Ancient Cahokia and the Mississippians

by Timothy R. Pauketat

Overview

The ancient capital of Cahokia and a series of lesser population centers developed in the Mississippi valley in North America between the eighth and fifteenth centuries AD, leaving behind an extraordinarily rich archaeological record. Cahokia's gigantic pyramids, finely crafted artifacts, and dense population mark it as the founding city of the Mississippian civilization, formerly known as the 'mound' builders. As Cahokian ideas and objects were widely sought, a cultural and religious ripple effect spread across the mid-continent and into the South. In its wake, population migrations and social upheavals transformed social life along the ancient Mississippi River. In this important new survey, Timothy Pauketat outlines the development of Mississippian civilization, presenting a wealth of archaeological evidence and advancing our understanding of the American Indians whose influence extended into the founding moments of the United States and lives on today in American archaeology.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521817400
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	06/17/2004
Series:	Case Studies in Early Societies , #6
Pages:	236
Product dimensions:	6.46(w) x 9.41(h) x 0.79(d)

About the Author

Timothy R. Pauketat is Associate Professor of Anthropology in the Department of Anthropology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. His publications include The Archaeology of Traditions (2001), Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World (with T. Emerson, 1997) and The Ascent of Chiefs (1994).

Table of Contents

1. Civilization in North America; 2. Geography, resources, and the Mississippian ethnoscape; 3. Villages along the Mississippi; 4. Early Cahokia; 5. Greater Cahokia; 6. Mississippianization; 7. The struggle for identity; 8. Conclusion.

Editorial Reviews

"...Timothy Pauketat certainly ranks as an authority on this stage of cultural development in the Eastern Woodlands.... Ancient Cahokia and the Mississippians is an important contribution to Mississippian archaeology..." - Canadian Journal of Archaeology

From the Publisher