Photo elicitation as a tool for expanded participation in community archaeology

Abstract

Photography can be a useful and distinct method for community engagement and collaboration, especially when used as a tool to add depth to oral history or ethnographic interviews. In particular, 360-degree panoramic photos can mimic walking interviews, thereby allowing participants to virtually re-inhabit spaces within the study site, encouraging new dialogues about the materiality of historic places and personal experiences within them. This method of photo elicitation can enable more participation from those who may not be able to physically join archaeologists on a site that is difficult to access due to time, mobility limitations of participants, or the terrain of the landscape. I use examples from a community-based archaeology project focused on the site of a nineteenth century Bahamian plantation to demonstrate how photo elicitation can reveal unique insights into the ways that local people of all ages understand, interact with and value the historical site today.