by Alasdair Whittle (1996)
Dr. Whittle reviews the latest archaeological evidence on Neolithic Europe from 7000 to 2500 BC. Describing important areas, sites and problems, he addresses the major themes that have engaged the attention of scholars: the transition from a forager lifestyle; the rate and dynamics of change; and the nature of Neolithic society. He challenges conventional views, arguing that Neolithic society was rooted in the values and practices of its forager, predecessors right across the continent. The processes of settling down and adopting farming were piecemeal and slow. Only gradually did new attitudes emerge, to time and the past, to the sacred realms of ancestors and the dead, to nature and to the concept of community. . Unique in its broad and up-to-date coverage of long-term processes of change on a continental scale, this completely rewritten and revised version of Whittle's Neolithic Europe: a survey reflects radical changes in the evidence and in interpretative approaches over the past decade.
Ross Hamilton
"An illustrated, full-color, multidisciplinary tour through the now-hidden 'Glastonbury zodiac' of North America--the ancient monuments of the Ohio Valley--this book will appeal to readers interested in indigenous American culture, its mysteries, and its sophisticated knowledge of astronomy, geometry, and architecture"--Provided by publisher.
David R. Abbott and Katherine A. Spielmann
"About forty miles north of Phoenix, Arizona, Perry Mesa is today part of Agua Fria National Monument, but during the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries, this windswept arid landscape became the site of numerous farming communities. This book explores why people moved to Perry Mesa at that time. Analyses of Perry Mesa contrast with those of the iconic large-scale migrations in the prehistoric Southwest such as the Kayenta diaspora and the gathering of the clans at Hopi. Unlike those long-distance movements into occupied regions, the Perry Mesa case is one of relatively localized aggregation on a largely vacant landscape. But, as was discovered with the iconic migrations, ethnogenesis (the creation of new identities) took hold on Perry Mesa, making it an extremely interesting counterpoint to the better-known migrations of the period. Contributors to this volume examine the migration process under two explanatory frameworks: alliance and landscape. These frameworks are used to explore competing hypotheses, positing either a rapid colonization associated with an alliance organized for warfare at a regional scale, or a more protracted migration as this landscape became comparatively more attractive for migrating farmers in the late thirteenth century. As the first major publication on the archaeology of Perry Mesa, this volume contributes to theoretical perspectives on migration and ethnogenesis, the study of warfare in the prehistoric Southwest, the study of intensive agricultural practices in a marginal environment, and the cultural history of a little studied and largely unknown portion of the ancient Southwest"--
Anthony F. Aveni
Goodreads Synopsis: The Sky in Mayan Literature offers a synthesis of past and present-day dialogue between people and the world of nature around and especially above them. This unique collection of original essays investigates both ancient and modern Mayan texts and describes concepts of timekeeping and their role in Mayan culture. The celestial sphere is the place where ancient Mayan rulers derived their source of power and yet, it is the very same realm to which the modern peasant still prays for rain. Including contributions from anthropologists, a mathematician, an art historian, and a linguist, the interdisciplinary approach in this innovative book portrays skywatching and celestial worship as one aspect of Mayan cultural behavior that possesses an evolutionary history. What a Mayan shaman sees and interprets in the visual imagery of the sky today is also revealed in the four ancient sacred books that survive. The contributors find a strong correlation between real-time and the heavily-veiled information about the heavens in pre-contact days. Dealing with texts written in hieroglyphic script as well as post-contact alphabetic script, The Sky in Mayan Literature will interest the anthropology and archaeology communities as well as students of cultural and ethno-history of science, and comparative literature.
M.G. Harris
When his father is reported murdered in Mexico, supposedly by the husband of his lover, thirteen-year-old Josh refuses to believe it and sets out to get the true story, which he believes involves UFOs and alien abduction.