The theory and practice of archaeology : a workbook

190 Pages·2016·13.61 MB·English

by  Patterson

THE THEORY
AND PRACTICE
OF ARCHAEOLOGY
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THE THEORY
AND PRACTICE
OF ARCHAEOLOGY
A WORKBOOK
THIRD EDITION
Thomas C. Patterso n
University of California, Riverside
~l Routledge
!
~ Taylor & Francis Group
LONDON AND NEW YORK
First published 2005, 1994, 1983 by Pearson Education, Inc.
Published 2016 by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OXI4 4RN
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017, USA
Routledge is an imprint oft he Tay/or & Francis Group, an informa business
Copyright Cl 2005. 1994. 1983 Taylor & Francis. All rights reserved.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in
any fonn or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any infonnation storage or
retrieval system, without pennission in writing from the publishers.
Notice:
Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are
used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Credits and acknowledgments borrowed from other sources and reproduced, with
pennission, in this textbook appear on appropriate page within text.
ISBN: 9780131898059 (Pbk)
Cover Design: Bruce kenslaar
Library of Congress cataloglng.in.Publicatlon Data
Patterson, Thomas Carl.
The theory and practice of archarology : a workbook / Thomas C.
Patterson.-3rd ed.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-13·189805·1 (paper back)
l. Archaeology. 2. Archaeology-Handbooks, manuals, ete. I. Title.
CC72.P38 2005
930.1'0I-<lc22
2004009832
For Wendy
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CONTENTS
Preface ix
Some Suggestions for Teachers xiii
Introduction 1
The Problems
Problem 1 Stratigraphy: Establishing a Sequence from Excavated
Archaeological Evidence 11
Problem 2 Seriation: Ordering Archaeological Evidence by Stylistic
Differences 19
Problem 3 Constructing a Regional Chronology 29
Problem 4 Modes of ProdUction, Divisions of Labor, and Social
Reproduction 35
Problem 5 Time and Place as Operating Conditions in Production 45
Problem 6 The Construction and Transformation of Regional
Landscapes 55
vii
viii Contents
Problem 7 Social Divisions of Labor, Class Structures, and State
Formation 65
Problem 8 State Formation: Conquest Abroad, Repression at Home 77
Problem 9 Frontier Societies: State Formation and Uneven
Development 87
Problem 10 State Formation and the Reorganization of Social Production
and Reproduction 97
Problem 11 The Social Construction of Gender, Ethnicity, and Race 107
Problem 12 Class Struggle and Resistance 115
Discussion of the Problems
Problem 1 Stratigraphy: Establishing a Sequence from Excavated
Archaeological Evidence 127
Problem 2 Seriation: Ordering Archaeological Evidence by Stylistic
Differences 131
Problem 3 Constructing a Regional Chronology 135
Problem 4 Modes of Production, Divisions of Labor, and Social
Reproduction 137
Problem 5 Time and Place as Operating Conditions in Production 141
Problem 6 The Construction and Transformation of Regional
Landscapes 147
Problem 7 Social Divisions of Labor, Class Structures,
and State Formation 151
Problem 8 State Formation: Conquest Abroad, Repression at Home 155
Problem 9 Frontier Societies: State Formation and Uneven
Development 159
Problem 10 State Formation and the Reorganization of Social Production
and Reproduction 163
Problem 11 The Social Construction of Gender, Ethnicity, and Race 167
Problem 12 Class Struggle and Resistance 171
PREFACE
This workbook is the product of more than thirty years of interaction with
friends, colleagues, and students, as I tried to communicate to them how ar
chaeologists learn to think like archaeologists. It is also the product of a belief
that the most effective way of learning something is by actually doing it suc
cessfully, and then using the knowledge gained in the process to solve new
problems. This happens in archaeology as it does in carpentry, plumbing,
chemistry, or learning to swim.
Archaeology is more than digging holes in the ground to find things. It
is also more than building grand theories to explain the origins of food
production, the rise and fall of a particular Civilization, or the historical
development of a particular human society. Something else occurs between
the excavation-the manual labor, the romance, and the pleasure of field
archaeology-and interpretation and explanation-the mental activity in
volved in explaining what excavated materials mean, and how they affect our
understanding of the ancient society whose men, women, and children
produced those remains. The activities that occur between excavation and
survey, on the one hand, and interpretation and explanation, on the other,
take up most of the archaeologist's time and provide the linkage that relates
archaeological theory to archaeological practice. This workbook is concerned
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