Week 1: What’s an Interaction Sphere?
We discuss the method and theory of recognizing and reconstructing ancient cultures and ancient cultural interaction from archaeological data. Among topics we will consider are world systems theory, weak states, city states, and the basic mechanics of reconstructing culture from material remains.
Week 2: The “Triple Alliance”
We will discuss of the “triple alliance” of Teotihuacan in Central Mexico, Tikal in lowland Guatemala, and Kaminaljuyu in highland Guatemala. This alliance is apparently at the core of military expansion and a major source of culture change among the Classic Maya, and Classic period Central Mexico.
Week 3: The Chacoan System of the American Southwest
We will look at interactions between the major sites of Chaco Canyon (New Mexico) and surrounding areas of the Southwest and the development and expansion of Chaco and of a road system linking Chacoan sites. We will also look at trade goods from Mesoamerica in the American Southwest.
Week 4: The Hopewell and Cahokia System
The mound-builders of North America influenced the whole mid-western and southern parts of the continent. We will survey the distribution of mounds, similarities in architecture, trade routes and trade goods, and the persistence of mound-building for over a thousand years.
Week 5: Post-Classic Civilizations: The Aztec and Inca
We will focus on the empire-building approaches of two separate – yet similar – cultures. For the Aztecs, we will discuss the post-Classic interaction spheres in Mesoamerica; for the Incas, our focus will be the development and spread of Andean culture.
Week 6: Longer-than-Long-Distance Connections
We will discuss evidence for a possible prehistoric cultural sphere along the Gulf of Mexico, linking the cultures of northern Mesoamerica, the American Southwest, and the American Southeast. Our discussion will focus on trade routes and trade items, including jade and obsidian objects and macaws.
