Proefschrift Universiteit van Amsterdam, 2001. / Met lit. opg. - Met samenvatting in het Nederlands.

Proefschrift Universiteit Maastricht. / Met lit. opg. - Met samenvatting in het Nederlands.

Proefschrift Universiteit van Amsterdam. / Met lit. opg. - Met samenvatting in het Nederlands.

Proefschrift Universiteit van Amsterdam. / Met index, lit. opg. - Met samenvatting in het Nederlands en Litouws.

Proefschrift Rijksuniversiteit Limburg, Maastricht. / Met samenvatting in het Nederlands. - Met lit. opg.

Large, conical mounds known as sambaquis form the contours of prehistoric settlement, resource procurement, and ritual along the southern coast of Brazil. This research examines faunal remains from Jabuticabeira II, a large shell mound exclusively used as a cemetery for approximately 1000 years (between 2500 - 1400 BP). Its complex stratigraphy alternates between dark burial deposits and light, thick layers of shells. Various groups used neighboring burial areas simultaneously, and faunal analysis of these burial deposits suggests that animals, especially fish, played an integral role in feasts performed to honor the dead.Detailed investigation of feast remains from 12 funerary areas indicates recurrent use of the same resources during the events, especially catfish and whitemouth croaker. Mammals and birds were also part of the ritual and were deposited in association with burial pits, especially during the final episode of construction. The remains of feasts were then used to fill the funerary areas and demarcate the domain of the dead. Recurrent depositional episodes of massive amounts of shell valves eventually formed a large mound, and the building materials were carefully selected to emphasize the opposition between interment areas and covering layers.The results primarily indicate strong continuity in the feasts. A dramatic shift in the materials used to build the mound during the final period of its construction does not coincide with a change in the faunal assemblage. Examination of Brazilian ethnography sheds light on several aspects of mortuary ritual and explains the association of features discovered at the site. Feasts incorporated resources accessible to all group members, and reinforced the connection of groups with estuarine landscape. The identification of bounded deposits that can be assigned to specific affinity groups allows studies of the nature of social relationships. This permitted the development of a sampling strategy that targeted social units, a breakthrough approach. The unique access to affinity groups can answer questions about the behavior of these social units and the association of their members.

In this dissertation, I examine trajectories of cultural evolution among complexhunter-gatherers and middle range societies. Broadly, I consider the theoretical issuesrelated to these two areas of study and how we should conceptualize the study of socioculturalevolution in societies organized at this scale. I apply these ideas to the study ofthe prehistoric hunter-gatherers who occupied Sapelo Island, Georgia, U. S. A.Specifically, I examine the Archaic period (4200 – 3000 B. P.) occupation of the SapeloShell Ring complex, located on the western side of the island. In particular, I study issuesof sedentism, settlement aggregation, mound construction, and the emergence of socialinequality as they relate to shell rings in the southeastern United States, as well as otherareas of the world. One of the central problems for studying these sites is whether shellrings form by gradual accumulation or by intentional construction and the concomitantsocial formations associated with these two different behaviors. Using geophysicalsurvey, artifact distributions, and radiocarbon dating, I examine the use and nature ofspace at the site as well as site formation processes. I present the results of both thegrowth band analysis on clams and the isotopic analysis on clams and oysters from thesite in order to address season of occupation. In addition to this new data, a reanalysis ofprevious excavations is presented. Combined, these data lend important insights intodifferent dimensions of socio-political complexity. Specifically, these data suggest thatthe Sapelo Shell Ring complex population was relatively large for its time. It addition, itseems that at least some portion of the population occupied the site year-round. Despiteit large population size and reduced mobility the occupants of the site maintained at leastsome degree of egalitarian social relations.

Zugl.: Hamburg, Universiẗat für Wirtschaft und Politik, Diss., 2003.

Thesis (doctoral)--Hochschule St. Gallen für Wirtschafts-, Rechts- und Sozialwissenschaften, 2003.

Proefschrift Universiteit van Amsterdam. / Met lit. opg. - Met samenvatting in het Nederlands.