A comparative analysis of Community Archaeology based on two excavations in the south-east of the Iberian Peninsula: local community involvement and social context

Abstract

This article presents the different socialisation methods of the excavation of two archaeological sites: the “Pago de Jarafí” (Lanteira, Granada), and “Mojácar la Vieja” (Mojácar, Almería). The projects involved the excavation of medieval Islamic settlements between 2014 and 2018 in two different social, economic and cultural contexts. The first, Lanteira, is a rural area of the Province of Granada that suffers from depopulation and ageing and a primary sector in economic crisis. The second, Mojácar, along the coast, has experienced a boom of tourism and the arrival of many foreign residents since the 1960s. This study analyses the methods and techniques to communicate and involve the local population during the entire archaeological excavation process and how these methods were adapted to each social reality. The research goes further to explore the link of the two local communities with their sites since the outset of the archaeological research and how they changed during the course of the excavation following application of a Community Archaeology.