Overview

A remarkable range of ancient societies and economies flourished in the environmentally diverse coastal regions of Pacific Latin America. This first ever synthesis from a Pacific perspective describes the archaeological investigations recently undertaken in the coastal littoral. Studying the similarities, and the many differences, of these varied prehistoric cultures can help us understand some central issues in archaeology--to what extent were cultural variations caused by different historical traditions, environmental conditions, and interactions with neighboring peoples, and how do civilizations arise?In this volume, specialists explain their latest findings in terms of archaic period adaptations, the development and spread of agriculture, the beginnings of sedentism, the formative periods of civilization, and the origins of socio-political inequality. The essays report on archaeological research in southern Mexico, Guatemala, Panama, Ecuador, and Peru--an are extending from the Marismas region of coastal Mexico to Chile's north coast.

Full Product Details

Author:   Michael Blake ,  Mark S. Aldenderfer ,  Barbara Arroyo ,  Bruce F. Benz
Publisher:   Washington State University Press
Imprint:   Washington State University Press
Dimensions:   Width: 21.60cm , Height: 1.40cm , Length: 27.90cm
Weight:   0.590kg
ISBN:  

9780874221664

ISBN 10:   0874221668
Pages:   234
Publication Date:   03 February 1999
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Preface AcknowledgmentsIntroduction 1. Introduction to the Archaeology of Pacific Latin America by Michael Blake Part I: Mesoamerica 2. The Marismas Nacionales Project, Sinaloa and Nayarit, Mexico by Stuart D. Scott 3. On the Origin, Evolution, and Dispersal of Maize by Bruce F. Benz 4. Late Archaic Period Coastal Collectors in Southern Mesoamerica: The Chantuto People Revisited by George H. Michaels and Barbara Voorhies 5. The Emergence of Hereditary Inequality: The Case of Pacific Coastal Chiapas, Mexico by Michael Blake and John E. Clark 6. Early Formative Societies in Guatemala and El Salvador by Mary E. Pye, Arthur A. Demarest, and Barbara Arroyo 7. Economic Patterns in the Development of Complex Society in Pacific Guatemala by Michael W. Love Part II: Central America 8. Precolumbian Fishing on the Pacific Coast of Panama by Richard G. Cooke and Anthony J. Ranere 9. The Origins and Development of Food Production in Pacific Panama by Dolores R. Piperno Part III: South America 10. Wetlands as Resource Concentrations in Southwestern Ecuador by Alfred H. Siemens 11. Early Formative Societies in the Tropical Lowlands of Western Ecuador: a View from the Valdivia Valley by J. Scott Raymond 12. Agricultural Evolution and the Emergence of Formative Societies in Ecuador by Deborah M. Pearsall 13. Andean Coastal Adaptations: Uniformitarianism and Multilinear Evolution by Michael E. Moseley 14. The Development of Agriculture and the Emergence of Formative Civilization in the Central Andes by Thomas C. Patterson 15. Archaic Period Maritime Adaptations in Peru by Karen Wise 16. Archaic Adaptation on the South-Central Andean Coast by Lautaro Nunez 17. The Late Preceramic-Early Formative Transition on the South-Central Andean Littoral by Mark S. Aldenderfer Contributors

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A remarkable range of ancient societies and economies flourished in the environmentally diverse coastal regions of Pacific Latin America. The essays report on archaeological research in Mexico, Guatemala, Panama, Ecuador, Peru, and Chile.

Author Information

Michael Blake is a professor and archaeologist in the Department of Anthropology and Sociology at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.

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