The perception of archaeologists and Native Americans as adversaries in the writing of Indian history understandably captures much media attention. Our efforts over the past decade tell us that a cooperative relationship between Native American tribes and archaeologists is not only possible, but is beneficial in ways we ourselves did not initially imagine. This panel discussion will address collaborative efforts to document the history and culture of the Monacan Indian Nation and to forge new understandings between the scientific and American Indian communities in Virginia.

Thursday, October 23, 2003
Dome Room, The Rotunda
Charlottesville, VA

Reserve tickets online

About the Speaker

Jeff Hantman
Associate Professor of Archeology

Professor Hantman's research centers around a long-term interest in culture change and the writing of anthroplogical history. Hantman focuses on issues involving colonialism in North America, early relations between European colonist and Indians, relations between Native peoples in the centuries just prior to and during European colonization, and long-term effects of colonialism on Native peoples today. 

Hantman's research over the last decade has continued the emphasis on regional systems and political organizations but situates those patterns in the unique and specific cultures and events of the late prehistoric and early historic era in North America. Presently he is concerned with writing a long-term history of the Monacan people of Virginia, and identifying the varied responses of the Virginia Monacans and the neighboring Powhatans to European colonization.  He works closely with the Monacan Indian Tribal Association and the Monacan Cultural Museum on issues of writing collaborative histories and the repatriation of human remains and museum collections. His theoretical interests and those of the graduate students at Virginia have led him to become involved in several other projects relating to cultural identity and history in nineteenth-century Virginia.