Paper short abstract:

This paper outlines the potential of new web-based technologies for the problem-oriented excavation and theoretically informed analysis of cemeteries through a detailed case-study of the medieval cemetery excavations at Villamagna, Italy.

Paper long abstract:

There is much new and exciting theoretical research in funerary

archaeology, revealing the potential of archaeological evidence for

understanding the responses, attitudes and practices surrounding

burial, and the ways in which mortuary practices can serve in the

make-up and expression of social identities. Yet in practice, there is

all too often a disjuncture between archaeological and anthropological

data, theories about burial, and interpretation in the field and post-excavation analysis.

New web-based technologies offer a means to integrate a variety of

data types and disseminate this information to facilitate a

finer-grained analysis on burial and funerary practices. We examine

the implications of these new techniques through a detailed case-study

of the excavations of the medieval cemetery at Villamagna, Italy

(2006-2010). At Villamagna, we used an integrated and reflexive

approach to manage and record anthropological, osteological,

archaeological, and topographical data. The collation of plans,

images, finds, and specialist data for consumption by the entirety of

the project team has enabled us to create a more holistic

understanding of individuals from the funerary record by combining

evidence of identity as signalled after death in mortuary practices

with evidence for identity during life from osteological analysis. The

Villamagna case study illustrates the potential that new technologies,

specifically web applications, have for the integration of data from

excavations and the production of theoretically nuanced analyses.