Material Culture and Consumer Society: Dependent Colonies in Colonial Australia

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Throughout history, material goods have been valued for more than their usefulness; they have also been symbols of status and wealth. During the colonial period of Australia, material goods took on an even more important role for the new arrivals to the island. This text argues that material goods were a necessary adjunct to the successful colonization of Australia demonstrating that it was necessary to establish trade networks that provided adequate supplies of culturally appropriate food, drink and other consumer goods for the newly arrived colonists. Material goods were used: to distinguish the colonists from Indigenous groups; to reassure the colonists about their place in the world; and to help establish the colonists’ own networks of social relations. This text contends that the role of consumption and the part played by material goods were more important to the negotiation of social position in the colonies than in the homeland. This work should be of interest to underwater, historical and cultural archaeologists, social historians, cultural heritage managers, and graduate students of these fields.