Frontier life in ancient Peru : the archaeology of Cerro la Cruz / Melissa A. Vogel.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Vogel, Melissa A.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Indians of South America--Peru--Chao River Valley--Antiquities.

Indians of South America.

Indians of South America--Peru--Chao River Valley--Politics and government.

Indians of South America--Peru--Chao River Valley--Migrations.

Indians of South America--Peru--Casma River Valley--Antiquities.

Indians of South America--Peru--Casma River Valley--Politics and government.

Politics and government.

Antiquities.

Chao River Valley (Peru)--Antiquities.

Chao River Valley (Peru).

Casma River Valley (Peru)--Antiquities.

Casma River Valley (Peru).

Peru--Casma River Valley.

Peru--Chao River Valley.

Physical Description:

x, 231 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Gainesville : University Press of Florida, [2012]

Summary:

Melissa Vogel's Frontier Life in Ancient Peru offers a new perspective on ancient Peruvian life and geopolitics during a pivotal period of Andean cultural transformation between AD 900 and AD 1300. Focusing on the frontier site of Cerro la Cruz in the Chao Valley (located on the northern frontier of the Casma polity), this volume richly details the role of cross-cutting social networks and the dynamics of shifting political boundaries in prehistoric north coast Peru.

The rise of the Chimú Empire caused the Chao Valley to become a border zone between the Casma and their encroaching neighbors. Vogel identifies the various cultural influences represented in the archaeological record and reconstructs the nature of the area's occupation and transformation over time. Her systematic and comprehensive volume synthesizes information about the societies in this region while also expanding and clarifying the definition of Casma-style ceramics and architecture for comparison with other sites.

This study provides new insights into a relatively unknown cultural group during a period of cultural transition and political instability, enhancing our knowledge of border zones and frontiers and the roles they play in the inter-polity dynamics of precapitalist states. As the first English-language work on the Casma polity, this is a powerful new resource for understanding an important pre-lnca culture as well as a fascinating investigation of the forces at work in the development and collapse of complex societies. Book jacket.

Contents:

Introduction : geopolitical boundaries in Andean prehistory

A time and place of transition : the north coast of Peru, AD 900-1350

Archaeological approaches to peripheries

Investigating peripheries : the site of Cerro la Cruz

Life on the edge of the Casma polity

The geopolitical landscape of the Peruvian coast in late prehistory

Conclusion : conquest and abandonment.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780813037967

0813037964

OCLC:

713186875