Evil Spirits and Rocket Debris - In Search of Lost Souls in Siberia

The Altai Republic in southern Siberia is renowned for excavations of frozen mummies from high-altitude burial sites. Less well-known is the fact that it hosts fallout zones for the second stages of rockets launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome. Local inhabitants blame 'evil spirits' released by archaeological work and toxic fuel from rocket debris for their misfortunes. This book explores the divergent fates of such claims when confronted with state-fostered 'rationalisms' of science and governance.

About the author

Ludek Broz is Head of the Department of Ecological Anthropology at the Institute of Ethnology, Czech Academy of Sciences. He co-edited the volume Suicide and Agency: Anthropological Perspectives on Self-destruction, Personhood and Power (Routledge, 2016) with Daniel Muenster.

Product details

• Authors: Ludek Broz
• Publisher: BERGHAHN BOOKS, INC
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 02.02.2024
• EAN: 9781805392606
• ISBN: 978-1-80539-260-6
• No. of pages: 256
• Subjects: Social sciences, law, business > Social sciences (general); Sociology, Sociology: customs & traditions, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Anthropology / Cultural & Social, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Sociology / Social Theory, Social & cultural anthropology, ethnography, Social impact of environmental issues, Social and cultural anthropology