Anthropology: Ancient People, Cultures, and Societies

Anthropology: Ancient People, Culture, and Societies provides a broad overview of world prehistory while highlighting significant events, developments, and cultures through time. Organized chronologically and geographically, it gives students a clear understanding of changes through time from the evolution of the human species to the development of complex civilizations.

The text begins by addressing how archaeologists study past cultures and the types of methods used to investigate prehistoric sites. It then presents information on evolution, the origins of agriculture, and early complex civilizations such as Mesopotamia and the city-states of the Nile River Valley. Students learn about early cultures of East Asia, the Chinese Empire, South Asia, and ancient India. New World cultures, such as Native American groups, and the Maya, Aztec, and Inca, are addressed in the final chapters.

The fourth edition has been updated to reflect new archaeological information. New topical coverage includes Croation decorative and ritual artifacts, dog domestication, British Museum-housed Nimrud artifacts and controversies, and modern representations of Cleopatra. Chapter 9 has been rewritten to include new findings on Minoan writing, religion, and the end of its civilization, as well as Mycenaenan tombs and burial practices.

Anthropology is ideal for courses in world prehistory, world archaeology, and introduction to archaeology.