“Photographs as artefacts: a visual archaeology of the Selk’nam, Yamana and Alacaluf societies of Tierra del Fuego, Southern South America.”

FIORE, D; VARELA, ML

Dublin

Congreso; VI World Archaeological Congress; 2008

WAC

This paper explores the theoretical conception and methodological use of photographs as artefacts constructed by multiple social agents –photographers, photographed subjects, editors, curators– each one having some influence over the photographic image along its production-use-storage-discard sequence. It is argued that these artefacts have archaeological relevance since they reveal patterns of material culture manipulation by Native Southamerican societies during the contact with Europeans. We present a methodology of systematic data-collection and analysis that reveals the formation processes of the photographic record, including the photographers’ aims and biases and the attitudes of the photographed subjects. A case-study of 676 photographs of three native societies from Tierra del Fuego, Southern South America (Selk’nam, Yamana and Alacaluf) is presented. Results show the existence of specific patterns of material culture manipulation in each society in spite of the existing biases introduced by each photographer in the creation of photo images of the Fuegians.