Architecture and Order Approaches to Social Space

Architecture is a powerful medium for representing, ordering and classifying the world; understanding the use of space is fundamental to archaeological inquiry. "Architecture and Order" draws on the work of archaeologists, social theorists and architects to explore the way in which people relate to the architecture which surrounds them.
The contributors discuss the development of an archaeological language used to describe architecture's symbolic use of space and to further define the discipline's interaction with not only architecture but also anthropology. Topics discussed include Neolithic houses and tombs; perceptions of architecture, space and time; defining domestic space in the bronze age; women in Greek households; the Roman domestic setting; Swahili architecture; and spatial order and psychiatric disorder.

Architecture is a powerful medium for representing, ordering and classifying the world, and understanding the use of space is fundamental to archaeological inquiry. Architecture and Order draws on the work of archaeologists, social theorists and architects to explore the way in which people relate to the architecture which surrounds them. In many societies, houses and tombs have encoded cultural meanings and values which are invoked and recalled through the practices of daily life.Chapters include explorations of the early farming r archi*eye of Europe, from before the use of metals, to the Classical and Medieval worlds of the Mediterranean and Europe. Research of the recent past and present include an overview of hunter-gatherers' camp organization, a reassessment of the use of space amongst the Dogon of West Africa and an examination of mental disorders relating to the use of space in Britain. The volume goes beyond the implication that culture determines form to develop an approach that integrates meaning and practice.

John Barrett, University of Glasgow, Ann Bartlett, St. Georges Hospital, London, Christopher Evans, University of Cambridge, Ian Hodder, University of Cambridge, Mark Horton, University of Bristol, Matthew Johnson, University of Durham, Ian Kinnes, British Museum, Clive Knights, University of Sheffield, Paul Lane, University of Gaberone, Botswana, Lisa Nevett, Clare College, Cambridge, Todd Whitelaw, University of Cambridge

Michael Parker Pearson is Lecturer in Archaeology and Prehistory at the University of Sheffield and was formerly an Inspector of Ancient Monuments for English Heritage. Colin Richards is Lecturer in Archaeology at the University of Glasgow.