Ancient Puebloan Southwest (Case Studies in Early Societies) [Paperback]

John Kantner (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 13, 2004 | ISBN-10: 0521788803 | ISBN-13: 978-0521788809

John Kantner traces the evolution of Pueblo society in the American Southwest from the emergence of the Chaco and Mimbres in the AD 1000s through the early decades of contact with the Spanish in the sixteenth century. Based on a diverse range of archaeological data, historical accounts, oral history and ethnographic records, this introduction for students of the Pueblo Southwest is vital reading for any archaeologist concerned with the origins of early civilizations.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...a tour de force of archaeological synthesis...[I]t identifies major themes in prehistory, while also providing a sample of the great variation... -- Canadian Journal of Archaeology, Vol. 29, 2005

John Kantner has crafted a captivating and highly readable book devoted to ancient Puebloan developments in the American Southwest. -- Kiva, Vol. 71, No. 1, 2005

Book Description

In this accessible and illuminating study, John Kantner traces the evolution of Pueblo society in the American Southwest from the florescence of the Chaco and Mimbres in the AD 1000s up to and including the early decades of contact with the Spanish in the 16th century. Based on a diverse range of archaeological data, historical accounts, Pueblo oral history and ethnographic records, this is an invaluable introduction for all students of the Pueblo Southwest, and vital reading for any archaeologist with an interest in the origins of early civilizations.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 338 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (December 13, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521788803
• ISBN-13: 978-0521788809
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #474,555 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

John Kantner is the Vice President for Academic & Institutional Advancement at the School for Advanced Research and formerly an Associate Professor of Anthropology at Georgia State University. A native of New Mexico, he earned his B.A. from Colorado College and his Ph.D. from U.C. Santa Barbara. His early research was on Spanish Colonial ethnohistory of the Southwest, and he has also conducted archaeological investigations in Costa Rica, the U.S. Plains, and the U.S. Rocky Mountains. Over the past several years, Dr. Kantner's research has focused on the archaeology of the prehistoric Southwestern United States, with a particular interest in the development of sociopolitical complexity in and around Chaco Canyon.

Dr. Kantner currently directs the Lobo Mesa Archaeological Project, which focuses on prehistoric Anasazi groups who inhabited the Red Mesa Valley of northwestern New Mexico between A.D. 850 and 1200. The goal of this research, which is funded with a NSF CAREER grant, is to identify the processes by which complex social and political regional institutions emerge from communities of comparatively simple horticulturists. Principles of human behavioral ecology and evolutionary theory provide the theoretical foundation for these investigations, while the analysis of prehistoric ceramics and regional spatial patterning provides the methodologies needed to interpret the archaeological remains.

Publications by Dr. Kantner can be found in Human Nature, Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, Journal of Archaeological Research, Historical Archaeology, and Kiva, and he coedited the 2000 book Great House Communities Across the Chacoan Landscape, published by University of Arizona Press. His latest book, Ancient Puebloan Southwest, was published by Cambridge University Press in 2004. Dr. Kantner also continues his explorations of the use of new media both for enhancing public education and facilitating professional interaction, for which he has been invited to several international workshops.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The "Old Ones" -- from Origins to Spaniards, October 9, 2007

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Smallchief - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Ancient Puebloan Southwest (Case Studies in Early Societies) (Hardcover)

Mesa Verde, Chaco Canyon, and Wuptaki are three of the best known of the Indian ruins that dot the landscape in the high desert country of New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Utah. To this day it is difficult to comprehend how these Indians thrived in a region of short hot summers, little rain, and poor soil -- and not only fed themselves but left behind spectacular monumental buildings. Adding to the mystery is their sudden abandonment of their major sites in the 1100s and 1200s.

The author surveys the knowledge and theories about the ancient peoples who became the modern day Pueblo Indians. He follows the development of the Anasazi and Mogollon traditions from their beginnings thousands of years ago until the 1700s, after the arrival of the Spaniards. The book is illustrated with more than 100 photos, maps, and charts and 25 sidebars that take up interesting topics such as cannibalism, construction methods, domestic animals, ballcourts, burials, and leadership. The emphasis is on thoroughness as the author briefly describes the findings and gives a hearing to the theories of hundreds of archaeologists and other scholars. The bibliography runs to more than 30 pages.

There is much of environmental determinism here for in the climate of the Southwest small changes in the weather made all the difference in the lives of the inhabitants. Scholars have meticulously reconstructed temperature and precipitation records for the last 2,000 years and the author attempts to correlate the rise and fall of Indian cultures with precipitation and temperature averages.

"Ancient Puebloan Southwest" is probably a bit too dense for the casual reader, but offers those interested in archaeology and the Southwest a thorough and up-to-date account of the Anasazi the Mogollon and the proto-historic Zuni, Hopi, and Rio Grande Pueblos.

Smallchief