Understanding Early Civilizations: A Comparative Study

Trigger, Bruce G.

ISBN 10: 0521822459 / ISBN 13: 9780521822459

Published by Cambridge University Press- Canto, New York, 2003

About this Item

757 Pages Indexed. Brand new book with black marker pen remainder mark on bottom page edges. No other defects and interior text pages are flawless. Arising independently in various parts of the world, early civilizations--the first class-based societies in human history--are of importance to social scientists interested in the development of complexity, while their cultural productions fascinate both humanists and the general public. This book offers the first detailed comparative study of the seven most fully documented early civilizations: Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, Shang China, the Aztecs and their neighbors, the Classic Maya, the Inca, and the Yoruba. Unlike previous studies, equal attention is paid to similarities and differences in their sociopolitical organization, their economic systems, and their religious beliefs, knowledge, art, and values. Many of this study's findings are surprising and provocative. They challenge not only current understandings of early civilizations but also the theoretical foundations of modern archaeology and anthropology. Rival cultural and ecological approaches are demonstrated to be complimentary to one another, while a comprehensive understanding of human behavior is shown to require that more attention be paid to psychology and the neurosciences. Bruce G. Trigger is a Professor in the Department of Anthropology at McGill University. He received his PhD from Yale University and has carried out archaeological research in Egypt and the Sudan. His current (2003) interests include the comparative study of early civilizations, the history of archaeology, and archaeological and anthropological theory. Contents in 29 Chapters: Rationalism and Relativism, Comparative studies, Defining Early Civilization, Evidence and Interpretation, Kingship, States City and Territorial, Urbanism, Class systems and Social Mobility, Family Organization and Gender Roles, Administration, Law, Military Organization, Sociopolitical Constants and Variables, Food production, Land Ownership, Trade and Craft Specialization, Appropriation of Wealth, Economic Constants and Variables, Conceptions of the Supernatural, Cosmology and Cosmogony, Cult, Priests Festivals and the Politics of the Supernatural, The Individual and the Universe, Elite Art and Architecture, Literacy and Specialized Knowledge, Values and Personal Aspirations. Cultural Constants and Variables, Discussion, Culture and Reason, and Conclusion.

Seller Inventory # 17990

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Understanding Early Civilizations: A Comparative Study
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press- Canto, New York
• Publication Date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0521822459
• ISBN 13: 9780521822459
• Binding: Hard Back
• Edition: First Edition
• Condition: Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis

Arising independently in various parts of the world, early civilizations--the first class-based societies in human history--are of importance to social scientists interested in the development of complexity, while their cultural productions fascinate both humanists and the general public. This book offers the first detailed comparative study of the seven most fully documented early civilizations: ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, Shang China, the Aztecs and their neighbors, the Classic Maya, the Inca, and the Yoruba. Unlike previous studies, equal attention is paid to similarities and differences in their sociopolitical organization, their economic systems, and their religious beliefs, knowledge, art, and values. Many of this study's findings are surprising and provocative. They challenge not only current understandings of early civilizations but also the theoretical foundations of modern archaeology and anthropology. Rival cultural and ecological approaches are demonstrated to be complimentary to one another, while a comprehensive understanding of human behavior is shown to require that more attention be paid to psychology and the neurosciences. Bruce G. Trigger is James McGill Professor in the Department of Anthropology at McGill University. He received his PhD from Yale University and has carried out archaeological research in Egypt and the Sudan. His current interests include the comparative study of early civilizations, the history of archaeology, and archaeological and anthropological theory. He has received various scholarly awards, including the Prix Leon-Gerin from the Quebec government, for his sustained contributions to the social sciences. He is an honarary fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and an honarary member of the Prehistoric Society (U.K.). His numerous books include Sociological Evolution (Blackwell, 1998), Early Civilizations: Ancient Egypt in Context (Amer. Univ in Cairo, 1993), A History of Archaeological Thought (Cambridge, 1989), and The Children of Aataentsic: A History of the Huron People to 1660 (McGill-Queens Univ., 1976).

About the Author

Bruce G. Trigger is James McGill Professor in the Department of Anthropology at McGill University. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University and has carried out archaeological research in Egypt and the Sudan. His current interests include the comparative study of early civilizations, the history of archaeology, and archaeological and anthropological theory. He has received various scholarly awards, including the prestigious Prix Léon-Gérin from the Quebec government, for his sustained contributions to the social sciences. He is an honorary fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and an honorary member of the Prehistoric Society (UK). His numerous books include The Children of Aataentsic: A History of the Huron People to 1660 (1976), A History of Archaeological Thought (Cambridge 1989), Early Civilizations: Ancient Egypt in Context (1993), and Sociocultural Evolution (1998), and The Cambridge History of the Native Peoples of the Americas, Volume 1 (Cambridge 1996), co-edited with Wilcomb E. Washburn.