An Approach to Aesthetics from the Archaeological Record: A Case Study of the Santa Ana Excavation

Marinella Andrea C. Mina

Using a post-processual framework, this study re-examines archaeological data and excavated tradeware ceramics from the 11th – 14th century burial site of Santa Ana, Manila to explore pre-colonial ‘Filipino’ aesthetics. Aesthetic or sensory experience is a primary means through which humans interpret their environment; as Arnold Berleant asserts, ‘everything for man is experience.’ Despite shared origins with art history, archaeology rarely engages aesthetic theory in interpreting material culture. By emphasising the experiential and multi-dimensional nature of the Berleant's model of the aesthetic field, extending beyond objects and formal qualities to historical context, ethnographic studies, and technological factors, this study reconnects archaeology with art historical inquiry. The Santa Ana funerary sites excavated by Leandro and Cecilia Locsin in the 1960s represent one of the earliest systematic excavations in the Philippines of a burial site rich in tradeware ceramics. Santa Ana is examined as a model for pre-colonial aesthetics due to its documented assemblage, rich tradeware deposits, and pre-Hispanic, pre-Islamic context, suggesting funerary practices shaped by local aesthetic values. Although tradeware ceramics were originally utilitarian commodities, their ritual deposition in burial contexts reflects their transformation into symbols of prestige and meaning, illustrating how aesthetic encounters are shaped by social, economic, ideological, and technological forces.