Social zooarchaeology humans and animals in prehistory /

"This is the first book to provide an overview and systematic examination of social zooarchaeology, a new approach that takes a holistic veiw of human-animal relations in the past. Until very recently, zooarchaeology was heavily focused on diet and subsistence economy, especially for prehistori...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Russell, Nerissa, 1957-
Corporate Author: ebrary, Inc
Format: Electronic eBook
Language:English
Published: Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2012.
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Online Access:An electronic book accessible through the World Wide Web; click to view
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Summary:"This is the first book to provide an overview and systematic examination of social zooarchaeology, a new approach that takes a holistic veiw of human-animal relations in the past. Until very recently, zooarchaeology was heavily focused on diet and subsistence economy, especially for prehistoric periods. This book argues that animals have always played much broader roles in human societies: as wealth, companions, spirit helpers, socrificial victims, totems, centerpieces of feasts, and objects of taboos, and so on. Exploring the briader significance of ancient animals provides a richer ppicture of past societies, Even those primarily interested in utuilitarian aspects of animal use need to account for that social factors that shaped zooarchaeological assemblages as much as taphonomic processes"--
Physical Description:xii, 548 p.
Bibliography:Includes bibliographical references and index.