Handbook of South American Archaeology

Meggers, Betty J.

doi:10.4067/s0717-73562011000100014

Cited by 4 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…(2) paleo-ecological data cannot be inferred from archaeological sites (Meggers, 2010) and (3) no upper limit can be set on potential population size, which would certainly have been far larger than that estimated by ecologists (Fearnside, 1990). Moreover, incorrect estimations of the size of pre-Columbian Amazonian population could lead to mistaken assessments of the Amazon Basin's capacity to recover from human-induced changes and, in turn, to misguided policies Silman, 2007, 2008;Fearnside, 1990;Meggers, 2001;Willis et al, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mid- to late-Holocene fluvial activity behind pre-Columbian social complexity in the southwestern Amazon basin

2012

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The scale, spatial variability and implications of pre-Columbian human-induced changes in the Amazon basin are controversial. While some scholars believe that large settlements and complex societies were limited to areas with favourable environmental conditions and human disturbance was localized, others propose that social complexity developed regardless of environmental constraints and opportunities and that human disturbance was widespread. In order to understand the extent to which environmental preconditions influenced the development of pre-Columbian societies, research is needed that integrates both environmental reconstructions and archaeological data. The present study explores past human–environment interactions in the Llanos de Moxos (LM) in the Bolivian Amazon. Combining extensive fieldwork and remote sensing image analysis, we reconstruct mid- to late-Holocene fluvial activity in the southeastern LM and the formation of a sedimentary lobe left by the Grande River. The lobe deposition created the conditions for the development of fertile, drained soils. We also show how pre-Columbian inhabitants adapted to the sedimentary lobe and managed to maximize the area of land suitable for agriculture by building a drainage/irrigation infrastructure. Our results provide an interpretative framework for the diversity of archaeological remains in the LM and suggest that people reached high levels of social complexity as a result of two necessary factors: favourable environmental conditions and human ingenuity.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mid- to late-Holocene fluvial activity behind pre-Columbian social complexity in the southwestern Amazon basin

2012

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“…Conversely, any nonhierarchical political arrangement must necessarily reflect some kind of failure on the part of its participants, if not preemptively chalked up to perceived upper limits on the environment's carrying capacity (Borck and Clark, 2023). Amazonia, for example, was long considered a region of "environmental limitation" (Meggers, 1971(Meggers, , 2011, though this model has been recently superseded (Heckenberger and Neves, 2009). Another outcome of archaeology's grand narrativizing habit is the mania for "firsts, earliests and oldests" that imagines savvy operators foreseeing the complex outcomes of adopting agriculture, inventing metallurgy, or producing ceramics (Frieman, 2021, 186), as if their society was the adolescent civilization that would inevitably grow into our own mature world.…”

Section: Myth 3: the Current Order Was And Is Inevitablementioning

confidence: 99%

Archaeology in 2022: Counter‐myths for hopeful futures

Berihuete‐Azorín,

Blackmore,

Borck

et al. 2023

American Anthropologist

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Archaeology in 2022 features more calls than ever for a socially and politically engaged, progressive discipline. Archaeologists increasingly respect and integrate decolonizing and Indigenous knowledge in theory and practice. They acknowledge and embrace the fluidity and diversity of sexes and genders, past and present. They document patterns of migration, ancient as well as contemporary, to combat retrograde and racist narratives that remain pervasive in the public sphere. At the same time, the field has a deep‐seated conservative bastion toward which many scholars retreat, arguing for an “objective” past that is free of political implications or interpretive ambiguity. As anarchist archaeologists, we see the myth of the objective past as one of many interconnected myths that have provided the basis for an archaeology that reifies and proliferates the current social order. We deconstruct myths relating to capitalist and colonialist ideologies of “human nature,” the assumed inevitability of the current order, and fatalistic commitment to dystopian or utopian futures. As alternatives, we present counter‐myths that emphasize the contingent and political nature of archaeological praxis, the creative and collaborative foundation of communities, the alternative orders that archaeology uncovers, and the role of a hopeful past for constructing the possibilities of different futures.

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“…In spite of the warning of Herbert Baldus (1941;1954: 250;1955;1968: 296), an important Americanist, who proved that Canals Frau' s was a speculative interpretation ("mere fantasy!") without any of the necessary foundations, PRONAPA members forged ahead.…”

Section: The Pronapa Idea Of the Geographic Origin Of The Itararé Tamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A few months thence, official PRONAPA members met in Belém, state of Pará, to compare their data (Meggers, 1985(Meggers, , 1992PRONAPA, 1970) and ratified Chmyz' s suggestions. Revising their general data on south Brazil, they suggested a third archaeological tradition, called "Taquara" by Eurico Th.…”

Section: Rethinking Stereotypesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The Brazilian version of Meggers and Evans' s synopsis has been called The National Program of Archaeological Research or PRON-APA developed by 11 archeologists in 9 states between 1965 and 1970 (Dias, 1995;Meggers, 1985Meggers, , 1992Meggers and Evans, 1978;PRONAPA, 1970). As a rule, the PRONAPA approach involved a presupposition suggested by Meggers (1955: 129) in the 50s, which "deals with culture artificially separated from human beings".…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Rethinking Stereotypes and the History of Research on Jê Populations in South Brazil: An Interdisciplinary Point of View

Noelli¹

Global Archaeological Theory

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Handbook of South American Archaeology

Cited by 4 publications

References 12 publications

Mid- to late-Holocene fluvial activity behind pre-Columbian social complexity in the southwestern Amazon basin

Mid- to late-Holocene fluvial activity behind pre-Columbian social complexity in the southwestern Amazon basin

Archaeology in 2022: Counter‐myths for hopeful futures

Rethinking Stereotypes and the History of Research on Jê Populations in South Brazil: An Interdisciplinary Point of View

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