List of Figures

List of Tables

Acknowledgments

1. Complexity and Its Discontents

2. Human Cultural Institutions: Critical Elements in Complex Society

3. Ancient Systems: From Forager to State

4. Scales of Complexity: Case Studies

5. Southwest Asia: Ancient Mesopotamia and Its Neighbors

6. The Nile Valley of Egypt

7. The Aegean Bronze Age and the Classical World

8. The Indus Valley Civilization

9. Ancient Chinese Civilizations

10. Empires in Southeast Asia

11. The Mississippian System in the American Bottom

12. Ancient Mesoamerican Cultures

13. Andean Civilizations and Empires

14. Why Complex Societies Collapse

Bibliography

Index

Through a detailed examination of the archaeological evidence and written records, this comprehensive text aims to develop a common understanding of what complexity means to archaeologists, and the methods by which they identify and analyze it. In this first new undergraduate textbook on ancient complex societies in two decades, the authors use vivid writing, textboxes on key themes and sites, and a glossary to keep students thoroughly engaged.

Jennifer C. Ross is a Professor of Art & Archaeology at Hood College in Frederick, MD. She is the Associate Director of the Çadir Höyük excavations and has published on topics ranging from the invention of cuneiform to metallurgical technologies in the ancient Near East.

Sharon R. Steadman is a Professor of Anthropology at the State University of New York College at Cortland. She has published on the subjects of ancient religions in archaeological context and the archaeology of architecture and has edited several volumes on the archaeology of Anatolia.