Carla Sinopoli | University of Michigan (original) (raw)
Books by Carla Sinopoli
Cambridge World History, Vol. III: Early Cities in Comparative Perspective, 4000 BCE-1200 CE., 2015
Object Lessons and the Formation of Knowledge. The University of Michigan Museums, Libraries and Collections 1817-2017, 2017
Papers by Carla Sinopoli
University of Arizona Press eBooks, Sep 13, 2022
THE IMPORTANCE of knowledge of contemporary societies for interpreting the past is a basic tenet ... more THE IMPORTANCE of knowledge of contemporary societies for interpreting the past is a basic tenet of virtually all archaeology. Since the 1960s, the field of ethnoarchaeology has emerged as a discipline explicitly concerned with examining the archaeological relevance of contemporary phenomena, including such topics as site formation and depositional processes; documentation of traditional technologies, community forms, and settlement patterns; the relations between humans and their environment; and the study of the material implications of a variety of social systems and social strategies, as well as of ideologies and belief systems. A focus of much recent ethnoarchaeological work has been the identification of general patterns in human behavior and their material consequences. From this perspective, ethnoarchaeology is a search for cross-cultural regularities which, coupled with uniformitarian reasoning, can aid our interpretation of the archaeological record. As such, ethnoarchaeological research provides archaeologists with an opportunity to evaluate our models of the material implications and operation of cultural systems. In addition, ethnoarchaeological studies have greatly increased our sensitivity to the diverse environmental and cultural factors that can affect or determine the nature of the static archaeological remains that we recover. Archaeologists are now in a position to develop more sophisticated and testable models for the interpretation of archaeological sites and, more important, of the human past. Ethnoarchaeological study has also served as a warning, alerting us to the complexity of human behavior and the tremendous diversity and creativity manifest in human manipulation of the material world. For example, we have seen that items or behaviors that mark social boundaries in one cultural context may operate very differently in other contexts (Hodder 1979, 1982). As a result, we have learned to be wary of making generalizations from a single case. For the ethnoarchaeologist, South Asia, with its cultural diversity, range of subsistence and settlement strategies, and persistence of traditional crafts, is an overwhelming land of plenty (see Griffin and Solheim 1990 for a general overview of
This amply illustrated volume will serve as an important source on Vijayanagara [present day Hamp... more This amply illustrated volume will serve as an important source on Vijayanagara [present day Hampi, in Hospet Kaluka, Bellary district, karnataka] ceramics and as an important model for future studies of archaeological ceramics. Differences in ceramic frequencies and wares in ,the different categories can be attributed to cultural differences, demonstrating the relevance of ceramic analysis to the study of the social, cultural and spatial organization of ancient settlements.
This paper is based on studies of the use and modes of production of higher carbon iron alloys in... more This paper is based on studies of the use and modes of production of higher carbon iron alloys in relation to surface finds from Iron Age and early historic sites in southern India, in particular the site of Kadebakele where recent excavations have revealed finds of iron and steel, some of which according to preliminary studies, seem to be of a higher carbon content. Preliminary comparative studies are also made on surface finds of crucibles related to high carbon steel production at Mel-siruvalur.1
Cambridge World History, Vol. III: Early Cities in Comparative Perspective, 4000 BCE-1200 CE., 2015
Object Lessons and the Formation of Knowledge. The University of Michigan Museums, Libraries and Collections 1817-2017, 2017
University of Arizona Press eBooks, Sep 13, 2022
THE IMPORTANCE of knowledge of contemporary societies for interpreting the past is a basic tenet ... more THE IMPORTANCE of knowledge of contemporary societies for interpreting the past is a basic tenet of virtually all archaeology. Since the 1960s, the field of ethnoarchaeology has emerged as a discipline explicitly concerned with examining the archaeological relevance of contemporary phenomena, including such topics as site formation and depositional processes; documentation of traditional technologies, community forms, and settlement patterns; the relations between humans and their environment; and the study of the material implications of a variety of social systems and social strategies, as well as of ideologies and belief systems. A focus of much recent ethnoarchaeological work has been the identification of general patterns in human behavior and their material consequences. From this perspective, ethnoarchaeology is a search for cross-cultural regularities which, coupled with uniformitarian reasoning, can aid our interpretation of the archaeological record. As such, ethnoarchaeological research provides archaeologists with an opportunity to evaluate our models of the material implications and operation of cultural systems. In addition, ethnoarchaeological studies have greatly increased our sensitivity to the diverse environmental and cultural factors that can affect or determine the nature of the static archaeological remains that we recover. Archaeologists are now in a position to develop more sophisticated and testable models for the interpretation of archaeological sites and, more important, of the human past. Ethnoarchaeological study has also served as a warning, alerting us to the complexity of human behavior and the tremendous diversity and creativity manifest in human manipulation of the material world. For example, we have seen that items or behaviors that mark social boundaries in one cultural context may operate very differently in other contexts (Hodder 1979, 1982). As a result, we have learned to be wary of making generalizations from a single case. For the ethnoarchaeologist, South Asia, with its cultural diversity, range of subsistence and settlement strategies, and persistence of traditional crafts, is an overwhelming land of plenty (see Griffin and Solheim 1990 for a general overview of
This amply illustrated volume will serve as an important source on Vijayanagara [present day Hamp... more This amply illustrated volume will serve as an important source on Vijayanagara [present day Hampi, in Hospet Kaluka, Bellary district, karnataka] ceramics and as an important model for future studies of archaeological ceramics. Differences in ceramic frequencies and wares in ,the different categories can be attributed to cultural differences, demonstrating the relevance of ceramic analysis to the study of the social, cultural and spatial organization of ancient settlements.
This paper is based on studies of the use and modes of production of higher carbon iron alloys in... more This paper is based on studies of the use and modes of production of higher carbon iron alloys in relation to surface finds from Iron Age and early historic sites in southern India, in particular the site of Kadebakele where recent excavations have revealed finds of iron and steel, some of which according to preliminary studies, seem to be of a higher carbon content. Preliminary comparative studies are also made on surface finds of crucibles related to high carbon steel production at Mel-siruvalur.1
The Cambridge World History, 2015
This paper is based on studies of the use and modes of production of higher carbon iron alloys in... more This paper is based on studies of the use and modes of production of higher carbon iron alloys in relation to surface finds from Iron Age and early historic sites in southern India, in particular the site of Kadebakele where recent excavations have revealed finds of iron and steel, some of which according to preliminary studies, seem to be of a higher carbon content. Preliminary comparative studies are also made on surface finds of crucibles related to high carbon steel production at Mel-siruvalur. 1
This report details preliminary results of the 2009 field season of the Late Prehistoric and Earl... more This report details preliminary results of the 2009 field season of the Late Prehistoric and Early Historic Landscapes of the Tungabhadra Valley (EHLTC) project, focused on documentation and excavation of settlement and mortuary sites located near the Tungabhadra River in a 38.5 square kilometer region in Koppal and Bellary Districts, Karnataka, India. Our primary research efforts focus on the excavation and documentation of five sites and associated 1 features initially identified and documented by the Vijayanagara Metropolitan Survey project, directed by Morrison and Sinopoli from 1987-1997 (in collaboration with the Karnataka Department of Archaeology and Museums, and with approval of the Government of India). This project is directed by Gopal, Morrison, and Sinopoli, and is a joint project between the Karnataka State Directorate of Archaeology and Museums (India), the University of Chicago (USA), and the University of Michigan (USA). In the 2009 season, we continued excavation work at the largest of these five sites, VMS-530 (Kadebakele), a habitation site of more than 40 hectares with an occupation span that appears to run from the Southern Neolithic to the Middle Period. Most of our work was concentrated on Iron Age deposits of the Upper Terrace, though an unexpected large-scale disturbance of River Terrace deposits prompted us to clean back a deep section there and excavate a small test unit adjacent to it. Following an introduction to the goals and potential significance of the larger project, this report describes the excavations undertaken in 2009. Artifact, botanical and sedimentological analyses are in progress. Finally, we report on the newest radiocarbon dates from Kadebakele. Introduction: Issues, Contexts, Significance Research Issues In this project we examine continuity and change in economic, social, and political organization in northern Karnataka (India) between c. 1000 BC-AD 300, focusing on material patterning at multiple spatial scales. The Iron Age and Early Historic periods marked a time of remarkable change in peninsular India, changes that included the development and expansion of regional polities and formalized relations of social inequality as well as the intensification of specialized craft production and long distance trade. Around the same time, the introduction and expansion of rice agriculture and its integration with existing strategies of dry farming, herding, and foraging led to the emergence of complex new agricultural regimes and transformed regional landscapes. Please note that the following introductory sections can also be found in Morrison, et al. 2005. While there is no doubt that Early Historic centuries (c. 300 BC-AD 300) differed in important ways from the preceding Iron Age (c. 1000-300 BC), existing frameworks which posit population replacement and diffusion as primary mechanisms of change ignore continuity in existing local practices such as megalith-building, dry farming, herding, and stone tool production, or of the ways in which both continuity and change were negotiated and materialized in settlements, mortuary sites, and regional landscapes. In this project, we investigate the ways in which introduced political and religious forms, cultigens, and trade objects enlarged and transformed South Indian worlds and, at the same time, how such objects and organizations were themselves made local.
This report details preliminary results of the 2009 field season of the Late Prehistoric and Earl... more This report details preliminary results of the 2009 field season of the Late Prehistoric and Early Historic Landscapes of the Tungabhadra Valley (EHLTC) project, focused on documentation and excavation of settlement and mortuary sites located near the Tungabhadra River in a 38.5 square kilometer region in Koppal and Bellary Districts, Karnataka, India. Our primary research efforts focus on the excavation and documentation of five sites and associated 1 features initially identified and documented by the Vijayanagara Metropolitan Survey project, directed by Morrison and Sinopoli from 1987-1997 (in collaboration with the Karnataka Department of Archaeology and Museums, and with approval of the Government of India). This project is directed by Gopal, Morrison, and Sinopoli, and is a joint project between the Karnataka State Directorate of Archaeology and Museums (India), the University of Chicago (USA), and the University of Michigan (USA). In the 2009 season, we continued excavation work at the largest of these five sites, VMS-530 (Kadebakele), a habitation site of more than 40 hectares with an occupation span that appears to run from the Southern Neolithic to the Middle Period. Most of our work was concentrated on Iron Age deposits of the Upper Terrace, though an unexpected large-scale disturbance of River Terrace deposits prompted us to clean back a deep section there and excavate a small test unit adjacent to it. Following an introduction to the goals and potential significance of the larger project, this report describes the excavations undertaken in 2009. Artifact, botanical and sedimentological analyses are in progress. Finally, we report on the newest radiocarbon dates from Kadebakele. Introduction: Issues, Contexts, Significance Research Issues In this project we examine continuity and change in economic, social, and political organization in northern Karnataka (India) between c. 1000 BC-AD 300, focusing on material patterning at multiple spatial scales. The Iron Age and Early Historic periods marked a time of remarkable change in peninsular India, changes that included the development and expansion of regional polities and formalized relations of social inequality as well as the intensification of specialized craft production and long distance trade. Around the same time, the introduction and expansion of rice agriculture and its integration with existing strategies of dry farming, herding, and foraging led to the emergence of complex new agricultural regimes and transformed regional landscapes. Please note that the following introductory sections can also be found in Morrison, et al. 2005. While there is no doubt that Early Historic centuries (c. 300 BC-AD 300) differed in important ways from the preceding Iron Age (c. 1000-300 BC), existing frameworks which posit population replacement and diffusion as primary mechanisms of change ignore continuity in existing local practices such as megalith-building, dry farming, herding, and stone tool production, or of the ways in which both continuity and change were negotiated and materialized in settlements, mortuary sites, and regional landscapes. In this project, we investigate the ways in which introduced political and religious forms, cultigens, and trade objects enlarged and transformed South Indian worlds and, at the same time, how such objects and organizations were themselves made local.
Beyond Stones and More Stones, 2020
in press, Beyond Stones and More Stones, edited by. R. Korisettar, Bengaluru, the Mythic Society
Geoarchaeology-an International Journal, 1992
Journal of Asian Studies, 1999