Research

Photos from the field

Since 1984 I have been studying Andalusian Marianism with a field research focus on the pilgrimage to La Virgen del Rocio, a statue of the Virgin Mary whose shrine is located in the marshlands of the Guadalquivir River. Much of this work has been done in collaboration with Dr. Juan Carlos González Faraco of the Universidad de Huelva. We have also investigated the round up and drive of horses from the marshes of Doñana National Park to the Andalusian town of Almonte. In addition to its continuing importance as a venerable local cultural practice, the annual round-up of marsh mares constitutes the last remnant of the Spanish equestrian and livestock cultural complex that directly inspired the free-range ranching traditions of the gaucho, the vaquero, and the cowboy of the Western Hemisphere.

Current work, in collaboration with Dr. González Faraco, focuses on two principal topics: the destabilization of ritual events in the face of an increasing scale of participation and the interaction between efforts to manage feral horses in a national park and the politics of sacred space.

Photos from "Marsh Mares" Research

Tomás Rodríguez Rodríguez and Michael Murphy in 2016

Inside the Department and Out