Preserving the Past, Building the Future? Concepts of Time and Prehistoric Monumental Architecture

Temporality and the different concepts of time are closely connected to the investigation of monumentality. In the archaeological literature a dichotomy between a cyclic and linear notion of time seems to be prevalent. Also the general notion that these concepts are present seems to be valid; they represent two aspects of a dialectic relationship rather than a total phenomenon that guides the actions of past and present societies. This mainly theoretical article tries to explore the different levels of temporality, on the one hand as part of a cognitive framework in which ancient societies acted and the link between action and time, but on the other hand also the tension that exists between the perspective ancient societies could have held and the perspective of the present investigators of past processes. It tries to illustrate the fact that in order to interpret the meaning of things and events, archaeologists have to consider that actions are mainly guided and directed by the present necessities, and that an interpretation can only be made from the present perspective of the past individual. A consequence of this is that the importance of material remains of rituals, for example, may be overvalued by scientists today.