Keywords

Pseudoarchaeology; Italy; Archaeology; Identity; Ethnicity

Abstract

This thesis examines the practice of the misrepresentation and manipulation of the archaeological record in Italy as it relates to identity formation through three main case studies. Moving chronologically, it begins by analyzing the Palermo National Exposition and the Mostra Etnografica Siciliana of Giuseppe Pitrè using Edward Said’s Orientalism to reveal the othering of Sicilians at this exposition. The second case study looks at the Mostra Augustea della Romanità of the Fascist era, building on the extensive scholarly discussion regarding Mussolini’s misrepresentation of ancient Roman archaeology to construct a fascist identity around the concept of romanità. Moving into the contemporary scene of Italian politics, the third case study analyzes the invention of Padanian ethnicity by Lega Nord in the 1990s and early 2000s by misrepresenting and obfuscating Celtic archaeology of Northern Italy. The analysis briefly discusses the newer phenomenon of “revenge archaeology,” coined by Alessandro Vanzetti, in the region of Calabria, and its relationship to the other case studies and the history of the NorthSouth divide. This thesis analyzes how the misrepresentation of the archaeological record and material culture have been used in Italy to reorganize and assert racial, ethnic, and national identities, as well as examining how these case studies interact with and build on one another.

Thesis Completion Year

2024

Thesis Completion Semester

Spring

Thesis Chair

Callaghan, Michael

College

College of Sciences

Department

Anthropology

Thesis Discipline

Anthropology

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Length of Campus Access

None

Campus Location

Orlando (Main) Campus

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Rights Statement

In Copyright