Materializing the Middle Passage: A Historical Archaeology of British Slave Shipping, 1680-1807 – eBook

Between 1680 and 1807, an estimated 2.7 million Africans were forcibly transported across the Atlantic on British slave ships, a journey known as the ‘Middle Passage’. This book delves into the significance of the slave ship and argues that, despite the scarcity of wrecked slaving vessels at sea, there are alternative ways for archaeologists to study and understand them. Employing an interdisciplinary methodology that combines various sources, including primary documentary materials, maritime and terrestrial archaeology, paintings, museum collections, and more, it aims to reconstruct British slaving vessels and track their evolution over time in Materializing the Middle Passage: A Historical Archaeology of British Slave Shipping,1680-1807.

The book then goes on to consider the reception of the slave ship and its trade goods in coastal West Africa, and details the range, and uses, of the many African resources (including ivory, gold, and live animals) entering Britain on returning slave ships. The third section of the book focuses on the Middle Passage experiences of both captives and crews and argues that greater attention needs to be paid to the coping mechanisms through which Africans survived, yet also challenged, their captive passage.

Jane Webster explores the enigmatic nature of the African Middle Passage experience, despite extensive scholarly efforts to unveil it. She delves into the memories of the ‘saltwater’ captives in the Caribbean and North America, examining how and why the crossing was recalled. This richly illustrated book adeptly melds words and visuals, guided by a theoretical approach that merges creolization and postcolonial theory, and emphasizes the materiality of the slave ship and its systems.

978-0199214594, 978-0198883562, 978-0198883555

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NOTE: This sale only consists of the eBook Materializing the Middle Passage: A Historical Archaeology of British Slave Shipping, 1680-1807 in ePub format. A converted PDF is available on request for free. No access codes are included.