Rita P. Wright

The Uruk Expansion: Cross-cultural Exchange in Early Mesopotamian Civilization [with Comments and Reply]

Comments and Reply] Author(s): Guillermo Algaze, Burchard Brenties, A. Bernard Knapp, Philip L. Kohl, Wade R. Kotter, C. C. Lamberg-Karlovsky, Glenn M. Schwartz, Harvey Weiss, Robert J. Wenke, Rita P. Wright and Allen Zagarell Source: Current Anthropology, Vol. 30, No. 5 (Dec., 1989), pp. 571-608 Published by: The University of Chicago Press on behalf of Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2743567 . Accessed: 06/10/2014 22:44

Water supply and history: Harappa and the Beas regional survey

Introducing the methods of archaeoclimatology, the authors measure the relative locus of the monsoons, the intensity of winter rains and the volume of water in the rivers in the Upper Indus, in the region of Harappa. They also note the adoption of a multi-cropping agricultural system as a possible strategy designed to adjust to changing conditions over time. They find that around 3500 BC the volume of water in the rivers increases, and the rivers flood, implying annual soil refreshment and the consequent development of agriculture. By contrast, from around 2100 BC the river flow begins to fall while the winter rains increase. This time-bracket correlates nicely with the brief flourishing of Harappa. The locally derived evidence from Harappa combined with the Beas survey data provide a model for understanding the abandonment of settlements in the Upper Indus and possibly the wider civilisation.

Stateless cities: The differentiation of societies in the near eastern Neolithic

The very small number of early sites in most areas certainly does not support the idea that cities developed out of overgrown villages; the reverse... seems far more logical. Indeed, archaeology has shown that cities came into being as early as towns and villages and the first demonstrable signs of the cultivation of plants and the herding of animals emanate not from villages but from the important primary sites, cities. ... As new crafts and techniques developed, such places would grow richer and richer, providing more and more work, and thus notably encouraging immigrants from other regions...In this way, cities surrounded themselves with villages and towns, some of which may have carried part of the trade and added a few specialties of their own. James Mellaart

Vasant Shinde, Teresa P. Raczek & Gregory L. Possehl (ed.). Excavations at Gilund: the artifacts and other studies . (Museum Monograph 138). xviii+254 pages, numerous bw 978-1-934536-66-7 hardback

The volume overall handles these difficulties deftly, but to my mind the focus on ‘Anglo-Saxon sculpture’ is perhaps too limiting in scope for Cornwall, and masks the complex engagements with stone in the early medieval period. The gap between the early Latin-inscribed stones and the sculptured stones covered here may be as much as two centuries, but the earlier pillars remained visible and influential. The vertical inscription down the shaft of Lanteglos 1 is an eloquent citation of early epigraphy in the area, even though it dates from the eleventh century and is in Middle English instead of Latin. The inscribed stones themselves may be evoking the grammar of prehistoric standing stones or undecorated pillars as found at a handful of churchyards alongside early medieval sculpture.

99.95 & £65.

Deeply embedded cultural assumptions about appropriate womens and mens work have persisted throughout human history. Embedded in attitudes about professions and technologies are cultural notions of manhood and womanhood. The author discusses two examples, one from the ancient province of Lagash in present day Iraq around 4000 years ago and the other from mid-19th century America. These examples illustrate the hidden dimensions and gendered assumptions that underlay historical processes. They also demonstrate that barriers to change can be culturally mediated by employing effective strategies that balance present needs with prevailing perceptions about appropriate gendered workplaces and professions.