New Perspectives On Human Sacrifice And Ritual Body Treatments In Ancient Maya Society

However, it was obvious to us that the strained relations did not extend to scientific discussions between scholars. This was not the ideal climate for the free exchange of ideas needed for meaningful research. We left that meeting well aware that if the problems of prehistoric Old World-New World relationships were to be resolved, it would eventually require cooperative research efforts within the world community of archaeologists.

Decades of research not only have illuminated the backdrop against which culture is viewed, but have identi­ fied many of the conditions that influence or promote technological develop­ ment, social transformation, and economic reorganization.Students of human behavior have always been interested in the relationship between human populations and their environment.

This revolution resulted from the new capability of observing on a large, regional and global, scale surface patterns and features, and from using multispectral instruments to observe surface signatures not visible to the human eye, and to penetrate below the surface cover using microwave radiation. As nicely and comprehensively described in this book, remote sensing techniques are bringing new powerful tools to help archaeologists in their quest of discovery and exploration.

Archaeologists seemed to be re­ discovering in the late twentieth century the importance of interregional contacts in processes of sociopolitical change. The diversity of perspectives that resulted seemed to be symptomatic of both an uncertainty of how best to approach this topic and the importance archaeologists attributed to it. These viewpoints, in turn, were rapidly joined in the late 1970s by a wide range of intellectual schemes stimulated by developments in French Marxism (referred to in various ways; termed political ideology here) and sociology (Immanuel Wallerstein's world-systems model). This "rebirth" was marked not only by a sudden increase in publications that were focused on interac­ tion questions, but also by a diversity of perspectives on past contacts.

This up-to-date work presents a new type of regional archaeology that explores contemporary ideas about the nature of the past.

Transitions Before the Transition Although modern humans as a species may be defined in terms of their skeletal anatomy, it is their behavior, and the social and cognitive structures that support that behavior, which most clearly distinguish Homo sapiens from earlier forms of humans.The papers focus on several fundamental questions. Equally if not more important are questions surrounding the origins of modern behavior, and the relationships between anatomical and behavioral changes that occurred during the past 200,000 years.

This revolution resulted from the new capability of observing on a large, regional and global, scale surface patterns and features, and from using multispectral instruments to observe surface signatures not visible to the human eye, and to penetrate below the surface cover using microwave radiation. Even though this field is still in its infancy, the different articles in this book give us a glimpse of the things to come and the great potential of remote sensing in archaeology. As nicely and comprehensively described in this book, remote sensing techniques are bringing new powerful tools to help archaeologists in their quest of discovery and exploration. Remote Sensing in Archaeology.

The editors bring together not only archaeologists but anthropologists, forensic anthropologists, art historians and bioarchaeologists, giving the volume a more complete perspective on these sites and the material culture and biological evidence found there. Additionally, this is an international volume with scholars from the area studied which is becoming more and more important in archaeological research. But a number of new sites have been discovered, giving an interdisciplinary group of researchers a channel to discuss these acts and their meaning.

Remote Sensing in Archaeology. Even though this field is still in its infancy, the different articles in this book give us a glimpse of the things to come and the great potential of remote sensing in archaeology. Over the last few decades, a revolution took place in our ability to observe and “explore” our home planet using spaceborne and airborne remote sensing instruments. As nicely and comprehensively described in this book, remote sensing techniques are bringing new powerful tools to help archaeologists in their quest of discovery and exploration.

New Perspectives on Human Sacrifice and Ritual Body Treatments in Ancient Maya Society Most school children in the US learn about the Maya and their practices based on their cultural and religious beliefs in their Social Studies classes.. The field of archaeology is growing to include the physical remains of ritual practice along with the material remains and this book can be seen as an example of who the study of ancient civilizations can be more comprehensive.