Creativity and Craft Production

in Middle and Late Bronze Age

Europe

(CinBA)

www.cinba.net

Project Partners Academic Partners

• Dr Joanna Sofaer, University of Southampton, UK (PL/PI 01)

• Dr Marie Louise Sørensen, University of Cambridge, UK (PI 02)

• Prof. Lise Bender Jørgensen, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Trondheim, Norway (PI 03)

• Dr Ivan Mirnik, Zagreb Archaeological Museum, Croatia (PI 04)

• Dr Flemming Kaul, National Museum of Denmark, Copenhagen (PI 05)

• Dr Anton Kern, Natural History Museum Vienna, Austria (PI 06)

Non-Academic Partners

• Rachel Brockhurst, Crafts Council, UK

• Dr Lars Holten, Land of Legends (Sagnlandet) Archaeological Park Lejre, Denmark

ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM IN ZAGREB

Pottery, Textiles, Metal and Contemporary

Attitudes

1) Urnfield bowl. Zagreb Archaeological Museum

2) Textiles from Hallstatt. Natural History Museum Vienna

3) Bronze razors. National Museum of Denmark.

4) Neckpiece. Miriam Jones 2011

1)

2)

3) 4)

Pottery

1) Anthropomorphic urn. National Museum of Denmark

2) Vatin vessel. Archaeological Museum in Zagreb

3) Encrusted vessel. Osijek Museum

1) 2) 3)

Textiles

1) Egtved burial

2) Skrydstrup embroidery

3) Trindhøj hat

National Museum of Denmark.

1)

2)

3)

Metal (Bronze)

1) Fibula. Archaeological Museum in Zagreb

2) Arm ring. Natural History Museum, Vienna

3) Razor (detail). National Museum of Denmark

1) 2) 3)

1) The Qualities of Materials

• What are the characteristics and

potentials of each material?

• How did the innate qualities of

each material inspire, guide and

restrict the production of

objects?

• What specific decisions were

required to work with them?

Motif on razor from Neder Hvolris, Denmark. National

Museum of Denmark. Kaul 1998, cat. No.243

2) Motifs and Skills

• What motifs are employed?

• How is skill developed and

expressed in the creation of

motifs?

• How do motifs and skills cross

between the materials, both in

terms of technical relationships

and influences through the

transfer of knowledge and

ideas?

Bird motifs 1) Central European Fibula. Metropolitan Museum of Art 2) Chariot pole

terminal from Zsujta. British Museum 3) Wagon fittings. Landesmuseum Stuttgart 4) Bird

vessels. Aquincum Museum 5) Bird vessel. Hungarian National Museum

1)

2)

3)

4)

5)

3) Spatial and Temporal Trends

• How did the practice of each

craft develop locally?

• How did changes in one region

inspire imitations and

developments elsewhere?

?

?

?

4) The Perception of Prehistoric Craft Today

• How do different contemporary groups respond to the creativity embedded in prehistoric objects?

• How do modern craftspeople engage with such objects, interpret the decision-making processes required to make them, and use them as the basis for their own creativity?

• For the public, does participating in the reproduction of prehistoric objects inspire people to think about how things are made and challenge their understanding of creativity?

• How does the classification of an object as a souvenir affect its understanding?

Caroline Allen Hand thrown deconstructed vessels. 2011.

Project Organisation

METAL (bronze)

Dr M.L.S. Sørensen. University of Cambridge

Grahame Appleby. University of Cambridge

S. Becker. University of Cambridge

Dr F. Kaul National Museum of Denmark

CONTEMPORARY ATTITUDES

Dr J. Sofaer. University of Southampton

Dr M.L.S. Sørensen. University of

Cambridge

Prof. L. Bender Jørgensen. NTNU

Rachel Brockhurst. Crafts Council

Dr L. Holten. ‘Sagnlandet’ Archaeological

Park

ADMINISTRATION

Dr J. Sofaer. University of Southampton

Dr C. Baker (Administrator)

H. Pagi (Computer technician)

+ CinBA Steering Committee

POTTERY

Dr J. Sofaer. University of Southampton

Dr Darko Maričević. University of Southampton

S. Coxon. University of Southampton

Dr I. Mirnik. Zagreb Archaeological Museum

S. Mihelić. Zagreb Archaeological Museum

TEXTILES

Prof. L. Bender Jørgensen. NTNU

Dr Sophie Bergerbrant

Dr A. Kern. Natural History Museum, Vienna

Dr K. Grömer. Natural History Museum, Vienna

H. Rösel-Mautendorfer. Natural History Museum, Vienna

Creating the Consortium

• What does the research need (materials,

expertise)?

• Create a balanced consortium (research,

previous international experience, age,

gender)

• Understand the risks (known vs unknown)

• Like your partners!

Collaboration During Proposal

Preparation

•Talk to the partners!

Generating International Added

Value For CinBA this arises through:

•Unique combination of pooled European

expertise in fields (archaeology, heritage,

craft) that are frequently highly national

•Comparative perspective

•Thematic approach

•Geographical scope: local, regional and

transnational scales

Management and Co-ordination

My style:

•Flexibility, clarity, communication.

By means of:

•Regular project meetings

•Research team meetings

•Workshops

•Internal reporting system

•Website

Project Research Meetings

Knowledge Transfer

•Embedded within CinBA research

Example: Research focus on the role that the

prehistoric past can play in offering inspiration to

contemporary craftspeople.

CinBA Live Project Exhibition

Know your Stakeholders

Stakeholders • Academics and students

• Cultural heritage institutions

• Tourism and craft centres

• Contemporary craftspeople

• Wider public

KT Activities • Books (single and co-authored)

• Refereed journal articles (single and co-authored)

• Interactive website

• Open Access online image database

• Open Access online maps

• On-line exhibition

• You-tube video

• Animation and activity booklets for children

• Museum activities: Bronze age fashion show

• Policy document on the potential of creative expression for heritage institutions

• Project launch (1st June 2010)

• Workshops and conference sessions

• Closing conference

Unexpected stuff

• Finance is complicated at the beginning.

Use your contact points and understand

your partners’ national rules

• Reporting is substantial

But on the plus side

• Research has done so much more and has

had unexpected reverberations in ways that

we could not have predicted