Book Reviews

Abstract

Hare, J. Laurence. Excavating Nations: Archaeology, Museums, and the German-Danish Borderlands. toronto: U of toronto P, 2015. 259 pp. $70.00 (hardcover).This innovative study tells the story of archaeological research in the German-Danish borderlands during the past two centuries. it shows the importance of the region for both the institutionalization of archaeology and the construction of national identities. archaeological research underwent a profound professionalization, but it did not solely pursue abstract science. the past gained emotional value for both individuals and communities. Professional archaeologists tried to establish their privileged claim to interpretive authority, but they remained strongly tied to public support and engagement.Laurence Hare presents this history of archaeology against the backdrop of the schleswigHolstein question, which was infamous for its constitutional complexity and repeatedly resulted in political and military conflict. With a background in both history and archeology, the author is well placed to pursue this investigation. He traces the development of archaeology institutions in schleswig-Holstein and portrays the personalities who drove this process. at the center of his investigation stand the schleswig-Holstein Museum in kiel and its long-term director, Johanna Mestorf, who turned the institution into a hub for both the research about and the public representation of northern europe's prehistory. Hare also highlights the idiosyncrasies of Mestorf's career path as a nineteenth-century woman, which are highly informative in their own right.The rediscovery of Haithabu was a crucial catalyst of scientific progress. this important Viking trading center at the head of the inlet schlei had been immortalized in early medieval chronicles and the reports of arab travelers. its excavation around the turn of the twentieth century excited scholars and the public and provided ample opportunity for analysis and interpretation. these interpretations were often informed by national and ideological agendas. in time, they also seeped into popular consciousness.The rise of National socialism and the German occupation of Denmark during World War ii further strained cross-border relations in the academic community. archaeologists whose research intertwined found themselves on different sides of an international conflict that involved more than divergent scholarly interpretations. the reorientation of German politics after the war was no less consequential, however, as it gradually removed the focus on a distinctly national past. …