The main objective of this review is to consider what archaeology can contribute to general
anthropological theories on “ritual in its own right” and to highlight the potential for�…

Understanding Collapse explores the collapse of ancient civilisations, such as the Roman
Empire, the Maya, and Easter Island. In this lively survey, Guy D. Middleton critically�…

Everyday life is critical in the constitution of selves and societies alike. Archaeology, with its
attention to material and spatial remains, is in a unique position to further studies of�…

Mixtecs, Zapotecs, and Chatinos: Ancient Peoples of Southern Mexico examines the origins,
history, and interrelationships of the civilizations that arose and flourished in Oaxaca�…

Differing interpretations regarding the organization of past intensive farming are often
distinguished as “top-down” or “bottom-up” perspectives. The development of intensive�…

In the first comprehensive treatment of Classic Maya patron deity veneration, Joanne P.
Baron demonstrates the central importance of patron deity cults in political relationships�…

Archeologists often rely heavily on stone monuments, architecture, settlement patterns, and
written texts to reconstruct ancient political systems. In this paper we focus on the role of�…

Political economy has provided a broad framework for the study of power relations in early
complex societies, but its top-down approaches have limitations for understanding the�…

In this article, we examine the interplay of religion and politics during the later Formative
period of Mesoamerica through a comparison of two regions of southern Mexico: the lower�…

Intermediate elites played pivotal roles in the political dynamics of ancient complex societies
across the world. In the Classic period (CE 250–900/1000) Maya lowlands, intermediate�…