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Informationen zum Autor Dr Demarest is the Ingram Professor of Anthropology at Vanderbilt University, Tennessee. For more than twenty-five years he has directed archaeological field excavations at ancient sites in the highlands, coasts and rain forests of Central America and is considered a leading authority on early Olmec, particularly Mayan civilization. Klappentext By applying a holistic view to the most recent evidence from archaeology! Arthur Demarest brings the lost civilization of the Maya to life. His theoretical interpretation emphasises both the brilliant rain forest adaptations of the ancient Maya and the Native American spirituality that permeated all aspects of their daily life. Drawing on data from the largest ongoing archaeology projects in Central America! this new study will appeal to anyone interested in the ecological bases of civilization! the function of the state and the causes of the collapse of civilizations. Zusammenfassung Ancient Maya comes to life in this new holistic and theoretical study of the rise! florescence and decline of the cities of this most sophisticated civilization. Drawing on new! unpublished data! Arthur Demarest draws lessons for contemporary society and the modern Maya peoples struggling to re-emerge. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1. The mystery and the challenge of the Ancient Maya; 2. Background: geography, chronology, and theoretical perspective; 3. The exploration and archaeology of the Maya: a brief history; 4. Obscure beginnings and the preclassic florescence; 5. The splinter of classic Maya florescence in the lowlands; 6. Settlement and subsistence: the rain forest adaptation; 7. Classic Maya economics; 8. Religion and ideology: beliefs and ritual of the theater state; 9. Classic Maya politics and history: the dynamics of the theater state; 10. The end of classic Maya civilization: collapse, transition, and transformation; 11. The legacy of the classic Maya civilization: postclassic, colonial, and modern traditions; 12. The lessons of Maya history and prehistory....
