Religion in the Prehispanic Southwest

by VanPool, Christine S.; VanPool, Todd L.; Phillips, David A., Jr.; Phillips, David A.; Kantner, John; Adams, E Charles; LaMotta, Vincent M.; Hays-Gilpin, Kelley; Ruscavage-Barz, Samantha M.; Bagwell, Elizabeth A.; Williams, J S.; Chenault, Mark L.; Lindly,

• ISBN13: 9780759109674
• ISBN10: 0759109672
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-01-18
• Publisher: AltaMira Press

Summary

Religion was as central in the day-to-day lives of prehistoric southwestern people just as it is in the lives of their descendants today. Examining the role of religion can help to explain architecture, pottery, agriculture, even commerce. But archaeologists have only recently developed the theoretical and methodological tools with which to study this topic. Religion in the Prehispanic Southwest marks the first book-length study of prehistoric religion in the region. Drawing on a rich array of empirical approaches, the contributors show the importance of understanding beliefs and ritual for a range of time periods and southwestern societies. For professional and avocational archaeologists, for religion scholars and students, Religion in the Prehispanic Southwest represents an important contribution.

Table of Contents

List of Figures	p. vii
List of Tables	p. xi
Introduction: Archaeology and Religion	p. 1
The Horned Serpent Tradition in the North American Southwest	p. 17
Religious Behavior in the Post-Chaco Years	p. 31
New Perspectives on an Ancient Religion: Katsina Ritual and the Archaeological Record	p. 53
Icons and Ethnicity: Hopi Painted Pottery and Murals	p. 67
Gathering Spaces and Bounded Places: The Religious Significance of Plaza-oriented Communities in the Northern Rio Grande, New Mexico	p. 81
Iikaah: Chaco Sacred Schematics	p. 103
Guanacos, Symbolism, and Religion during the Hohokam Preclassic	p. 115
Elevated Spaces: Exploring the Symbolic at Cerros de Trincheras	p. 135
Toloatzin and Shamanic Journeys: Exploring the Ritual Role of Sacred Datura in the Prehistoric Southwest	p. 147
Pre-Columbian Venus: Celestial Twin and Icon of Duality	p. 165
Religion and the Mesoamerican Ball Game in the Casas Grandes Region of Northern Mexico	p. 185
Ancestors and Elites: Emergent Complexity, Ritual Practices, and Mortuary Behavior at Paquime, Chihuahua, Mexico	p. 219
The Casas Grandes and Salado Phenomena: Evidence for a Religious Schism in the Greater Southwest	p. 235
Index	p. 253
About the Contibutors	p. 261
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