A Conversation with Peter Ridgway Schmidt, the Ṣango of African Archaeology

Abstract

Peter R. Schmidt has had a multidimensional career whose five decades of engagement with the archaeology of Africa has left enduring legacies. In this conversation, the reader is invited into the world of Peter Schmidt, from his humble family background to his formative years as a young adult finding his way to Africa and archaeology. His path to the field of African archaeology was unconventional, but it led to his groundbreaking research into iron technology that set a new standard for the ethnoarchaeology of social and technological life. Likewise, his unalloyed commitment to marrying oral traditions with archaeology has expanded intellectual horizons in African archaeology. He has also been a staunch advocate for postcolonial perspectives, decolonization of archaeological practice, and community engagements that privilege local knowledge and African ontologies. His capacity-building efforts in the USA and Africa, especially at Brown University, University of Florida, University of Dar es Salaam, the University of Asmara, and Makerere University, speak to his vision to improve the human condition. This conversation explores what can be learned from Schmidt’s experience and labor as an Africa-centered scholar, archaeologist, and institution builder.