Queer shamans: autoarchaeology and neo-shamanism
Neo-shamanism is a largely unexplored spiritual practice among Western peoples that, by virtue of its queerness, has pressing implications for archaeologists. In their practices, Druidic neo-shamans increasingly make pilgrimages to ancient sites and express strong views on the socio-politics of their presentation and management. Rather than avoid the 'fringe' and dismiss these engagements with archaeology outright, as a normative archaeology tends to, I explore Druidic neo-shamanism from a queer perspective; a predominantly self-conscious, self-reflective standpoint. This autoarchaeology, outside normative archaeological inquiry, recognizes aspects of the 'fringe' that archaeologists prefer to ignore, such as a British reburial issue. My findings are not wholly polemical since current relations between site managers and neo-shamans look towards future harmonizing engagements.
Keywords: AUTOARCHAEOLOGY; AVEBURY; DRUIDS; HERITAGE MANAGEMENT; NEO-SHAMANISM
Document Type: Regular Paper
Publication date: 01 October 2000
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