Dialogic Archaeology of Multiple Times and Ontological Pluralism: A Case from Türkiye

This article critiques the persistence of binary categories—past/present, tangible/intangible, rational/affective, and science/belief—that continue to shape archaeological heritage practices. These divisions limit efforts within the discipline to adopt multi-temporal, inclusive, ontologically diverse, and decolonizing approaches. Drawing on an ethnographic case study of the Kerkenes site in Türkiye, it explores the disjunction between archaeologists’ construction of an isolated Iron Age past and local communities’ lived engagements with the site. Villagers did not recognize the Phrygian past as part of their heritage and observed that Islamic elements had been overlooked by archaeologists. The dialogical and ontological reanalysis of ancient features such as ponds, wells, and graves reveals how they connect to local experiences grounded in Islamic theophanic ontology. The article employs a framework for ontologically plural and dialogical heritage practices that transcends entrenched binaries in archaeology.