Periodic Reporting for period 2 - ISLand (Isolation and Segregation Landscape. Archaeology of quarantine in the Indian Ocean World)
Berichtszeitraum: 2023-01-01 bis 2023-12-31
The research presented an experimental and novel investigation within historical archaeology, applied to isolated contexts. The project focused on the establishment of a quarantine system in the Indian Ocean, promoted by colonial empires to contrast the emerging infectious diseases. The main objective of ISLand was to provide a new way of thinking about human interactions within colonial empires and bring colonial studies into dialogue with medical history and the emerging concept of healthscaping. It seeked to do so by studying quarantine facilities in the Indian Ocean during the long nineteenth century, a crucial period for the history of European empires in that region and a flashpoint for the conceptualization of modern public health. Quarantine, traditionally viewed as merely a mechanism for the control of disease, has been analysed as the outward material response to important changes taking place socially, ecologically, and politically at the time, particularly in relation to the diaspora of thousands of indentured workers. The researcher conducted archival investigations and fieldwork in collaboration with an international team in the Flat Island quarantine station, the best-preserved lazaret established in Mauritius after the cholera epidemic of 1856, analysing a historical social setting and natural environment that were radically altered due to the implementation of health management. Over there, dozens of thousands of indentured laborers landed before reaching the mainland. Infrastructure, buildings, and facilities are well-preserved on an abandoned and overgrown islet, remaining virtually untouched since the dissolution of indenture in the 1920s. After detailed recording of archaeological features and surface surveys, previously unidentified hospital district has been located and will be the focus of our fieldwork together with the quarantine cemetery. The reconstruction of the spatial organization and the built landscape of this institution assessed the gap between the benefits claimed by European colonizers and the actual effects on immigrant health conditions through the promotion of public health practices.
Traditional methods were integrated with cutting-edge remote sensing methodologies in landscape archaeology to assess the spatial organization of the quarantine station. The MSCA project was part of a wider investigation on various sites in Mauritius, investigated through the Mauritian Archaeology and Cultural Heritage project, Stanford University, in collaboration with the Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund. The landscape shaped by disease and death at Flat Island has been effectively compared with a few excavated cemeteries in Mauritius. Furthermore, a comparative approach between the sister Mascarene islands has led to a preliminary analysis of the gender dimension that can be explored within the colonial lazarettos.
The involvement of local stakeholders, research institutes, scholars, and students in the project has raised the interest of the local community in archaeological heritage and scientific research on Mauritian history. Although the results do not generate immediate incomes, they can be used to promote Mauritian cultural heritage, develop cultural tourism, and help shape future legislation for the preservation of archaeological heritage.
Traditional methods were integrated with cutting-edge remote sensing methodologies in landscape archaeology to assess the spatial organization of the quarantine station. The MSCA project was part of a wider investigation on various sites in Mauritius, investigated through the Mauritian Archaeology and Cultural Heritage project, Stanford University, in collaboration with the Aapravasi Ghat Trust Fund. The landscape shaped by disease and death at Flat Island has been effectively compared with a few excavated cemeteries in Mauritius. Furthermore, a comparative approach between the sister Mascarene islands has led to a preliminary analysis of the gender dimension that can be explored within the colonial lazarettos.
The involvement of local stakeholders, research institutes, scholars, and students in the project has raised the interest of the local community in archaeological heritage and scientific research on Mauritian history. Although the results do not generate immediate incomes, they can be used to promote Mauritian cultural heritage, develop cultural tourism, and help shape future legislation for the preservation of archaeological heritage.
Following the Career Development Plan prepared at the beginning of the project, activities were modulated in synergy with the two main research groups at the University of Amsterdam and Stanford University, the institutions directly involved as the beneficiary and host institutions. The first two years were devoted to training activities and fieldwork. The training included research skills and techniques, academic teaching, research management skills, and speaking and writing skills. Formal training activities were enriched by fruitful participation in seminars, lectures, webinars, and workshops organized by both institutions and other research institutions and scientific societies.
The intermediary and final reports of each archaeological campaign were prepared and shared with local authorities in Mauritius. The reports were the basis for the preparation of scientific articles published so far. Participation in conferences, workshops, and other public activities allowed me to correct and improve the data analysis, besides disseminating the results of my research to the general public and academic audience. The final year focused on the dissemination of the project. It has been conducted in scientific peer-reviewed journals, conferences, workshops, newsletters, films, local newspapers, and social media. The action was completed at the end of 2023 with the final workshop organized at the host institution in Amsterdam. The data collected will be used and interpreted for further publications and the results are the basis for continuing the research in the future.
The intermediary and final reports of each archaeological campaign were prepared and shared with local authorities in Mauritius. The reports were the basis for the preparation of scientific articles published so far. Participation in conferences, workshops, and other public activities allowed me to correct and improve the data analysis, besides disseminating the results of my research to the general public and academic audience. The final year focused on the dissemination of the project. It has been conducted in scientific peer-reviewed journals, conferences, workshops, newsletters, films, local newspapers, and social media. The action was completed at the end of 2023 with the final workshop organized at the host institution in Amsterdam. The data collected will be used and interpreted for further publications and the results are the basis for continuing the research in the future.
The Indian Ocean offers the ideal location for comparative studies of colonial systems, where burgeoning archaeology has revealed a number of key sites alongside large repositories of historical sources. Quarantine stations established by the British Empire serve as the object of analysis in the ISLand project. In the ISLand project, for the first time, historical archaeology was used as the primary lens to analyze health management in the region, tracing the development of new forms of regional healthscaping. Building on similar research in the Mediterranean area, the Atlantic colonies, and Pacific Australia, the project is part of a long and deep-rooted tradition of historical studies devoted to medical and confinement institutions. The historical approach has been intertwined from the beginning with the material outcome of medical and social practices related to the introduction and implementation of quarantine stations. These sites are seen not only as crystallized institutions to improve public health, but also as a dynamic material response to specific ecological, social, and political processes.
The achieved results included three areas:
-Scientific knowledge: publication of data collection and analysis in international journals increases knowledge of the historical archaeology and medical history of the IOW.
-Cultural heritage: the project fostered knowledge of Mauritian cultural heritage. Several tools have been produced aiming at the preservation, restoration, and promotion of Flat Island, an exceptional archaeological site.
-Public historical archaeology: the creation of a freely accessible StoryMap is a tool for disseminating scientific knowledge to public.
In our era of globalization, the project had relevance for rethinking current European approaches to the migration crisis. Moreover, considering the recent public health crisis, the project highlights the role of anthropological and historical perspectives in informing approaches to effective quarantine policies and infrastructure, reinforcing social equity. Quarantine stations represent key sites for studying 'Europe's cultural and social diversity and of its past', one of the Societal Challenges stated in the Horizon 2020 work program. The historical archaeology of quarantine sites expands the concept of diversity through a historically informed concept of health and reflects on how that diversity should be managed in order to 'inform the reflection about present problems and help to find solutions for shaping Europe's future'.
The achieved results included three areas:
-Scientific knowledge: publication of data collection and analysis in international journals increases knowledge of the historical archaeology and medical history of the IOW.
-Cultural heritage: the project fostered knowledge of Mauritian cultural heritage. Several tools have been produced aiming at the preservation, restoration, and promotion of Flat Island, an exceptional archaeological site.
-Public historical archaeology: the creation of a freely accessible StoryMap is a tool for disseminating scientific knowledge to public.
In our era of globalization, the project had relevance for rethinking current European approaches to the migration crisis. Moreover, considering the recent public health crisis, the project highlights the role of anthropological and historical perspectives in informing approaches to effective quarantine policies and infrastructure, reinforcing social equity. Quarantine stations represent key sites for studying 'Europe's cultural and social diversity and of its past', one of the Societal Challenges stated in the Horizon 2020 work program. The historical archaeology of quarantine sites expands the concept of diversity through a historically informed concept of health and reflects on how that diversity should be managed in order to 'inform the reflection about present problems and help to find solutions for shaping Europe's future'.