Latourian cesspits

Maartje Hoogsteyns (University of Amsterdam) Dutch medieval cesspits all look similar: 14th century cesspits do not seem to differ from 17th century cesspits, cesspits in the east of the Netherlands resemble cesspits in the west. Yet, despite their seeming similarity, cesspits were probably very different things within these different collectives.

This multiplicity has not so much to do with the interpretive flexibility of humans, but with the variety of mediating roles cesspits fulfilled. Consequently, although their appearance to us seems stable, the materiality of cesspits must have varied. In this paper, it is argued that considering cesspits as multiple and disputable actually makes them more real and tangible.

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