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167 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Fertile Crescent
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a ribbon of Mediterranean climate that arcs across the Middle East that has conditions very good for farming
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Ohalo
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a Kebaran site in northern Israel with the preserved remains of brush huts
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Lunates
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tiny crescent-shaped stone tools characteristic of the Natufian
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'Ain Mallaha
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a Natufian site in northern Israel with the remains of oval stone structures; estimated to be the oldest village in the world
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Younger Dryas
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a period of global climatic stress that had a significant impact on Natufian society
Often characterized as a "little Ice Age" |
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Natufians
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practiced a broad-spectrum subsistence strategy that relied on a wide range of resources
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Jericho tower
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a 9-meter-high structure made of undressed stone and mud brick dating to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A.
is an example of a display ritual piece |
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Plastered skulls
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Hidden ritual pieces involving remodeled human heads buried beneath floors on sites dating to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic B period
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Rachis
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part of plants that holds the seed to the stalk
on domesticate plants, is tough so that the seed stays on the plant until it is harvested |
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Lepinski Vir
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located along the Danube River in Serbia. Is an impressive Mesolithic site with structures, burials, and sculptures. Place where hunter-gatherers and farmers lived side by side
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Linear Band Keramik (LBK)
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the earliest farming communities of Central and Western Europe. lived in longhouses built of massive timbers
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Teosinte
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a wild grass found in the highlands of Mexico; the wild ancestor of maize
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Diagnostic
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an artifact that tells you something about the time period in which it was created
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Characteristics of Ancient Maya
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Hieroglyphic writing, calendar system, numeric system, fired ceramics, tropical resources, obsidian, jade, body modification, shared religion, body shaping
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Maya Preclassic
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writing system, shared art styles, creation myth, pyramid complexes, earliest murals, economic system, trade, thick/rolling plaster architecture, inherited power
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Sacbe(ob)
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Mayan road(s)
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El Mirador
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site in Peten, Guatemala, that is divided into east and west groups of buildings.
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Danta complex
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in the east side of El Mirador.
Contains terraces, platforms, and a temple pyramid |
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Earliest Maya murals
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date to 100BC. Found at the site of San Bartolo in Peten, Guatemala
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Earliest Maya hieroglyphics
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date to 200BC-300BC. Found at the site of San Bartolo in Peten, Guatemala
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Building J
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found at site of Monte Alban in Oaxaca, Mexico. Structure built with no right angles
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Danzantes
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carvings on stone that evoke a sense of a moving person.
Found at Monte Alban |
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Pyramid of the Sun
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3rd largest pyramid in the world. Found at Teotihuacan
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Apartment complexes
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housing at Teotihuacan that was organized into neighborhoods.
Showed distinction between different ethnic groups |
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Barrios
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Neighborhoods in Teotihuacan
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Teotihuacan material culture
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Talud Tablero style architecture , Tripod Cylinders, Fine Orange Pottery, Green Obsidian
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Talud Tablero
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type of architectural steps that were built with a table then angle piece
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Early Classic Maya
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Marked by an alliance between Tikal and Teotihuacan, more angular architecture, colonnaded structures, elaborate tombs, and polychrome pottery
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Late Classic Maya
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characterized by city states, high population growth, elaborate architecture, agriculturally based economy, complex socio-political organization
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Osteobiography
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Discovered by Frank Saul.
Means that a person's life history is recorded in his bones |
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Osteoarthritis
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degenerative changes in bones rated in stages 1-4 (best-worst)
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Osteoporosis
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a disease that breaks down the tissues in the bone
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Osteopenia
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Describes a situation of low bone density
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Syphilis
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causes a bending in leg bones
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Porotic hyperostosis
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Iron-deficiency anemia most common between ages 6 and 24 months
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Antemortem trauma
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an injury that is sustained before the person died
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Postmortem trauma
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an injury to the skeleton that has been sustained after death
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Perimortem trauma
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injury that is sustained at or about the time of death
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State-Level societies
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Cities with >10,000 people
Stratification, surplus, monumental public works,long-distance trade, army/police, state religion, writing/record keeping, science/math, distinctive art |
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Urban Revolution Theory
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Developed by V. Gordon Childe. Belief that new technologies used to increase production led to differences in wealth
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Irrigation Theory
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developed by Karl Wittfogel. Belief that cities are built around irrigation and the ability to water food
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Population Pressure Theory
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developed by Esther Boserup. Belief that agriculture grows because people need to feed the growing population
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Warfare and Circumscription Theory
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developed by Robert Carniero. Belief that the primary method for states to develope was based on violent conflicts and a situation where one had a very fertile set of land that was separated geographically by really unproductive lands
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Multicausal
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developed by Johnson and Earle. Belief that it is really important to distinguish between the conditions and the processes that create change
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Ideology
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a set of beliefs about the world
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Ubaid Period
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earliest well-represented period in southern Mesopotamia, took place 5000BC-4000BC
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Uruk Period
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Mesopotamian era when the first urban sites appear, occurred 4000BC-3200 BC
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Uruk
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oldest known city in the world
grew around its central temple precinct |
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Early Dynastic Period
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when a series of city-states developed in southern Mesopotamia, took place in 3200BC-2350BC
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3 Sources of Authority in Mesopotamian Government
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Temple, Palace, City Council
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Cueiform
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oldest known form of writing, developed during the Uruk Period
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Mesoamerica
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geographically bound, culturally defined area containing most of Mexico (all but northernmost part), Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, parts of Costa Rica, and parts of Nicaragua
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Swidden Agriculture
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slash and burn agriculture in Mesoamerica
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Recessional Field Agriculture
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flood-plain agriculture
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Raised Agriculture
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creating raised fields near water features
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Drained Agriculture
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Agriculture technique which takes a marsh area and digs canals along the margins of the swamp to drain the fields
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Terraces
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step-type man-made feature on the sides of hills
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Codices
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bark paper recordings/writings
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Stepped Pyramid
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building with basal construction with a room at the top.
o Has a roof comb that would be covered with stucco and painted with imagery o Associated with a new ruler’s rise to power |
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Ancient Mesoameican Shared Traits
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Farming techniques, Ballgame/ballcourt, Stepped Pyramids, Numeric System, Calendrics, Codices, Hieroglyphics, Human/Self-Sacrifice
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Early Formative
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time period in Mesoamerica between 2000BC-1000BC with the earliest pottery and dispersed villages
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Tecomate
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neckless jar created in the Early Formative period
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Paso de la Amada
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Earliest ballcourt in 1400BC
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Stela(e)
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huge stone slab(s) that are flat with a “picture” or writing on them
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El Manati
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Olmec site where the earliest riverballs were found
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La Venta
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Olmec site with lots of jade, were-jaguar motifs, and temple structures
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Diffusion Analyses
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theory about how cultural ideas spread without taking the people into account
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Culture Evolution theory
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people in the area developed independently w/ own culture process
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Terminal Phase
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always looking at the LAST inhabitants of a site
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Cahokia
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site from the Mississippian culture with a cite center that encompasses Monk's Mound and 16 other mounds; surrounded by a Palisade; earliest chiefdom in eastern North America
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Mississippian Culture
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time period between AD800-AD1550 in Eastern North America
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Woodhenge
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Up to 5 sites in Cahokia that looks like Stonehenge, except with wood.
Dates to around AD900-AD1100 |
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6 Criteria for Cannibalism
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1.Burning on back of Skull, but not inside skull
2.Anvil abrasions on the skull 3.Cut marks on the bones 4.Smashed leg bones 5.Pot polish on ends of bone 6.Missing vertebrae |
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Triumvirate
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3 vegetables grown together in Mesoamerica: Squash, Beans, and Maize
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Formative Period
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begins when pottery is first introduced in the Southwestern US
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Pit house
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a house built into a pit
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Optimal Foraging Theory
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Assumes that humans act on the basis of rational self-interest to maximize efficiency in collecting and processing resources
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Effigy
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something made to look like something else
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Zoomorphic
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animal-shaped
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Anthromorphic
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human-shaped
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Adena Culture
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Took place 1000BC-100BC
Start to see early villages Earliest Mound building (Great Serpent Mound) |
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Hopewell Interaction Sphere
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Took place 100BC-AD800 in Ohio River Valley and Mississippi River Valley
Bigger settlements, larger mounds, cities with centers, trade of a lot of exotic goods, peace pipes seen for first time |
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Chetro Trail
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Feature in Chaco Canyon that shows early manipulating of the natural world
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Chaco Canyon Roads
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built through canyons
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Petroglyphs
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used in Chaco Canyon as timepieces
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Fajada Butte
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Astronomical alignments in Chaco Canyon
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Bone Information
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Diet, Health, Violence, Heritable Traits, Diseases
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Taphonomy
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what happens to human bones (or animal) between the time the person dies and their discovery in the archaeological record
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Taphonomical Presences
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Buturing, Burial/Cremation, Depositional Processes, Dry/Wet Preservation, Bioturbation, Knawing
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Skeletal Remains Information
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Gender/Sex, Death Age, Stature, Health, Diseases, Heritable Traits, Means of Death, Post-Mortem Treatment, Culture Specific Modification
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Primary Cremation
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Body burned and ashes left in crematorium
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Secondary Cremation Deposit
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Cremation fractures bones and teeth, making it very difficult or impossible to determine type of cranial flattening, dental variation, disease, trauma, etc
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Gender Determination
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Possible only for individuals adolescent or older
Pelvis most reliable way to sex a skeleton |
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Sedentism
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the year round long term occupation (multiple years) of a single location characterized by more permanent houses, larger groups of people living together, larger houses
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Microbotanical remains
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small things like pollen that are very durable and preserve very well
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Neolithic Revolution
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Belief that a great invention increased productivity of food so that they could concentrate on art and other areas
NOT supported by evidence |
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Oasis Hypothesis
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Theory developed by V. Gordon Childe that stated that parts of Middle East were undergoing desertification and oasises were coming up, so people would cluster around them, and experiment with the different plants
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Natural Habitat Hypothesis
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Theory developed by Robert Bravewood that states that there was a gradual increase in the interaction between humans and plants and animals in their natural habitats, where they were already somewhat domesticated, over time
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Population Pressure Hypothesis
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Theory developed by Louis Binford that states that increases in human populations partly a result of the fact that they were relying less and less on sheer hunting and more and more on food stuffs as a result of climate change and population increase.
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Founder Plants
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intermediates between a wild and domesticated version of a plant
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Agriculture
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the intentional cultivation of specific species of plants and animals; requires the domestication of plants and animals
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Domestication
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requires the intentional cultivation of plants and animals by humans
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Plant Sheen
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can come from cultivating wild plants, or collecting wild plants, or use in domesticated plants
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Spindle Whorl
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used for both plant and animal fiber spinning
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Kebaran & Geometric Kebaran
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Small Hunter-gatherer camps characterized by the appearance of stone bladelets and no domestication of plants/animals
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Cashing
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hiding something
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Dedicatory Cashes
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put stuff in cornerstones to mark the significance of the building
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Lithics
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stone
Tools consist of Ground Stone and Chipped Stone |
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Ground Stone
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stone ground into a particular shape
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Flintknapping
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the creation of stone tools
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Chipped Stone
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Two processes: percussion and pressure
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Percussion
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First or only processs to make a chipped stone tool, involves striking an object
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Pressure
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using something pointed and apply force by pressing in order to shape a tool
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Frio Point
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common Texas projectile point type
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Reductive Technique
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flakes removed from raw material, reducing it in size until it reaches the desired size and shape
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Nodule
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a core before anything has been removed
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Flake
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a piece removed from the core of a stone in which the length is typically less than 2 times the width
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Core
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the main chunk of stone from which flakes or blades are struck
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Blade
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a piece removed from the core of a stone in which the length is typically greater than 2 times the width and it has parallel edges.
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Cortex
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the outer, weathered rind of a stone. The presence and amount of this indicates the kind and stage of manufacture
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Ventril Side
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side of a flake that comes off of a core
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Dorsal Side
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back side of the flake
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Striking Platform
(Remnant Platform) |
part of the platform on the blade instead of on the core itself
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Green Obsidian
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only comes from the Pichuca source in central Mexico
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Core Tools
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tool is made from the parent block of material
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Flake tools
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tool is made from a flake removed from a core
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Unifacial
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flakes removed from one side of the parent core or flake
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Bifacial
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flakes removed from two or more faces of the parent core or flake
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Hard Hammer
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stone on stone was used to make more irregular tools
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Soft Hammer
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bone, antler, or wood used to remove flakes from stone, easier to control these lighter and softer hammers and the flakes that come off are thinner and wider
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Tehuacan Valley and Guila Naquitz
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Sites in the Oaxaca that have produced the earliest evidence of domesticated plants in the Americas
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AMS radiocarbon dating
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dating technique that makes it possible to date very small samples, including plant remains
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Shell middens
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sites built up of discarded shells
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Poverty Point
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a Late Archaic site in Louisiana with a series of 6 concentric embankments, several mounds and stone tools that were brought there from 100-450 miles away
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Adena & Hopewell
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periods of intensive mound building in the Ohio River Valley
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Vacant Center Pattern
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sees the Hopewell earthworks as the empty core of a dispersed settlement system
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Isotope analysis
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tests of bone chemistry which can determine the role of maize in the diet
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Legitimacy
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achieved when the right of a centralized authority to have power is accepted; can be based on consensus or coercian
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Egalitarian Societies
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in these, the only difference in status are based on skill, age, and gender
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Ranked Societies
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in these, there is a hierarchy of prestige not linked to age, gender or ability
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Stratified Societies
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in these, access to key resources is linked to prestige
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States
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societies in which power is organized on a supra-kin basis OR societies integrated by a bureaucracy that uses force
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Urban Societies
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in these, people live in large Cities
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Stonehenge
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a ring of massive standing stones on the Salisbury Plain, England, that was constructed beginning in the Early Neolithic and ending in the Early Bronze Age
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Bluestones
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a ring of standing stones at the center of Stonehenge. The source of the stones is over 240 km from Stonehenge
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Chaco Canyon
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located in New Mexico, became the center of a regional settlement network and the site of the construction of large multistoried structures known as Great Houses
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Pueblo Bonito
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a massive 650-room complex, is the largest Great House in Chaco Canyon
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Kivas
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subterranean circular chambers
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Chacoan Network
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links Chaco Canyon with sites in the surrounding region through a system of roads
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Monk's Mound
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a massive earthen pyramid, occupies the core of the ancient settlement of Cahokia
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Plaza in Cahokia
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located just to the south of Monk's Mound, is an artificially leveled area
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Mound 72
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excavated site that uncovered an individual buried on a bird-shaped platform made of shells as well as mass burials of apparently sacrificial victims (shows social stratification)
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Great Zimbabwe
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a large settlement located in modern Zimbabwe built between AD1300-AD1400 that includes the remains of impressive stone enclosures
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Dhaka
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a mixture of clay and gravel that was used for building huts at Great Zimbabwe
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Mesopotamia
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the region along the course of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers centered in modern Iraq in the Fertile Crescent
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Ziggurats
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stepped pyramids found at the center of many Mesopotamian temple precincts
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Bevel-rim bowls
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small, undecorated bowls made of coarse clay fabric that are ubiquitous on Uruk period sites. Could either have been used to distribute rations or as molds for baking bread
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Royal Tombs at Ur
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burials dated to the Early Dynastic period in which the dead were buried with a spectacular array of precious artifacts and sacrificial victims
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Cylinder seals
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one of the methods developed by Mesopotamian scribes to mark ownership
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Monte Alban
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located in the Oaxaca Valley, is the oldest city in Mesoamerica
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Teotihuacan
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was an enormous city with a population of over 80,000 people
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Copan, Honduras
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was a large Mayan city with two large pyramids and an elaborate ball court at its center
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Aguateca, Guatemala
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was completely burned and rapidly abandoned, preserving a picture of daily Mayan household life
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Mayan hieroglyphs
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developed to record the timing of ritual events in the lives of rulers
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Popol Vuh
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a Mayan myth written after the Spanish conquests that tells the epic tale of the hero twins and their battle witht he lords of the underworld
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An Yang
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the capital of the Late Shang dynasty(1200BC-1045BC) and is the oldest known Chinese city
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Oracle bones
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used in divination ceremonies and are a rich historical source of information on Shang society
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