Research Catalog

The Chaco Anasazi : sociopolitical evolution in the prehistoric Southwest

Title: The Chaco Anasazi : sociopolitical evolution in the prehistoric Southwest / Lynne Sebastian.
Author: Sebastian, Lynne.
Publication: Cambridge [England] ; New York, NY, USA : Cambridge University Press, 1992.

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Status	Format	Access	Call Number	Item Location
Request for On-site Use Request Scan How do I pick up this item and when will it be ready?	Text	Use in library	E99.P9 S45 1992	Off-site

Details

Description

xiv, 181 pages : illustrations; 26 cm

Summary

In the tenth century AD, a remarkable cultural development took place in the harsh and forbidding San Juan Basin of northwestern New Mexico. From small-scale, simply organized, prehistoric Pueblo societies, a complex and socially differentiated political system emerged which has become known as the Chaco Phenomenon. The origins, evolution, and decline of this system have long been the subject of intense archaeological debate. In her book, The Chaco Anusazi: Sociopolitical evolution in the prehistoric Southwest, Lynne Sebastian examines the transition of the Chaco system from an acephalous society, in which leadership was situational and most decision making carried out within kinship structures, to a hierarchically organized political structure with institutional roles of leadership. She argues that harsh environmental factors did not provide the catalyst for such a transition, as has previously been thought. Rather the increasing political complexity was a consequence of improved rainfall in the region which permitted surplus production, thus allowing those farming the best land to capitalize on their material success. By combining information on political evolution with archaeological data and the results of a computer simulation, the author is able to produce a sociopolitically based model of the rise, florescence, and decline of the Chaco Phenomenon.

Series Statement

New studies in archaeology

Uniform Title

New studies in archaeology.

Subject

Bibliography (note)

Includes bibliographical references (p. 166-178) and index.

Contents

Introduction -- The Chaco phenomenon: background and history of research -- Sociopolitical complexity and the Chaco system -- Routes to sociopolitical power -- Previous explanations for the Chaco phenomenon -- Relations of power, labor investment, and the political evolution of the Chaco system -- Summary and new directions -- Appendix: the computer simulation.

ISBN

0521403677
9780521403672
0521574684
9780521574686

LCCN

91038431

OCLC

ocm24795705
24795705
SCSB-1968729

Owning Institutions

Princeton University Library