorothée Delacroix, Etnografia uciszanej przemocy. Ku antropologii życia pośmiertnego zamordowanych i zaginionych w Peru (s. 365)
– Anne Yvonne Guillou, Od kości-dowodów do duchów opiekuńczych. Status ciał po ludobójstwie Czerwonych Khmerów (s. 385)
CZĘŚĆ III – PERSPEKTYWA LOKALNA:
– Caroline Sturdy Colls, Archeologie Zagłady i badanie miejsc nazistowskich prześladowań (s. 403)
– Andrzej Kola, Zbrodnia katyńska w świetle prac archeologiczno- -ekshumacyjnych tajnych cmentarzysk NKWD w Charkowie (Piatichatki) i Kijowie (Bykownia) (s. 459)
– Krzysztof Persak, Ekshumacja, której (prawie) nie było. Prace archeologiczno-ekshumacyjne w Jedwabnem w 2001 roku i ich wyniki (s. 486)
– Milena Bykowska, Zdjęcia lotnicze i materiał DNA w procesie identyfikacji skazanych na karę śmierci i rozstrzelanych w Polsce w latach 1944–1956. Zarys problematyki (s. 516)
– Informacja o postępowaniu w sprawie katastrofy smoleńskiej (s. 531)
– Marcin Napiórkowski, Uroczystości żałobne jako narzędzie legitymizacji i delegitymizacji władzy (s. 535)
– Paweł Tomczok, Nekropatriotyzm Przemysława Dakowicza (s. 559)
– Przemysław Dakowicz, Rodowód, Brama Salariańska (s. 568)
– Grzegorz Kwiatkowski, mogił, zbierać (s. 569)
– Ewa Domańska, Nekrodziedzictwo (s. 572)
Wstęp 9 Rozdział 1. Dziedzictwo kulturowe 15 1.1. Dobra kultury, dziedzictwo kulturowe i zabytki-... more Wstęp 9 Rozdział 1. Dziedzictwo kulturowe 15 1.1. Dobra kultury, dziedzictwo kulturowe i zabytki-definicje pojęć 15 1.2. Ku paradygmatowi dziedzictwa 21 Doktryna ekorozwoju, przemiany w rozumieniu istoty zabytków archeologicznych i pojawienie się pojmowania dziedzictwa kulturowego jako zasobu 22 Demokratyzacja życia społecznego, upodmiotowienie społeczności lokalnych i postkolonializm 31 Postmodernistyczna krytyka eksperckiej wiedzy naukowej i wyrastający z niej konstrukcjonizm społeczny 38 1.3. Paradoksy dziedzictwa kulturowego 42 Przekaz pokoleniowy czy wytwór współczesny? 42 Źródło tolerancji dla odmienności czy źródło wrogości międzygrupowej? 46 Zasób ograniczony i nieodnawialny czy odnawialny i nieskończony? 49 1.4. Kwestia identyfikacji zasobu dziedzictwa: wielokulturowość 57 1.5. Wartości dziedzictwa kulturowego 60 1.6. Autentyczność dziedzictwa kulturowego i przemiany jej rozumienia 69 1.7. Własność dziedzictwa kulturowego 80
Archaeologica Hereditas, 2012
J.B. Faliński, A. Ber, Z. Kobyliński, W. Szymański i A.J. Kwiatkowska-Falińska, Haćki. Zespół przyrodniczo-archeologiczny na Równinie Bielskiej. Białowieża - Warszawa 2005, 2005
Rozdział na temat wyników badań wykopaliskowych w Haćkach na Podlasiu
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Books by Zbigniew Kobylinski
SPIS TREŚCI:
Alexandra Staniewska, Ewa Domańska, Ekshumacje polityczne jako zjawisko społeczne i wielodziedzinowe pole badań (s. 13)
CZĘŚĆ I – TEORIE, METODY, PODEJŚCIA BADAWCZE
– Élisabeth Anstett, Co to jest grób masowy? Ku antropologii postępowania ze szczątkami ludzkimi we współczesnych kontekstach zbrodni masowych (s. 65)
– Erin Jessee, Mark Skinner, Typologia grobów masowych i związanych z nimi miejsc (s. 82)
– Christopher J. Knüsel, John Robb, Tafonomia funeralna: przegląd celów i metod (s. 93)
– Leszek Majgier, Oimahmad Rahmonov, Nekrosole wybranych cmentarzy Krainy Wielkich Jezior Mazurskich (s. 157)
– Józef Żychowski, Przegląd wyników badań prowadzonych na świecie nad wpływem cmentarzy na chemizm wód podziemnych (s. 173)
– Zbigniew Kobyliński, Źródła archeologiczne czy święte kości przodków: kulturowe uwarunkowania traktowania szczątków ludzkich z wykopalisk (s. 198)
– Alfredo González‐Ruibal, Etyka archeologii (s. 225)
CZĘŚĆ II – PERSPEKTYWA GLOBALNA:
– Clyde Collins Snow, Przedmowa do książki Archeologia sądowa: perspektywa globalna (s. 253)
– Francisco Ferrándiz, Życia po życiu: społeczna autopsja ekshumacji grobów masowych w Hiszpanii (s. 266)
– Sarah Wagner, Problemy z niekompletnymi i przemieszanymi szczątkami:
porównanie zaginionych ze Srebrenicy i ofiar wojny koreańskiej (s. 292)
– Élisabeth Anstett, Szczątki ludzkie z Gułagu. Ujęcie antropologiczne (s. 316)
– Małgorzata Wosińska, Upamiętnianie ludzkich szczątków jako strategia emancypacyjna. Ludobójstwo w Rwandzie a Holokaust (s. 333)
– Dorothée Delacroix, Etnografia uciszanej przemocy. Ku antropologii życia pośmiertnego zamordowanych i zaginionych w Peru (s. 365)
– Anne Yvonne Guillou, Od kości-dowodów do duchów opiekuńczych. Status ciał po ludobójstwie Czerwonych Khmerów (s. 385)
CZĘŚĆ III – PERSPEKTYWA LOKALNA:
– Caroline Sturdy Colls, Archeologie Zagłady i badanie miejsc nazistowskich prześladowań (s. 403)
– Andrzej Kola, Zbrodnia katyńska w świetle prac archeologiczno- -ekshumacyjnych tajnych cmentarzysk NKWD w Charkowie (Piatichatki) i Kijowie (Bykownia) (s. 459)
– Krzysztof Persak, Ekshumacja, której (prawie) nie było. Prace archeologiczno-ekshumacyjne w Jedwabnem w 2001 roku i ich wyniki (s. 486)
– Milena Bykowska, Zdjęcia lotnicze i materiał DNA w procesie identyfikacji skazanych na karę śmierci i rozstrzelanych w Polsce w latach 1944–1956. Zarys problematyki (s. 516)
– Informacja o postępowaniu w sprawie katastrofy smoleńskiej (s. 531)
– Marcin Napiórkowski, Uroczystości żałobne jako narzędzie legitymizacji i delegitymizacji władzy (s. 535)
– Paweł Tomczok, Nekropatriotyzm Przemysława Dakowicza (s. 559)
– Przemysław Dakowicz, Rodowód, Brama Salariańska (s. 568)
– Grzegorz Kwiatkowski, mogił, zbierać (s. 569)
– Ewa Domańska, Nekrodziedzictwo (s. 572)
Website presenting all the volumes of the series "Archaeologica Hereditas" published so far, with opportunity to download many of the volumes and individual chapters
SPIS TREŚCI:
Alexandra Staniewska, Ewa Domańska, Ekshumacje polityczne jako zjawisko społeczne i wielodziedzinowe pole badań (s. 13)
CZĘŚĆ I – TEORIE, METODY, PODEJŚCIA BADAWCZE
– Élisabeth Anstett, Co to jest grób masowy? Ku antropologii postępowania ze szczątkami ludzkimi we współczesnych kontekstach zbrodni masowych (s. 65)
– Erin Jessee, Mark Skinner, Typologia grobów masowych i związanych z nimi miejsc (s. 82)
– Christopher J. Knüsel, John Robb, Tafonomia funeralna: przegląd celów i metod (s. 93)
– Leszek Majgier, Oimahmad Rahmonov, Nekrosole wybranych cmentarzy Krainy Wielkich Jezior Mazurskich (s. 157)
– Józef Żychowski, Przegląd wyników badań prowadzonych na świecie nad wpływem cmentarzy na chemizm wód podziemnych (s. 173)
– Zbigniew Kobyliński, Źródła archeologiczne czy święte kości przodków: kulturowe uwarunkowania traktowania szczątków ludzkich z wykopalisk (s. 198)
– Alfredo González‐Ruibal, Etyka archeologii (s. 225)
CZĘŚĆ II – PERSPEKTYWA GLOBALNA:
– Clyde Collins Snow, Przedmowa do książki Archeologia sądowa: perspektywa globalna (s. 253)
– Francisco Ferrándiz, Życia po życiu: społeczna autopsja ekshumacji grobów masowych w Hiszpanii (s. 266)
– Sarah Wagner, Problemy z niekompletnymi i przemieszanymi szczątkami:
porównanie zaginionych ze Srebrenicy i ofiar wojny koreańskiej (s. 292)
– Élisabeth Anstett, Szczątki ludzkie z Gułagu. Ujęcie antropologiczne (s. 316)
– Małgorzata Wosińska, Upamiętnianie ludzkich szczątków jako strategia emancypacyjna. Ludobójstwo w Rwandzie a Holokaust (s. 333)
– Dorothée Delacroix, Etnografia uciszanej przemocy. Ku antropologii życia pośmiertnego zamordowanych i zaginionych w Peru (s. 365)
– Anne Yvonne Guillou, Od kości-dowodów do duchów opiekuńczych. Status ciał po ludobójstwie Czerwonych Khmerów (s. 385)
CZĘŚĆ III – PERSPEKTYWA LOKALNA:
– Caroline Sturdy Colls, Archeologie Zagłady i badanie miejsc nazistowskich prześladowań (s. 403)
– Andrzej Kola, Zbrodnia katyńska w świetle prac archeologiczno- -ekshumacyjnych tajnych cmentarzysk NKWD w Charkowie (Piatichatki) i Kijowie (Bykownia) (s. 459)
– Krzysztof Persak, Ekshumacja, której (prawie) nie było. Prace archeologiczno-ekshumacyjne w Jedwabnem w 2001 roku i ich wyniki (s. 486)
– Milena Bykowska, Zdjęcia lotnicze i materiał DNA w procesie identyfikacji skazanych na karę śmierci i rozstrzelanych w Polsce w latach 1944–1956. Zarys problematyki (s. 516)
– Informacja o postępowaniu w sprawie katastrofy smoleńskiej (s. 531)
– Marcin Napiórkowski, Uroczystości żałobne jako narzędzie legitymizacji i delegitymizacji władzy (s. 535)
– Paweł Tomczok, Nekropatriotyzm Przemysława Dakowicza (s. 559)
– Przemysław Dakowicz, Rodowód, Brama Salariańska (s. 568)
– Grzegorz Kwiatkowski, mogił, zbierać (s. 569)
– Ewa Domańska, Nekrodziedzictwo (s. 572)
Website presenting all the volumes of the series "Archaeologica Hereditas" published so far, with opportunity to download many of the volumes and individual chapters
This year’s edition of the conference, which will be already the sixth in the cycle entitled "Preventive conservation of the human environment", will be devoted to the role of the architecture in the creation, enhancement and preservation of cultural landscapes.
In the article there were discussed the results of nondestructive researches conducted in 2011, whose aim was complex recognition of archaeological resources of Lubuskie Province historical region called The Old Country (spreading south of Gubin). To achieve this goal different research methods were used, starting with archive data elaborating. Field survey were conducted in two seasons: spring and autumn, during which the archaeological antiques were being located with a GPS unit. The aerial photographs were taken in the spring, summer and autumn, which enabled comprehensive recognition of the examined region in different weather conditions. The aerial laser scanning (LiDAR) of forest areas was taken. on selected archaeological sites geophysical examinations with the magnetic method were held. on the basis of those data a system of geographical information was created, which enables reviewing research results in proper geographical context. This means that the area digital model, magnetic maps, rectified aerial photographs, and surface examinations results are presented on a map or ortophotomap, giving the most complete-so far-vision of human activity on this area. The examination results unequivocally prove that the use of a variety of examination methods, mutually complementary, and sometimes even overlapping one another, yet still enabling the positioning of information in mutual context, gives us an optimal view of archaeological resources, which is crucial for their protection.
Otto Braasch at the age of 20 obtained a glider pilot license, and in 1958 he joined the German air force, where until 1980 he served as a supersonic fighter pilot, as a squadron commander, operational officer and deputy wing commander in fighter units, as well as a staff officer at Luftwaffe headquarters. In 1974, he began his activity as a practitioner and theoretician of aerial archaeology, which lasted almost 50 years, initially in southern Germany, and after the collapse of the Communist system in Central Europe, also in the eastern federal states of Germany, in Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Estonia and Latvia.
His interests in archaeology developed through personal contacts with the archaeologist and engineer Irwin Scollar, who from 1960 as an employee of the Rhineland National Museum in Bonn was a pioneer of post-war aerial archaeology in Germany, and then with the archaeologist Rainer Christlein, who in 1976, as an employee and later director of the archaeological section of the Bavarian State Office for Monument Protection, initiated regular search for archaeological sites in Bavaria from a plane, carried out by Otto Braasch.
In 1980, Otto Braasch left the air force to devote himself entirely and exclusively to aerial archaeology. Until 1989, he served as the aerial archaeologist of the Bavarian Conservation Office, creating from scratch an archive of aerial photographs of archaeological sites in Bavaria, initially stored in Landshut and later in Munich. This archive is currently one of the world’s largest sources of aerial archaeology. Later, the area of his interest became Baden-Württemberg, and after the collapse of the Communist regime in Europe and the reunification of Germany, he began systematic exploration activities in the territory of the East German states – Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Fig. 1). This aerial survey initiated by Otto Braasch was and is being continued by his successors, who are in most cases his students. Otto Braasch disseminated his vast knowledge and shared his experiences in numerous publications (Fig. 2), at many conferences and during lectures he gave at the universities of Munich and Berlin.
From the point of view of the history of Polish modern archaeology the most important is the missionary activity of Otto Braasch in the countries of the former Soviet bloc. Otto Braasch was one of the initiators of helping archaeologists from Central and Eastern Europe to initiate the aerial prospection of archaeological heritage resources, which became possible on a larger scale after the collapse of the Communist system. He helped archaeologists, including in Poland, as an instructor during practical aerial archaeology training courses, and he also came to Poland several times in the company of Polish archaeologists to make reconnaissance flights in various parts of the country, discovering many previously unknown archaeological sites, including the first Neolithic cult circle in Bodzów in the Lubuskie Province (Fig. 3–8)
• entering the same culinary phenomenon independently by two or even several countries: for example, kimchi in South Korea in 2013 and in North Korea in 2015, lavash in Armenia in 2014 and in Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey in 2016 ; pilaf in Tajikistan in 2016 and in Uzbekistan in the same year;
• inclusion by one country of a culinary phenomenon that occurs with equal intensity in other countries, for example: dolma entered as a dish by Azerbaijan, although it is also a characteristic element of Greek or Turkish cuisine, harissa spice entered by Tunisia, although it is also used in other countries of Maghreb, gingerbread entered by Croatia, although it is also a characteristic culinary product in many Baltic countries, slivovitz entered by Serbia, although it is made in many other Balkan countries, beer culture entered by Belgium, although beer plays an important role in the culture of, for example, Germany, the Netherlands or Denmark, not to mention the Czech Republic, beekeeping recognized as a phenomenon characteristic of Slovenia, although it is widespread in many countries, including Poland;
• the resulting conflict-generating nature of at least some entries: the "war on Ukrainian borscht" between Russia and Ukraine, which ended with "derussification" of borscht, or the "war on kimchi" between the two Koreas, Japan and China, can be cited as an example; similar disputes arose over dishes not yet included in the Representative List, such as feta cheese, falafel, hummus, za'atar spice, or loukoumi sweets;
• joint entries of several countries covering allegedly the same culinary phenomenon, which in fact is very different from one country to another: an example here is the entry of the "Mediterranean diet", which is supposed to include culinary phenomena as different from each other as Italian, Greek, Spanish cuisine, or Moroccan, not to mention the strong diversity of culinary phenomena within each of the countries sponsoring this entry;
• creating an artificial impression of cultural unity by inscribing a supposedly nationwide culinary phenomenon: an example here is the so-called "gastronomic meal of the French";
• heterogeneous nature and scope of the phenomena inscribed on the List: some of them are very limited in terms of territory, specific dishes or culinary habits, characteristic of a small region or even only one town, while others are widespread phenomena, often crossing the borders of only one country
• inclusion on the List of culinary phenomena which, although originally typical only of certain cultures or regions, gained wide popularity in the world during the 20th century; I mean, above all, the French baguette and the Neapolitan pizza; are these entries meant to suggest that only in Paris and Naples are these culinary phenomena authentic and valuable?; should we therefore treat such entries as a manifestation of the phenomenon referred to as "culinary nationalism" or "gastronationalism"?
• lack of inclusion on the List of dishes that are extremely characteristic of certain regions and cultures, with strong cultural and symbolic connotations; e.g. yerba mate culture in Latin America, or sushi culture in Japan, and now in large parts of the world;
• the lack of inclusion on the List of many very expressive and unique dishes, culinary habits or methods of obtaining food that are specific to geographically or culturally limited small social groups; here the list of deficiencies would be endless, I will only mention - by way of example - dried cod (stockfish) caught in the North Sea, or customs related to reindeer husbandry, around which the entire culture of Arctic Europe was focused. There are completely no entries related to, for example, such a specific field of food production as cheese-making, which is an important branch of traditional crafts in countries such as France, Italy, Switzerland or the Netherlands, but also Poland. One may ask why the List did not include such representative examples of culinary culture as, for example, Polish bigos, Scottish haggis or Hungarian goulash? Why didn't the list include, for example, the dishes characteristic of Moroccan cuisine: harira soup or tajine? If Mexican cuisine is on the List, why is not the extremely expressive Indian cuisine on it? If there is Belgian beer on the Representative List, why not, for example, such a special drink as Irish Guinness or Scotch whiskey, around which many elements of culture have undoubtedly formed? If the art of rum making in Cuba is on the List, does that mean that the art of rum making in Jamaica is "less representative" of the Intangible World Heritage? It is surprising that there are no entries related to traditional winemaking, apart from one entry of traditions related to the production of Georgian wine, which is in contrast to the numerous traditional wine landscapes inscribed on the UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage List.
So what is the Representative List in the light of the entries on culinary phenomena currently on it? Is it a "ranking list" including "gastronomic uniques", "the most valuable manifestations of intangible culture in the form of products and cultural phenomena related to food"?
Why did some products or culinary habits find their place on the List and others not? It is currently fashionable, and probably justified, to criticize UNESCO for politicizing its activities, but can we imagine any other sensible mechanism for the creation of the Representative List than handing over the initiative in this regard to the governments of individual countries - signatories of the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage? Currently, the Representative List, whose shape is decided in the last instance by state agencies, is one of the elements of the "authorized heritage discourse", in accordance with the terminology introduced by Laurajane Smith, and - as I indicated above - it can be used to create the "historical policy" of individual governments. By the arbitrary decision of governmental and international experts, as a result of inscribing the List, a traditional, sometimes already disappearing, cultural phenomenon suddenly becomes a protected "intangible heritage" that can be used for commercial and/or political purposes. It seems that the method of constructing this and other similar international and national lists of what is officially recognized as heritage should undergo far-reaching changes. It would be possible to break away from politics by abandoning the procedure of submitting candidates for the Representative List by official state bodies, and following the international declarations of striving to empower civil society, expressed in such documents as the World Declaration of Local Self-Government and the European Charter of Local Self-Government or the Framework Convention of the Council of Europe on the value of cultural heritage for society (the so-called Faro Convention) of 2005, and handing over the initiative in the field of registering elements of intangible heritage, including culinary heritage, to local communities.
The question remains, however, what purpose the Representative List, and specifically the entries concerning culinary heritage that we are interested in here, are supposed to serve. Two most important goals can be indicated here: one is crucial from the point of view of heritage bearers, the other – from the point of view of external stakeholders. UNESCO authorities emphasize that each of the phenomena inscribed on the Representative List is primarily important for maintaining and strengthening the cultural identity of the bearers of a given cultural phenomenon, and this is the main reason for its recording on this List. On the other hand, the authors, who observe diverse cultural customs from the outside, point to the role of regional culinary phenomena as factors stimulating the development of tourism, especially the so-called culinary tourism. The difficulty, however, is that these two objectives cannot always be achieved simultaneously. Forms of intangible cultural heritage, including in particular the phenomena of culinary heritage that are of interest to us here, which are attractive to visitors from outside the group of bearers of this heritage, often have to be heavily processed in such a way that they can be accepted by tourists. However, then they lose their value of authenticity, thanks to which they functioned as a factor integrating a cultural group. The effects of such a state of affairs may be various: a culinary phenomenon entered on the Representative List may become popular among tourists in a transformed form, spreading all over the world and ceasing to be a factor integrating the original group of bearers of traditional knowledge and customs, but it may also turn out to generate a new identity of a certain cultural group emerges precisely as a result of entering a given phenomenon on the List, resulting, for example, in unexpected – but very desirable – local economic development based on culinary tourism, exploiting regional dishes "resuscitated" by the entry on the List, or maybe even "invented".
The image of the Slavs in school textbooks used in the territory of Poland in the first half of the 20th century as an example of maintaining and creating ethnic awareness based on archaeological and historical arguments
Summary
Ethnic identity is shaped mainly by upbringing and education, and is based on a more or less mythologized belief about shared descent. Examination of the reasons for the emergence of negative ethnic stereotypes and beliefs about the fundamental “strangeness" of other socio-cultural groups, and thus the rejection of their cultural heritage, should therefore include analysis of curricula, especially of historical education. An instructive example of using archeological and historical arguments to maintain existing ethnic bonds and create new ethnicities can be the content of Polish school textbooks for teaching history in elementary (primary) schools from the first half of the 20th century. In the three periods crucial from the point of view of shaping the ethnic bonds: before the First World War, at the end of the partitions, in connection with efforts to maintain community awareness in a nation divided between the three partitioning powers; in the interwar period, after regaining independence, in connection with the need to consolidate the nation and consolidate community awareness, and after World War II in connection with border changes and population migrations to territories that were within the borders of the German state before the war (the so-called Recovered Territories), the textbooks clearly refer to the earliest history of the Slavs, emphasising their indigenousness in Poland. In all these periods we also deal with the idealisation of the image of the life and character of the Slavs and the "satanization" of their persecutors, especially the Germans.
Carriers of social memory can have tangible (monuments and works of art) and intangible (oral history, memoirs, cultural rituals and ceremonies) forms. These elements of cultural heritage are susceptible to manipulation and appropriation. A state’s cultural policy can create ideologically desirable places
and objects of memory, or obliterate the memory of such places and objects that are inconsistent with current political priorities. The political need for historical memory can be so strong that places of memory are not only reinterpreted, but are even being artificially fabricated by means of e.g. creation of material simulacra of historical buildings or through the re-enactment of historical events important from the point of view of the current interpretation of history. The cause of such activities can be an ideology – when a current government seeks its legitimacy through a new and the “only correct” interpretation of the history of its nation. Such a situation can create serious threats to historical heritage, because only those ideologically relevant parts of it are meant to receive proper protection and conservation from the state institutions. Implemented in this way, heritage becomes not a basis for tolerance for otherness, dialogue on the diversity of cultures and multifaceted interpretations of the history of humankind, but rather a foundation for “national identity” and one and only “objective knowledge” on the past.