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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Comparative Frames For The Diachronic Analysis Of Complex Societies: Next Steps, Gary M. Feinman Jan 2012

Comparative Frames For The Diachronic Analysis Of Complex Societies: Next Steps, Gary M. Feinman

Gary M. Feinman

No abstract provided.


Comparative Frames For The Diachronic Analysis Of Complex Societies: Next Steps, Gary M. Feinman Jan 2012

Comparative Frames For The Diachronic Analysis Of Complex Societies: Next Steps, Gary M. Feinman

Gary M. Feinman

No abstract provided.


The Late Prehispanic Economy Of The Valley Of Oaxaca, Mexico: Weaving Threads From Data, Theory, And Subsequent History, Gary M. Feinman, Linda M. Nicholas Jan 2012

The Late Prehispanic Economy Of The Valley Of Oaxaca, Mexico: Weaving Threads From Data, Theory, And Subsequent History, Gary M. Feinman, Linda M. Nicholas

Gary M. Feinman

Models of prehispanic Mesoamerican economies have long been derived from theoretical constructs broadly associated with Marx’s Asiatic mode of production, specifically the writings of Wittfogel and Polanyi, which emphasized centralized control of irrigation and managed systems of production and distribution. Yet, for the Valley of Oaxaca, ethnographic data point to smaller-scale, more flexible systems of production, the importance of market exchange, and mechanisms for domestic cooperation. Drawing on residential excavation data from three Classic-period sites, systematic regional surveys, and other sources, the authors find that the data from the prehispanic era conform much more closely to the ethnographic findings than …


Complexities Of Collapse: The Evidence Of Maya Obsidian As Revealed By Social Network Graphical Analysis, Gary M. Feinman, Mark Golitko, James Meierhoff, Patrick Ryan Williams Dec 2011

Complexities Of Collapse: The Evidence Of Maya Obsidian As Revealed By Social Network Graphical Analysis, Gary M. Feinman, Mark Golitko, James Meierhoff, Patrick Ryan Williams

Gary M. Feinman

The authors use a social network analysis to map the changing patterns of obsidian supply among the Maya during the period of Classic to Postclassic transition. The quantity of obsidian received from different sources was calculated for 121 sites and the network analysis showed how the relative abundance of material from different sources shifted over time. A shift from inland to coastal supply routes appears to have contributed to the collapse of inland Maya urban centres. The methods employed clearly have a high potential to reveal changing economic networks in cases of major societal transitions elsewhere in the world.