Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
7440405 | Journal of Anthropological Archaeology | 2018 | 12 Pages |
Abstract
This paper applies concepts from the fields of historical ecology and human niche construction theory to interpret archaeological and palaeoecological data from the Brazilian state of Acre, southwest Amazonia, where modern deforestation has revealed hundreds of pre-Columbian monumental earthworks called 'geoglyphs', largely built between ca. 2000-650â¯cal. BP (calibrated years before present). Our main objective was to move away from the debate which currently dominates Amazonian archaeology over large- vs. small-scale pre-Columbian environmental impacts, and instead offer a more nuanced interpretation of human-environment interactions in our specific study area. Despite the difficulties presented by working with an incomplete regional archaeological dataset, interpreting our findings in light of these theoretical frameworks allowed us to re-think landscape history and ask new questions about a possible relationship between anthropogenic forests, symbolic capital and monument building in our particular study area.
Related Topics
Social Sciences and Humanities
Arts and Humanities
History
Authors
Jennifer Watling, Francis E. Mayle, Denise Schaan,