Archaeological Anthropology Commons^™

Indigenous Knowledge And Traditional Knowledge, Margaret Bruchac

Department of Anthropology Papers

Over time, Indigenous peoples around the world have preserved distinctive understandings, rooted in cultural experience, that guide relations among human, non-human, and other-than human beings in specific ecosystems. These understandings and relations constitute a system broadly identified as Indigenous knowledge, also called traditional knowledge or aboriginal knowledge. Archaeologists conducting excavations in Indigenous locales may uncover physical evidence of Indigenous knowledge (e.g. artifacts, landscape modifications, ritual markers, stone carvings, faunal remains), but the meaning of this evidence may not be obvious to non-Indigenous or non-local investigators. Researchers can gain information and insight by consulting Indigenous traditions; these localized knowledges contain crucial …

Los Caminos Prehispánicos De La Amazonia Boliviana, Clark L. Erickson

Department of Anthropology Papers

No abstract provided.

Upper Paleolithic Venus Figurines And Interpretations Of Prehistoric Gender Representations, Kaylea R. Vandewettering

PURE Insights

Interpretations of Upper Paleolithic Venus figurines pose an interesting challenge for archaeologists. Scholars who have studied these prehistoric representations of the female form have reached a variety of conclusions that may be better seen as a reflection of modern sociocultural values and ideals than being representative of the peoples who made the Venuses. I argue that by transposing our own ideals onto the Venus figurines, we act as colonizers and appropriators of the past. Reviewing archaeological literature regarding the Venuses, we gain a sense of the strengths and weaknesses of current approaches to interpreting representations of gender. These lessons serve …

Informé 2008, Miranda Stockett, William John Mcfarlane

Proyecto Arqueologico de Otoro

The 2008 field season of the Proyecto Arqueológico de Otoro (PADO) ran from July 6 – July 25 and was carried out by Dr. William McFarlane and Dr. Miranda Stockett, along with 5 field school students from Johnson County Community College. This work was supervised by Representative Raul Johnson of the Omoa IHAH office. The goals and objectives of this work, as well as a discussion of our methodologies and results, are described in this report. This was the second formal field season of PADO. Our primary goal was to initiate small-scale excavations at the site of Sinsimbla assess chronological …

A Hematite Cone From Smith County, Texas, Mark Walters

Index of Texas Archaeology: Open Access Gray Literature from the Lone Star State

Hematite (Fe2O3) is a mineral, its most important usage being iron ore. In the United States, hematite occurs over a large region with a major concentration in the central part of the country. Hematite has varying degrees of hardness and colors. Hematite gives rocks their red color and characteristic “red-streak.” Soft, earthy (red ocher) forms were prized as paints. Hard, compact forms with considerable iron content were valued as tools, because of their strength as well as susceptibility to a high and beautiful polish. Certain forms of hematite are used in making jewelry. During prehistoric times, hematite was fashioned and …

Aztec Human Sacrifice As Entertainment? The Physio-Psycho-Social Rewards Of Aztec Sacrificial Celebrations, Linda Jane Hansen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Human sacrifice in the sixteenth-century Aztec Empire, as recorded by Spanish chroniclers, was conducted on a large scale and was usually the climactic ritual act culminating elaborate multi-day festivals. Scholars have advanced a wide range of theories explaining the underlying motivations and purposes of these abundant and regulated ritual massacres. Recent scholarship on human sacrifice in ancient Mexico has observed far more complexity, nuance, and fluidity in the nature of these rituals than earlier mono-causal explanations. Several recent examinations have concentrated their analysis on the use of sacred space, architecture, movement, and embodiment in these festivals. As an extension of …

The Relationship Of The Maya And Teotihuacan: A Mesoamerican Mystery, Keith Ferguson

Inquiry Journal 2007

No abstract provided.

The Ogoni Of Nigeria, A. Olu Oyinlade, Jeffery M. Vincent

Anthropology Faculty Publications

The Ogoni are a minority ethnic people who live in the Western Niger Delta Region of southern Nigeria. During the 1970s, Ogoniland, or the Ogoni Nation, became part of the Rivers State of Nigeria. There are approximately 500,000 Ogoni who represent less than 0.05 percent of Nigeria's 100 to 120 million people. The population density of this region equals 1,233 people per square mile, making it one of the most densely populated areas of Nigeria. Reliable information about the origin of the Ogoni is limited. Archaeological and oral historical evidence suggests that the Ogoni have inhabited the area for over …

The Joel Halpern Ethnographic Collection Of Southeast Asia Artifacts, Joel Halpern

Joel M. Halpern

The Fur Trade, Rachel B. Juen, Michael S. Nassaney

Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project

Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project - Booklet Series, No. 2

Table of contents:

• New France and the Fur Trade
• North American Rivalries
• How the Fur Trade Worked
• Trade Routes and Transportation
• A Two Way Trade: The Movement of Goods and Furs
• People of the Trade in New France
• Fur Trade Society
• Native Peoples and the Fur Trade
• Trade Goods and the Material Culture of the Fur Trade
• Animal Exploitation
• Conclusion
• Fur Trade Timeline