The Destiny of documents? About the meaning of archives in rock art

Abstract

Focus in this preface is not the field documentation of rock art, rather it discusses what happens to the documents over time, when completed. This discussion connects to a culture of documentation, which has a long tradition, not least, in Scandinavia.
Documents become a part of a tradition of memory and reference, which is contiguous and to some degree borderless, and in our days open and accessible to a general public. At the earliest, the handling of antiquarian documentations, was emulating and royal ecclesiastical routines to keep accounts, law texts, diplomatic agreements and commands in an orderly manner. The archives thereby formed, were seen as parts of the sovereign’s and church’s body and could be packed for journeys and transfers between residences. In the manner of the Renaissance it is evident that a new view of the Royal archives is developing through reflecting attitudes of where records could be kept, their handling, order and control. It is possible to have a presentiment of a science of archives to come.