"This book provides a much needed summary of the excavations at several important but poorly... more "This book provides a much needed summary of the excavations at several important but poorly documented mound sites and nicely synthesizes this data into a phase-by-phase history of chiefdom development in the Chattahoochee Valley. At the same time, the authors present a provocative model for the development and spread of Mississippian societies through the Southeast." Along the banks of the lower Chattahoochee River, the remains of ancient settlements are abundant, including archaeological sites produced by Native Americans between 900 and 350 years ago, and marked by the presence of large earthen mounds. Like similar monuments elsewhere in the Southeastern United States, the lower Chattahoochee River mounds have long attracted the attention of travelers, antiquarians, and archaeologists. As objects from the mounds were unearthed, occasionally illustrated and discussed in print, attention became focused on the aesthetic qualities of the artifacts, the origins of the remains, and the possible relationship to the Creek Indians. Beginning in the 20th century, new concerns emerged as the developing science of archaeology was introduced to the region. As many of the sites became threatened or destroyed by reservoir construction, trained archaeologists initiated extensive excavations of the mounds. Although classification of artifacts and sites into a chronological progression of cultures was the main objective of this effort, a second concern, sometimes more latent than manifest, was the reconstruction of a past way of life. Archaeologists hoped to achieve a better understanding of the sociopolitical organization of the peoples who built the mounds and of how those organizations changed through time. Contemporary archaeologists, while in agreement on many aspects of the ancient cultures, debate the causes, forms, and degrees of sociopolitical complexity in the ancient Southeast. Do the mounds mark the capitals of political territories? If so, what was the scale and scope of these ancient "provinces"? What manner of society constructed the mound settlements? What was the sociopolitical organization of these long-dead populations? How can archaeologists answer such queries with the mute and sometimes ordinary materials with which they work: pottery, stone tools, organic residues, and the strata of remnant settlements, buildings, and mounds?
This study makes use of archaeological data from settlement survey and test excavations at five s... more This study makes use of archaeological data from settlement survey and test excavations at five site locations in the Big Black River Valley of central Mississippi.
The ongoing debate among Egyptologists over the causes and processes responsible for the unificat... more The ongoing debate among Egyptologists over the causes and processes responsible for the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt by the first pharaohs toward the end of the Late Predynastic period (3300-3100 BCE) has generated a wide range of competing theories. Explanatory causes for unification range from a forced interaction (acculturation) between two distinct culture areas by way of a large-scale migration, to peaceful small-scale migrations of colonists seeking better economic opportunities (assimilation), to a peaceful peer-polity interaction requiring no migration (diffusion). Using anthropological theories of ethnic identity and archaeological methods for identifying distinctive cultural markers, I compare the changing temporal and geographic distribution patterns of pottery styles, animal remains (as markers of food preferences), and human burial treatment from a selection of Late Predynastic (3900-3300 BCE) excavated sites in the Nile valley of Upper Egypt and the Nile Delta of Lower Egypt to test which of the three hypothesized processes of culture change is most consistent with the patterns revealed by the archaeological evidence. I argue that the data taken as a whole, offer strong support for how immigrants from a distinctive southern Egyptian cultural tradition colonized the Nile Delta to the north and were responsible for the acculturation and replacement of Lower Egyptian cultural practices. After 3300 BCE, this wholesale cultural unification is evident in pottery making practices, dietary preferences and preferred method of burial, which in turn helped to enable an eventual political unification of the entire Nile valley and Delta under the leadership and control of divine kings.
... Some general models are based on variables that are partly correlated with ... For human popu... more ... Some general models are based on variables that are partly correlated with ... For human populations a change in technology-as, for example, the ... RESOURCE STRUCTURE, SOCIOTERRITORIAL ORGANIZATION AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD Humans and other ...
"This book provides a much needed summary of the excavations at several important but poorly... more "This book provides a much needed summary of the excavations at several important but poorly documented mound sites and nicely synthesizes this data into a phase-by-phase history of chiefdom development in the Chattahoochee Valley. At the same time, the authors present a provocative model for the development and spread of Mississippian societies through the Southeast." Along the banks of the lower Chattahoochee River, the remains of ancient settlements are abundant, including archaeological sites produced by Native Americans between 900 and 350 years ago, and marked by the presence of large earthen mounds. Like similar monuments elsewhere in the Southeastern United States, the lower Chattahoochee River mounds have long attracted the attention of travelers, antiquarians, and archaeologists. As objects from the mounds were unearthed, occasionally illustrated and discussed in print, attention became focused on the aesthetic qualities of the artifacts, the origins of the remains, and the possible relationship to the Creek Indians. Beginning in the 20th century, new concerns emerged as the developing science of archaeology was introduced to the region. As many of the sites became threatened or destroyed by reservoir construction, trained archaeologists initiated extensive excavations of the mounds. Although classification of artifacts and sites into a chronological progression of cultures was the main objective of this effort, a second concern, sometimes more latent than manifest, was the reconstruction of a past way of life. Archaeologists hoped to achieve a better understanding of the sociopolitical organization of the peoples who built the mounds and of how those organizations changed through time. Contemporary archaeologists, while in agreement on many aspects of the ancient cultures, debate the causes, forms, and degrees of sociopolitical complexity in the ancient Southeast. Do the mounds mark the capitals of political territories? If so, what was the scale and scope of these ancient "provinces"? What manner of society constructed the mound settlements? What was the sociopolitical organization of these long-dead populations? How can archaeologists answer such queries with the mute and sometimes ordinary materials with which they work: pottery, stone tools, organic residues, and the strata of remnant settlements, buildings, and mounds?
"This book provides a much needed summary of the excavations at several important but poorly... more "This book provides a much needed summary of the excavations at several important but poorly documented mound sites and nicely synthesizes this data into a phase-by-phase history of chiefdom development in the Chattahoochee Valley. At the same time, the authors present a provocative model for the development and spread of Mississippian societies through the Southeast." Along the banks of the lower Chattahoochee River, the remains of ancient settlements are abundant, including archaeological sites produced by Native Americans between 900 and 350 years ago, and marked by the presence of large earthen mounds. Like similar monuments elsewhere in the Southeastern United States, the lower Chattahoochee River mounds have long attracted the attention of travelers, antiquarians, and archaeologists. As objects from the mounds were unearthed, occasionally illustrated and discussed in print, attention became focused on the aesthetic qualities of the artifacts, the origins of the remains, and the possible relationship to the Creek Indians. Beginning in the 20th century, new concerns emerged as the developing science of archaeology was introduced to the region. As many of the sites became threatened or destroyed by reservoir construction, trained archaeologists initiated extensive excavations of the mounds. Although classification of artifacts and sites into a chronological progression of cultures was the main objective of this effort, a second concern, sometimes more latent than manifest, was the reconstruction of a past way of life. Archaeologists hoped to achieve a better understanding of the sociopolitical organization of the peoples who built the mounds and of how those organizations changed through time. Contemporary archaeologists, while in agreement on many aspects of the ancient cultures, debate the causes, forms, and degrees of sociopolitical complexity in the ancient Southeast. Do the mounds mark the capitals of political territories? If so, what was the scale and scope of these ancient "provinces"? What manner of society constructed the mound settlements? What was the sociopolitical organization of these long-dead populations? How can archaeologists answer such queries with the mute and sometimes ordinary materials with which they work: pottery, stone tools, organic residues, and the strata of remnant settlements, buildings, and mounds?
This study makes use of archaeological data from settlement survey and test excavations at five s... more This study makes use of archaeological data from settlement survey and test excavations at five site locations in the Big Black River Valley of central Mississippi.
The ongoing debate among Egyptologists over the causes and processes responsible for the unificat... more The ongoing debate among Egyptologists over the causes and processes responsible for the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt by the first pharaohs toward the end of the Late Predynastic period (3300-3100 BCE) has generated a wide range of competing theories. Explanatory causes for unification range from a forced interaction (acculturation) between two distinct culture areas by way of a large-scale migration, to peaceful small-scale migrations of colonists seeking better economic opportunities (assimilation), to a peaceful peer-polity interaction requiring no migration (diffusion). Using anthropological theories of ethnic identity and archaeological methods for identifying distinctive cultural markers, I compare the changing temporal and geographic distribution patterns of pottery styles, animal remains (as markers of food preferences), and human burial treatment from a selection of Late Predynastic (3900-3300 BCE) excavated sites in the Nile valley of Upper Egypt and the Nile Delta of Lower Egypt to test which of the three hypothesized processes of culture change is most consistent with the patterns revealed by the archaeological evidence. I argue that the data taken as a whole, offer strong support for how immigrants from a distinctive southern Egyptian cultural tradition colonized the Nile Delta to the north and were responsible for the acculturation and replacement of Lower Egyptian cultural practices. After 3300 BCE, this wholesale cultural unification is evident in pottery making practices, dietary preferences and preferred method of burial, which in turn helped to enable an eventual political unification of the entire Nile valley and Delta under the leadership and control of divine kings.
... Some general models are based on variables that are partly correlated with ... For human popu... more ... Some general models are based on variables that are partly correlated with ... For human populations a change in technology-as, for example, the ... RESOURCE STRUCTURE, SOCIOTERRITORIAL ORGANIZATION AND THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL RECORD Humans and other ...
"This book provides a much needed summary of the excavations at several important but poorly... more "This book provides a much needed summary of the excavations at several important but poorly documented mound sites and nicely synthesizes this data into a phase-by-phase history of chiefdom development in the Chattahoochee Valley. At the same time, the authors present a provocative model for the development and spread of Mississippian societies through the Southeast." Along the banks of the lower Chattahoochee River, the remains of ancient settlements are abundant, including archaeological sites produced by Native Americans between 900 and 350 years ago, and marked by the presence of large earthen mounds. Like similar monuments elsewhere in the Southeastern United States, the lower Chattahoochee River mounds have long attracted the attention of travelers, antiquarians, and archaeologists. As objects from the mounds were unearthed, occasionally illustrated and discussed in print, attention became focused on the aesthetic qualities of the artifacts, the origins of the remains, and the possible relationship to the Creek Indians. Beginning in the 20th century, new concerns emerged as the developing science of archaeology was introduced to the region. As many of the sites became threatened or destroyed by reservoir construction, trained archaeologists initiated extensive excavations of the mounds. Although classification of artifacts and sites into a chronological progression of cultures was the main objective of this effort, a second concern, sometimes more latent than manifest, was the reconstruction of a past way of life. Archaeologists hoped to achieve a better understanding of the sociopolitical organization of the peoples who built the mounds and of how those organizations changed through time. Contemporary archaeologists, while in agreement on many aspects of the ancient cultures, debate the causes, forms, and degrees of sociopolitical complexity in the ancient Southeast. Do the mounds mark the capitals of political territories? If so, what was the scale and scope of these ancient "provinces"? What manner of society constructed the mound settlements? What was the sociopolitical organization of these long-dead populations? How can archaeologists answer such queries with the mute and sometimes ordinary materials with which they work: pottery, stone tools, organic residues, and the strata of remnant settlements, buildings, and mounds?
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