Handbook of Material Culture

“The contributors pay serious attention to older and newer theoretical perspectives from a wide variety of sources, including literary currents of the 1990′s. Architects, economists, and historians are largely welcome as visitors to this handbook.” – J. L. Cooper

He has written a number of books on archaeological theory exploring the relations between hermeneutic, structuralist and post-structuralist perspectives and material culture. Professor Michael Rowlands teaches cultural heritage and museum anthropology at the Department of Anthropology, University College, London. His research interests include the theorisation and conceptualisation of cultural heritage, material culture studies and cultural property in relation to long term social and cultural change. He has conducted fieldwork research in West Africa (Nigeria, Cameroon, Liberia) to investigate negotiations of material culture, heritage and museums. He currently coordinates a cultural heritage research project between China and Europe funded by the EU and works in partnership with the National Taiwan University on the revitalisation of indigenous cultural knowledge. His research also focuses on post-conflict recovery through the Global Post-Conflict Recovery Network. In 1973 he was awarded a PhD in Anthropology by University College London.