Human Sacrifice, Militarism, and Rulership: Materialization of State Ideology at the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, Teotihuacan (New Studies in Archaeology) [Hardcover]

Saburo Sugiyama (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 25, 2005 | ISBN-10: 052178056X | ISBN-13: 978-0521780568

Teotihuacan was the largest urban center in the New World in the first two centuries AD, and the Feathered Serpent Pyramid was a spectacular symbol of state power. Saburo Sugiyama investigates the ritual sacrifice of some 200 men and women that marked the erection of the Pyramid in this volume, the first substantial archaeological analysis of the political institutions of Teotihuacan based on stratigraphically recorded evidence. In the process, he illuminates our understanding of urbanization, the ritual behavior of elites, and the role of warfare and sacrifice in early Teotihuacan statecraft.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'This is a remarkable achievement and will be a deeply influential contribution to all future discussions of Teotihuacan.' Dr David Freidel, Southern Methodist University

Book Description

In the first two centuries AD, Teotihuacan was the largest urban centre in the New World and the Feathered Serpent Pyramid a spectacular symbol of state power. In the first substantial archaeological analysis of the political institutions of Teotihuacan to be based on stratigraphically recorded evidence, Saburo Sugiyama investigates the ritual sacrifice of some 200 men and women that marked the erection of the Pyramid. In the process, he illuminates our understanding of urbanization, the ritual behaviour of elites, and the role of warfare and sacrifice in early Teotihuacan statecraft.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 300 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (April 25, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 052178056X
• ISBN-13: 978-0521780568
• Product Dimensions: 9.8 x 6.9 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,681,678 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating, January 11, 2007

By 

J. Weller "In wine there is wisdom, in beer t... (Louisiana) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Human Sacrifice, Militarism, and Rulership: Materialization of State Ideology at the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, Teotihuacan (New Studies in Archaeology) (Hardcover)

Teotihuacan is an amazing mystery. At its peak, it was the 6th largest city in the entire world and exerted at least partial control over key Maya cities up to 600 miles away. Yet it did so with stone age technology, no written language, no beasts of burden, and not even the wheel. And because of the lack of written records, it's very difficult for us today to understand how any of this was possible in general terms, let alone know the details of its civilization and administration.

This book is an attempt to throw some light on these enigmas. It was written by one of the recognized experts on the site, who has participated in many of the key excavations there, and is based on what is known as of the present. The main discussion is a detailing of the massive (200-odd) victim human sacrifice that was part of the ground-breaking ceremony of the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, one of the 3 major buildings of Teotihuacan, and its implications for the government of the city.

This book is definitely not light reading. It's written in a clear yet rather technical manner, so those who aren't familiar with scientific writing might find it rather heavy going, although still informative. For those with a real interest in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican history, however, it's a very useful and fascinating book. However, there's no way around the disturbing nature of its subject matter, although the book doesn't dwell or even speculate on the gory details. It just tries to explain what the quantity and arrangement of bodies and artifacts means for our understanding of life and government in Teotihuacan.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Teotihuacan and State Ideology in Mesoamerica, April 6, 2008

By 

Antonio Brunet Merino (Santiago, Chile) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Human Sacrifice, Militarism, and Rulership: Materialization of State Ideology at the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, Teotihuacan (New Studies in Archaeology) (Hardcover)

Saburo Sugiyama, who has participated in many of the key excavations in Teotihuacan, explore the Feathered Serpent Pyramid, in so far as this Pyramid (and human sacrifices associated) is an evidence of State Ideology and rising militarism of a superpower in Mesoamérica between 200-650 AD.

Excellent archaeological book!