Cultural artifact is a term used in the social sciences, particularly anthropology, ethnology, and sociology for anything created by humans which gives information about the culture of its creator and users. Usage of this term encompasses the type of archaeological artifact which is recovered at archaeological sites; however, current objects of modern or near-modern society are also cultural artifacts. For example, in an anthropological context, a 17th-century lathe, a piece of faience, or a television each provide a wealth of information about the time in which they were manufactured and used. Cultural artifacts can provide knowledge about technological processes, economy and social makeup, and a host of other subjects.
Famous quotes containing the words cultural and/or artifact:
“By Modernism I mean the positive rejection of the past and the blind belief in the process of change, in novelty for its own sake, in the idea that progress through time equates with cultural progress; in the cult of individuality, originality and self-expression.”
—Dan Cruickshank (b. 1949)
“this quilt might be
the only perfect artifact a woman
would ever see, yet she did not doubt
what we had forgotten, that out of her
potatoes and colic, sawdust and blood
she could create ...”
—Marge Piercy (b. 1936)