From Methodology to Archeoacoustics in the Time of Scripture: Complex Dialogue Between Archaeological Evidence, Texts from Scholars and Written Mentions

摘要

Nearly 15 years of research on the acoustics of pots from 11th to 18th centuries have led us to crossing data from various disciplines and developing a specific methodology. The presentation analyzes the pitfalls of interpreting this technique through the eyes of the scholars that have addressed the issue since antiquity and of written mentions rather than using the archeaoacoustical data found in France and Europe. An archeoacoustic research will only be meaningful if it can prove a deliberate intention to produce an object with an acoustic function. However, such a proof necessitates observing regularities, by studying several buildings or objects that attest that an effective choice has been made. A common error is to restrict the hypotheses to those which are scientifically admissible today. The case of pots acoustics is particularly edifying in this respect. Nevertheless, precise analysis of historical texts makes it possible to widen the field of hypotheses. Semantic study of the evolution of the meaning of key words and their associated concepts makes it possible to study the evolution of the acoustical techniques and to observe their progress through the centuries.