Archaeological Sites and Local Places: Connecting the Dots

Greece is a country awash in antiquities. Yet, archaeological sites leave many of those who live near them indifferent, confused, antagonistic, or resentful. In this essay, we trace the origins of such disconnection (landscape dissonance as we call it) to the ways European travellers from the 17th century onward experienced, described, and depicted ancient sites as separate from the local living landscape. The ways sites have been developed and archaeological fieldwork practised in Greece has perpetuated this disconnection. We argue that to reconnect the dots archaeologists should not only engage local communities in a collaborative process of site investigation and development, but also show genuine interest in local lives and concerns, beyond any connection to the past and to archaeology.