An Archaeology of Mediterranean Diplomacy: the Evidence of Paradiplomacy

Abstract

Thinking about the diplomatic and external activities of sub-state entities often causes some sort of semantic confusion. This article proposes an archaeological critique of paradiplomacy in order to uncover both the phenomenon of the diplomatic practices of sub-national entities and the way these practices are theorized and conceptualized. The site of our archaeological project are the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. From the first written evidence of the practice of diplomacy up to the present, people in the Mediterranean have always sought to describe, contest, or transcend the limits of diplomacy. Different archaeological layers will guide us, showing the different faces paradiplomacy can take: false or contesting diplomacies, universal and even transcendent diplomacy, hybrid embassies as well as diaspora, pirate and city diplomacies. We also ask ourselves if an archaeology of paradiplomacy is merely a history of the past or on the contrary a history of the present, which in itself points out possibilities for the future. One such possible future may lie in a diplomacy stressing the commonalities between different social groupings instead of demarcating and excluding practices.