What Mean These Bones?: Studies in Southeastern Bioarchaeology / Edition 1

by Mary Lucas Powell, Bruce D. Smith, George R. Milner, Clark Spencer Larsen, Leslie Eisenberg

Overview

A Dan Josselyn Memorial Publication

Until recently, archaeological projects that included analysis of human remains had often lacked active collaboration between archaeologists and physical anthropologists from the planning stages onward. During the 1980s, a conjunctive approach developed; known as "bioarchaeology," it draws on the methodological and theoretical strengths of the two subdisciplines to bridge a perceived communications gap and promote a more comprehensive understanding of prehistoric and historic cultures.
 

This volume addresses questions of human adaptation in a variety of cultural contexts, with a breadth not found in studies utilizing solely biological or artifactual data. These nine case studies from eight Southeastern states cover more than 4,000 years of human habitation, from Archaic hunter-gatherers in Louisiana and Alabama to Colonial planters and slaves in South Carolina. Several studies focus upon variations in health between or within late prehistoric agricultural societies. For example, the discovery that reliance upon maize as a dietary staple did not result invariably in poor health, as claimed by earlier studies, either for entire populations or, in ranked societies, for the non-elite majority, has fostered a new appreciation for the managerial wisdom of the Mississippian peoples, as well as for their agricultural skills.


 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780817304843
Publisher:	University of Alabama Press
Publication date:	03/30/1991
Edition description:	First Edition, First Edition
Pages:	248
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.70(d)

Editorial Reviews

"A valuable demonstration of how small, disparate populations or subpopulations can be productively utilized within a coherent analytical framework."
—American Anthropologist

From the Publisher

Lively and entertaining, this memoir details Crick's early beginnings; his involvement in the discovery of DNA; how the story of DNA made it to the television screen; Crick's work in unraveling the genetic code; and his present involvement in neurobiology at the Salk Institute, where he has been affiliated since 1976. Addresses questions of human adaptation in a variety of cultural contexts, with a breadth not found in studies using solely biological or artifactual data. These nine case studies from eight southeastern states cover some 5,000 years of human habitation, from archaic hunter-gatherers in Louisiana and Alabama to colonial planters and slaves in South Carolina. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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