Dialogues in Cuban Archaeology

11 / Afterword
Samuel M. Wilson
I am honored to be asked to add a note at the end of this valuable and timely
volume and full of admiration for the editors and contributors for going to
such great effort to make this book possible. It is a signi¤cant contribution to
Caribbean archaeology, and I hope it will be part of an expanding dialogue
between Cuban scholars and others studying the prehistory and history of the
Caribbean.
Looking at contemporary culture in the world today, it is worth noting that
in many ways the cultural signi¤cance of the Caribbean region is dramatically
out of proportion to its relative size and population. In art, music, and literature,
the Caribbean is a leader and trendsetter, in spite of representing only a
tiny fraction of the world’s population. Why is that? Perhaps it is because the
Caribbean is so full of people with very different histories, cultures, languages,
identities, and perspectives. It is a rich and exciting marketplace of ideas, each
trying to make itself heard, each trying to translate itself into as many different
languages and media as possible. In this exciting milieu, clinging to old
orthodoxies or staying within the lines of conservative tradition is generally
unproductive. In whatever arena—art, politics, even scholarship—the advantage
goes to those with the creativity to see things in new ways or combine
old ideas into novel and compelling forms.
At the best of times, this sort of “marketplace of ideas” has been a good
description of the international community of Caribbean archaeologists. We
have had the privilege of learning from each other and combining our data
and insights in new ways. Together we have come to understandings of the