Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology

Ancient West Mexico in the Mesoamerican Ecumene by Eduardo Williams. Paperback; 205x290mm; 400pp; illustrated throughout (approx. 321 figures). 580 2019 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 12. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781789693539. £60.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781789693546. £16.00 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £60.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

This book presents a discussion of the culture history of ancient West Mexico from the time of the first human inhabitants until the last cultural developments that took place before the Spanish invasion in the 16th century. The overall narrative is played out within the context of the Mesoamerican ecumene; that is, the universe of cultural and social interactions that coalesced into one of the few pristine civilizations of the ancient world.

The book presents a long-overdue synthesis and update of West Mexican archaeology aimed at scholars, students and the general public. Ancient West Mexico in the Mesoamerican Ecumene is the first book about West Mexican archaeology written by a single author. Another unique feature of this book is that it follows a holistic approach that includes data and perspectives from sociocultural anthropology, ethnohistory, ethnoarchaeology, and general analogy with many ancient cultures within the Mesoamerican ecumene and beyond (including several of the Old World). The focus of interest is the relationship between West Mexico and the rest of the ecumene, and the role played by the ancient West Mexicans in shaping the culture and history of the Mesoamerican universe.

Ancient West Mexico has often been portrayed as a ‘marginal’ or ‘underdeveloped’ area of Mesoamerica. This book shows that the opposite is true. Indeed, Williams convincingly demonstrates that West Mexico actually played a critical role in the cultural and historical development of the Mesoamerican ecumene.

About the Author
Eduardo Williams has been involved in West Mexican archaeology and ethnohistory since receiving his BA degree in 1982. He obtained his PhD degree from the Institute of Archaeology, University College London, in 1989. Williams joined the faculty of the Colegio de Michoacán (Zamora, Mexico) in 1990, where he holds the post of Professor in the Center for Archaeological Research. He has been a visiting scholar in the Department of Anthropology, University of California at Los Angeles (1988); the Middle-American Research Institute, Tulane University (New Orleans) (1998); and the Department of Anthropology, Tulane University (2012). The following books stand out among Williams’ contributions to West-Mexican archaeology: La sal de la tierra (Colegio de Michoacán, 2003; awarded the Alfonso Caso Prize the Mexican Institute of Anthropology and History [INAH]); Water Folk: Reconstructing an Ancient Aquatic Lifeway in Michoacán, Western Mexico (Archaeopress, 2014); and Tarascan Pottery Production in Michoacán, Mexico (Archaeopress, 2017).

Reviews
‘For far too long, west Mexican prehistory has been the poor stepchild of Mesoamerican studies. Eduardo Williams’ book demonstrates the connections between this neglected region and the better known areas of the Mesoamerican world. One of the strengths of Eduardo’s book is that he puts the history of archaeological and ethnographic research into perspective… Williams links west Mexican cultures and sites to the wider world of Mesoamerica. Other writers have either ignored the subject or only touched on it lightly. Eduardo documents the important connections. For those learning about the Mesoamerican world, these specific, documented connections are invaluable… I think this will be the “go-to” volume for anyone who wants either a broad overview or to compare different regions and developments (e.g. settlement, trade, social organization) through time…’' —Robert B. Pickering, Professor of Anthropology, The University of Tulsa, Oklahoma, February 2020

'Williams’ bridging of the past and present through ethnographic, ethnohistoric, and ethnoarchaeological data centered on the importance of aquatic lifeways is a much-needed thread of continuity and identity where none previously existed. Critiques noted previously aside, this a solid piece of work and one that I am excited to h

Wari Women from Huarmey Bioarchaeological Interpretation of Human Remains from the Wari Elite Mausoleum at Castillo de Huarmey, Peru by Wiesław Więckowski. Paperback; 175x245; vi+152 pages; 56 figures (37 plates in colour). 535 2019 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 11. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781789691849. £34.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781789691856. £16.00 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £34.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

Excavations at the Castillo de Huarmey archaeological site brought to light the first intact burial of female high-elite members of the Wari culture. It was found beneath a large adobe mausoleum, a landmark and focal point of the lower Huarmey Valley. Abundant grave goods, among which were precious metal artefacts, luxurious pottery, beautifully decorated bone and wooden objects, as well as spinning and weaving utensils, leave no doubt about the social status of individuals buried within the main chamber. The very unique character of the find was additionally emphasized by the fact that all of the buried individuals were women, accompanied by two grave guardians, and the remains of ancestors. This book presents the results of bioarchaeological analyses performed to date, and focuses on reconstructing the funeral rite and social status of the deceased. About the Author
WIESŁAW WIĘCKOWSKI (born 1974) is a graduate of the Institute of Archaeology, University of Warsaw. He has also studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem where he specialized in bioarchaeology and funeral archaeology. He has worked on many sites, including Ashkelon, Gesher, Tel Zahara in Israel, Achaia Klaus in Greece, Churajon, and Maucallacta in Peru, both as archaeologist and bioarchaeologist. Since 2010, he has been a member of the Polish-Peruvian research team, led by Miłosz Giersz, that in 2013 discovered the first completely preserved burial of the highest elites of the Wari culture at the site Castillo de Huarmey. He is currently professor at the Department of Bioarchaeology of the University of Warsaw.

Tarascan Copper Metallurgy: A Multiapproach Perspective by Blanca Estela Maldonado. Paperback; 205x290mm; 168pp; illustrated throughout in colour and black & white. 447 2018 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 10. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784916251. £32.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784916268. £16.00 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £32.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

In the early sixteenth century much of West México was under the rule of the Purhépecha Empire, known to Europeans as the Tarascan Kingdom of Michuacan. Both archaeological and ethnohistorical evidence indicate that during the Late Postclassic Period (A.D. 1350-1525) this political unit was the primary center for metallurgy and metalworking in Mesoamerica. This technology was largely based on copper and its alloys.

Tarascan Copper Metallurgy: A multiapproach perspective focuses on evidence recovered from the area surrounding Santa Clara del Cobre, a Tarascan community in Central Michoacán. This pioneer research required the employment of multiple strands of evidence, including archaeological survey and excavation, ethnoarchaeology, experimental replication, and archaeometallurgy. Intensive surface survey located concentrations of manufacturing byproducts (i.e. slag) on surface that represented potential production areas. Stratigraphic excavation and subsequent archaeometallurgical analysis of physical remains were combined with ethnohistorical and ethnoarchaeological data, as well as comparative analogy, to propose a model for prehispanic copper production among the Tarascans.

The goal of this analysis was to gain insights into the nature of metal production and its role in the major state apparatus. The study provides valuable insights into the development of technology and political economy in ancient Mesoamerica and offers a contribution to general anthropological theories of the emergence of social complexity.

About the Author
BLANCA MALDONADO is an archaeologist specialised in ancient metallurgy and production processes. Specific areas of interest include pre-Columbian copper metallurgy in the New World, preindustrial non-ferrous metallurgy, and the cultural dynamics of technological practices. Her research has focused mainly on Mesoamerica and the South Central Andes.

Prof. Maldonado holds a PhD in Anthropology from The Pennsylvania State University, with specialization in Archaeology. Her doctoral studies included training in archaeological science and archaeometallurgy at the University of Oxford and at University College London. She has received several research grants and awards, including a DAAD Research Grant (for an Academic Stay at the University of Bonn, Germany) and a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, also in Germany (Curt-Engelhorn-Zentrum Archäometrie Mannheim). She is currently Professor and Researcher in the Centre for Archaeological Studies at El Colegio de Michoacán, A.C, in Mexico.

The Hydraulic System of Uxul Origins, functions, and social setting by Nicolaus Seefeld. Paperback; 205x290mm; xxii+518 pages, 21 folded pull-outs; illustrated throughout in colour and black & white (183 colour plates). 440 2018 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology . Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784919290. £90.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784919306. £16.00 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £90.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

Since the inception of Maya studies, the issue of water supply in Classic Maya society has been a matter of controversial debate. Due to the annually recurring dry seasons the availability of water during this period is and has always been problematic. In the light of these conditions, the fact that the pre-Hispanic Maya were able to establish, developed and maintain prosperous urban centres over long periods is hard to explain.

In order to resolve this open issue, this book aims to explain the water management strategies of the Maya in pre-Hispanic times. To this end, this volume analyses the intricate relationship between the natural environment and the adaptation strategies of the pre-Hispanic population, whose physical remains were documented in the form of hydraulic features. A large section of this book discusses the different forms, functions, and the geographic distribution of the published hydraulic features. The main body of this monograph focuses on the archaeological investigation of the hydraulic system of Uxul, a medium-sized Maya centre in the south of the state of Campeche, Mexico. As many open research questions could be addressed and studied in this site, the hydraulic system of Uxul acted as a central point of reference for the evaluation of the socio-political relevance of water management in the Maya Lowlands. This book identifies both the natural causes for water scarcities and the cultural adaptation strategies that were designed to overcome them. Due to this comprehensive approach, the present book is the most extensive and exhaustive account on the hydraulic features of the Maya Lowlands and thus enables representative statements on the sociopolitical relevance of water management in Classic Maya society.

About the Author
Nicolaus Seefeld is an archaeologist who specializes in Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica with a focus on the ancient Maya. He has participated in archaeological investigations at several Maya sites in Mexico and Guatemala. Since 2008, his research has focused on the water management practices and the agricultural production of the Classic Maya. He holds an MA and a doctorate from the University of Bonn.

Note regarding the eBook version: Due to the number of illustrations and the extent of the volume the eBook has had to be compressed down to a manageable size for downloading. If you purchase the eBook version (or are entitled to a free eBook along with a print purchase) and would like the full-resolution version please email your order receipt to info@archaeopress.com and we will send the larger file via wetransfer.

Reviews:
'This publication offers a fresh look at the study of water management among the pre-Hispanic Maya... and helps us to understand the underlying problems of the Yucatán Peninsula and how the pre-Hispanic population developed various strategies for the management of rainwater. The publication is commended both for its academic content and good images (more t

Recent Investigations in the Puuc Region of Yucatán edited by Meghan Rubenstein. viii+164 pages; illustrated throughout in black & white. 8 papers in English, 3 in Spanish. Abstracts in English and Spanish. 312 2017 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 8. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784915445. £33.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784915452. £16.00 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £33.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

The scholarship assembled in this volume was first presented at the 79th Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology (SAA) in Austin, Texas, in April 2014. Some of the authors have chosen to publish their conference papers while others have expanded their topics. As a collection, the papers demonstrate a myriad of approaches to understanding the history of the Puuc region, incorporating archaeological, architectural, epigraphic, and iconographic studies. The geographic scope is also broad. Many of the recent and ongoing archaeological projects in the eastern Puuc region and its periphery are represented, including Dzehkabtún, H’wasil, Kabah, Kiuic, Labná, Sayil, Uxmal, and Xcoch, as well as the Chocholá ceramic tradition from the western Puuc. The projects are at various stages—some preliminary, others a portion of a larger investigation, while still others are revisiting older data—all with the aim to advance our field of study.

It has been more than 10 years since a volume dedicated solely to the Puuc region has been published. While Puuc research frequently appears in collected volumes on the Yucatán peninsula or the Terminal Classic period, we are pleased to offer this representative example of ongoing work.

Mesoamerican Religions and Archaeology Essays in Pre-Columbian Civilizations by Aleksandar Bošković. viii+90 pages; illustrated throughout in colour and black & white. 304 2017 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 7. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784915025. £22.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784915032. £16.00 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £22.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

Our understanding of ancient Pre-Columbian civilizations has changed significantly as the result of archaeological research in the last fifty years. Major projects during this period included dealing with cultural change in different contexts (Valley of Mexico, Oaxaca), regional research projects (“Olmec”), as well as attempts to understand more general trends in interpreting Pre-Columbian art and ideology (Codex Cihuacoatl, Templo Mayor). This book presents both the changes that occurred in the last few decades, and the impact that they had on our understanding on ancient Mesoamerican religions and cultures. It also includes references to some lesser-known research traditions (such as Croatia, Serbia, and Slovenia), as well as to the work of scholars like Jacques Soustelle or Didier Boremanse. With the insistence on clear methodology, based on field research, this book uses the context of specific archaeological finds in order to put Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures in a historical perspective. In terms of method, the author follows R. E. W. Adams, Jeremy Sabloff, Robert J. Sharer and other archaeologists in emphasizing the “field archaeology school” approach, with its insistence on using the data acquired in context. Archaeological and anthropological research is in itself fascinating enough to not need stolen artefacts, forged vases, fantastic stories and invented mythical genealogies. The main goal of this book is to produce a methodologically sound and ethically valid interdisciplinary introduction into the exciting world of ancient Mesoamerica.

Archaeological Paleography A Proposal for Tracing the Role of Interaction in Mayan Script Innovation via Material Remains by Joshua D. Englehardt. x+202 pages; illustrated throughout in black & white. 209 2016 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 6. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784912390. £35.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784912406. £15.83 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £35.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

This research explores the development of the Maya writing system in Middle–Late Formative and Early Classic period (700 BC–AD 450) Mesoamerica. It seeks to correlate script development with interregional interaction and diachronic changes in material culture, and proposes a new methodological template for examining script development via material remains. In doing so, it contributes to anthropological debate regarding the role and effects of interregional interaction in processes of development and change of material and symbolic culture. This investigation posits that Maya writing developed in late Middle Formative through Early Classic period Mesoamerica as a correlate of interregional sociopolitical and economic interaction. Scholars working in many areas of the world have long claimed that interaction is central to cultural innovation, especially in relation to the development of writing. If the emergence of the Mayan script is a correlate of systemic interaction, then its developmental process should be traceable archaeologically through artifactual evidence. This hypothesis is tested by exploring archaeological indicators of interaction against a backdrop of previously-documented transformations in the emerging Mayan script. The methodological model proposed here builds on current models of the development of Mesoamerican writing systems and models of interregional interaction and cultural development to associate archaeological remains with the development of the Mayan script.

Metallurgy in Ancient Ecuador A Study of the Collection of Archaeological Metallurgy of the Ministry of Culture, Ecuador by Roberto Lleras Perez. 150pp; full colour throughout. 168 2015 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 5. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784911607. £28.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784911614. £16.00 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £28.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

Metallurgical activity was present in Ecuador from at least 1500 BC; by around the beginning of the Common Era metallurgical manufacture and use had extended to most of the Costa and Sierra. Regional styles soon evolved giving rise to high levels of technical craftsmanship and to shaping particular iconographic and decorative patterns. Copper, gold, silver and platinum were mined, processed and converted into thousands of ornaments, offerings, tools and weapons extensively used both by elites and by the common people. By 1450, the Incas had invaded most of the Ecuadorian Sierra and eventually they integrated the diverse metallurgical traditions into their state-managed metallurgical industry. The European conquest in the sixteenth century deeply affected the native metallurgical activities, even though in some regions copper continued to be worked throughout the colonial period. The reconstruction of the general outlines of this fascinating historical process was made possible through the study of the collection of archaeological metal objects of the Ministry of Culture and Heritage of Ecuador, the compilation of previous archaeological references, laboratory analyses and C14 dating of museum objects. This work is the first one of its kind to be published on the ancient metallurgy of Ecuador.

Palaces and Courtly Culture in Ancient Mesoamerica edited by Julie Nehammer Knub, Christophe Helmke and Jesper Nielsen. xiv+124 pages; illustrated throughout in colour and black & white. 128 2014 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 4. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784910501. £31.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784910518. £16.00 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £31.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

Mesoamerica is one of the cradles of early civilizations in the ancient world, featuring a wide diversity of cultures exhibiting a high degree of social inequality and stratification. At the pinnacle of the society was the ruler, the court and the high elite. This social segment was responsible for the creation and consumption of the hallmarks of civilizations, including monumental architecture, great monolithic monuments and a wide array of highly decorated, exotic and exceptional material culture. As such royal courts defined the very tastes and styles that characterise entire civilizations. This volume collects eight recent and innovative studies on the subject rulership, palatial compounds and courtly culture by staff and students of the American Indian Languages and Culture studies programme at Department of Cross-cultural and Regional Studies, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Together these studies span the breadth of Mesoamerica, from the Early Classic metropolis of Teotihuacan (ad 200-550), to Tenochtitlan, the Late Postclassic capital of the Aztec (ad 1300-1521), and from the arid central Mexican highlands in the west to the humid Maya lowlands in the east.

Rainfed Altepetl Modeling institutional and subsistence agriculture in ancient Tepeaca, Mexico by Aurelio López Corral. ii+125 pages; illustrated throughout in black & white. 124 2014 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 3. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784910402. £26.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784910419. £15.83 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £26.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

Climate variability and human management strategies on crop stands were major factors that frequently affected agricultural yields among indigenous populations from central Mexico. This work seeks to model food production in ancient Tepeaca, a Late Postclassic (AD 1325-1521) and Early Colonial (16th century) state level-polity settled on the central highlands of Puebla, by applying a model that recognizes the presence of two independent and interconnected forms of food production: subsistence agriculture and institutional agriculture. Crop stands within this region depended heavily on rainfed conditions, a form of agriculture that often generates unstable interannual fluctuations in yields. Archaeology acknowledges the effects of such variations on the economy of households and institutions, but attention has been largely put on estimating average productivity values over long periods rather than focusing on interannual divergences. Such instability of agricultural production was recorded among modern Tepeaca’s agriculturalists through an ethnographic survey. This crucial information, along with archaeological data and local 16th century historical sources, is used for modeling the effects of climate variability among prehispanic populations and serves to better comprehend the organization of past agrarian structures, tribute systems and land tenure organization at the household and regional levels.

Stone Trees Transplanted? Central Mexican Stelae of the Epiclassic and Early Postclassic and the Question of Maya ‘Influence’ by Keith Jordan. xii+237 pages; illustrated throughout in black & white. 109 2014 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 2. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784910105. £35.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784910112. £15.83 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £35.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

Stelae dating to the Epiclassic (650-900 CE) and Early Postclassic (950-1150 CE) from Tula, Xochicalco, and other sites in Central Mexico have been presented in the archaeological and art historical literature of the last four decades—when they have been addressed at all—as evidence of Classic Maya ‘influence’ on Central Mexican art during these periods. This book re-evaluates these claims via detailed comparative analysis of the Central Mexican stelae and their claimed Maya counterparts. For the first time the Central Mexican stelae are placed in the context of often earlier local artistic traditions as well as other possible long-distance connections.

Comparison of Tula and Xochicalco stelae with earlier and contemporary stelae from Oaxaca and Guerrero demonstrates connections equally as plausible as those posited with the Maya region, and supported by archaeological evidence. While it is clear that some Central Mexican stelae, especially Stela 4 from Tula, reflect Maya contacts, this has to be balanced by consideration of local and other long distance developments and connections.

The Archaeology of Yucatán: New Directions and Data edited by Travis W. Stanton. xix+514 pages; illustrated throughout in black & white. Papers in English and Spanish. 108 2014 Archaeopress Pre-Columbian Archaeology 1. Available both in printed and e-versions. Printed ISBN 9781784910082. £50.00 (No VAT). Epublication ISBN 9781784910099. £15.83 (Exc. VAT) Institutional Price £50.00 (Exc. UK VAT)

This volume was conceived to provide a forum for Mexican and foreign scholars to publish new data and interpretations on the archaeology of the northern Maya lowlands, specifically the State of Yucatán. Increased communication among scholars has become increasingly important for grasping a better understanding of the great amount of data emerging from the State of Yucatán. There has been more salvage work conducted in this state than in any of the others throughout Mexico and the data is overwhelming. Because of this large amount of salvage work, archaeologists in the INAH office in Yucatán have had little time to publish the great majority of the new information. Further, many of the forums that are easily accessible to scholars in the northern lowlands have constrictive space restraints not conducive to publishing data. With these points in mind, this volume seeks to gather papers that did not necessarily have to have a theoretical focus, and that could be data laden so that the raw data from many of these projects would not be confined to difficult to access reports in the Mérida and Mexico City offices. The result is a series of manuscripts on the northern lowlands, most of which focus on the State of Yucatán. Some of the papers are very data heavy, while others have a much more interpretive emphasis. Yet all of them contribute to a more complete picture of the northern lowland Maya.