has often been deployed in the service of nationalism" as a means to "underscore the Jewish and biblical past of the land" in order to "differentiate Zionism from more traditional colonial ventures," part of the Israeli people's desire to "return to the original Jewish homeland" as laid out in 1948 by the United Nations and its decision to wholly support the creation of a Jewish state in the Middle East (2008, Internet). In addition, the Israeli government and those hired to excavate archeological sites in Jerusalem and elsewhere "have violated several ethical rules as stipulated by the World Archeological Congress," such a failing to recognize the "indigenous cultural heritage" of the Arab people and failing to establish "equitable partnerships and relationships" between archeologists and those individuals affected or displaced by archeological excavations, all in the name of nationalism and a fervent desire to sustain the "City of David," a national park located in Silwan (Bronner & Gordon, 2008, Internet)
Therefore, in order to demonstrate the influence of nationalism upon important archeological excavations in the British Isles and elsewhere, we will examine three particular case studies -- first, the controversies surrounding Sutton Hoo in England, an Anglo-Saxon burial site "of the kings of the dynasty which ruled East Anglia in the 6th and 7th centuries a.D." (Bruce-Mitford, 2004, p
24), an example being important excavations in Dublin of the rich Viking urban levels, much of which has been bulldozed and carted away as refuse. The director of the excavations openly appealed for more funding from his employer, the National Museum; unfortunately, the reply from the museum was quite discouraging -- "Ah! Now only if it were Early Christian" (Jameson, 1997, p
Obviously, this last argument is based solely upon the ideals of nationalism, due to regarding Sutton Hoo as being too "exotic" and not as "worthwhile" a project as other sites within Great Britain which usually date after the Viking invasions and have more connections with true British heritage. After all, "It is to the advantage of archeology as a whole that public interest in the past is stimulated, and how better than by excavating a site such as Sutton Hoo which is well-known to the general public?" (McGimsey, 2002, p
Certainly, Newman and his fellow opponents, most of whom are professional archeologists and historians, see the ancient site of Tara as a national treasure which deserves to be protected at all costs; in fact, some view the Tara site as an Irish "royal landscape" of great historical importance and as an example "of how generations of people have contributed to the promotion, development and preservation" of Irish heritage over the last four thousand years (2005, Internet). As to the viewpoint of the Irish government, the construction of M3 almost directly on top of the Tara archeological site was necessary as a way of lowering "Dublin-bound commuter" congestion on the "log-jammed M50" and as a way of promoting future business in nearby towns and cities like Meath whose councillors, along with others, argued that M3 "was vital to the future of northwest" Ireland (Newman, 2005, Internet)
Public Archeology Nationalism And Public Archeology Although there are numerous positive and negative motivations that inspire archeologists to search for ancient ruins and civilizations in various countries, the spread of modernization as a result of the ever-changing cultural face of the world related to technology and population growth has now created what is known as public archeology, being excavations "which have been principally financed from public funds" and which have therefore "been thought as valid and useful to society" (Morrison, 1991, p
M. Pretty who "entrusted the archeological work to the Ipswich Museum and to famed archeologist Basil Brown" (Rahtz, 1998, p