In Context

Last week I was in San Diego to see the Dead Sea Scroll exhibit. It was a wonderful treat for this former archaeologist. I’ve seen, touched and excavated older things, but these scrolls are iconic. They are the earliest surviving written scriptures from the Bible. There were about 15 scroll fragments on display. The age of the fragments ranged from about 2nd century B.C. to the 1st century A.D. Most were written on parchment, which is really just stretched and scrapped animal skin. But, the exhibit was much more than just a display of these ancient fragments. There were beautifully done galleries, with large vivid photographs showing the flora, fauna and geography of the desert region near the Dead Sea. A separate section detailed the discovery, preservation, and interpretation of the scrolls. For instance, in the 1950’s, fragments of the scroll were often put together with scotch tape, which ended up causing a great amount of damage. Nowadays- DNA testing of the parchment (skin) is being used to match up the most difficult pieces. The entire exhibit was well designed, enabling the visitor to see these ancient documents, but also illustrating the setting in which they were found, the community to which they belonged, the challenges of their preservation and a sense of their importance.

After seeing the scroll exhibit we decided to explore Old Town San Diego, a state historic park. Old Town is the original location of the San Diego settlement and is just down the hill from the site of California’s first mission and presidio. In the pouring down rain we ran from building to building in old town. Most of the structures were well done reconstructions and designed to recreate the look of this little settlement back in those early days of California. The problem was that the interpretative materials told only small parts of the story of old San Diego. I kept hoping that there would be something that would tie all these bits of information together and explain the history of this important early site. Why was the settlement located inland from San Diego Bay? Why was the town later moved to the site of the current downtown on the bay? Where was the location of the original presidio and mission and when were they built? One nicely labeled map could have explained the basics, but instead we were presented with a hodgepodge of facts and stories. 

There was a barn there with a fabulous collection of old wagons and stagecoaches and some interpretive displays that detailed the role of this type of transportation in the far Western states. But, on the upper floor of the barn, display cases housed a random collection of items, the variety of which was reminiscent of an episode of the “Antiques Road Show.” It reminded me of those small town history museums run by local historical societies, with members contributing miscellaneous objects from their basements. But, this wasn’t a local museum; it was a California State Historic Park! Most of the items on display in this barn museum had no relationship to the settlement of San Diego. I stopped when I got to the cases of Hopi Kachina dolls from Arizona. What about the local Native Americans? Perhaps the Barona Band of Mission Indians should buy up Old Town and turn it into a more polished and complete history exhibit. Interesting that the Barona Band, along with Hilton and B of A, was a major corporate sponsor of the Dead Sea Scroll exhibit. Indian casinos do well out here in California, allowing tribes to bring their members out of poverty and also to give back to the community at large. 

Luckily for us it was a low visitor day, because of the rain, so the guide at the museum was able to answer all our questions about the history of the settlement of San Diego. His overview provided a framework, or context, for the bits of information scattered throughout the park’s displays.

My point in relating these recent travels and observations to you is to remind you and myself that objects, and people, need context to be understood. Many wonder why archaeologists discourage the pocketing of found artifacts. Why not just pick up that beautiful arrowhead? It’s because we value context. Artifacts, removed from their setting, simply reveal less. This concept applies to people also. As a teenager, when I was quick to criticize a stranger, like a gruff shopkeeper, my dad would say, “You never know what that person’s been through today.” It was his way of reminding me that in the context of that person’s day, their actions were perhaps understandable. He was reminding me that, although I didn’t always know the context of a person’s life, it was an important concept to remember and respect.

My current focus in genealogy is not just the collection and discovery of the names of my ancestors. I want to know the details of their lives. How big was their family? Did they have cousins that lived nearby? Were they saddened by tragic life experiences? What was going on locally where they happened to live and work? Context makes the story more complete, and instead of just a beautiful poster of a family tree with names and dates, it allows us to see and perhaps understand the kinds of lives our ancestors lived. I call it the “Ken Burns Effect” as it is similar to that director’s approach of documenting historical events by relating those events in the context of the lives of ordinary people. What I often do is somewhat the reverse of that, as I try to document the lives of our ordinary ancestors by explaining the historic, social, and familial context of their lives.


=Mary