Indus Ethnobiology New Perspectives from the Field

by Weber, Steven A.; Belcher, William R.; Fuller, Dorian Q.; Madella, Marco; Meadow, Richard H.; Miller, Laura J.; Patel, Ajita K.; Possehl, Gregory L.; Reddy, Seetha N.; Tengberg, Margareta; Thiébault, Stéphanie; Thomas, Kenneth D.

• ISBN13: 9780739106099
• ISBN10: 0739106090
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-11-05
• Publisher: Lexington Books

Summary

Indus Ethnobiology: New Perspectives From the Field is a unique and fascinating collection of interdisciplinary essays that study the Indus society of South Asia, one of the earliest urban civilizations. The essays in this volume utilize an ethnobiological approach to offer fresh insights into the socialcultural adaptations of the Indus people, as well as into urbanism and ecological and cultural change.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Introduction	xi
The Indus Civilization: An Introduction to Environment, Subsistence, and Cultural History	1	(20)
Gregory L. Possehl
Vegetation History and Wood Exploitation in Pakistani Baluchistan from the Neolithic to the Harappan Period: The Evidence from Charcoal Analysis	21	(44)
Margareta Tengberg
Stephanie Thiebault
Prehistoric Pastoralism in Northwestern South Asia from the Neolithic through the Harappan Period	65	(30)
Richard H. Meadow
Ajita K. Patel
Fish Exploitation of the Indus Valley Tradition	95	(80)
William R. Belcher
Archaeobotany at Harappa: Indications for Change	175	(24)
Steven A. Weber
Investigating Agriculture and Environment in South Asia: Present and Future Contributions of Opal Phytoliths	199	(52)
Marco Madella
Secondary Products and Urbanism in South Asia: The Evidence for Traction at Harappa	251	(76)
Laura J. Miller
Food and Fodder: Plant Usage and Changing Socio-cultural Landscapes during the Harappan Phase in Gujarat, India	327	(16)
Seetha N. Reddy
Indus and Non-Indus Agricultural Traditions: Local Developments and Crop Adoptions on the Indian Peninsula	343	(54)
Dorian Q. Fuller
Minimizing Risk? Approaches to Pre-Harappan Human Ecology on the Northwest Margin of the Greater Indus System	397	(34)
Kenneth D. Thomas
Appendix A: Chronologies	431	(4)
Index	435	(4)
About the Contributors	439