Cooperation and Violence in the Tunican Homeland: Rituals of Exchange and Warfare in the Seventeenth-Century Lower Mississippi Valley (original) (raw)
Related papers
" Don't Step Over Your Food " : Protohistoric Ritual Practice in the Lower Mississippi Valley
The influx of European goods into the Lower Mississippi Valley between 1550 and 1650 challenged an entrenched aristocracy who endeavored to strengthen their hold over access to critical exchange nodes through religious institutions, especially medicine societies. The Protohistoric period witnessed a florescence in ceramic art, as well as the importation of well-crafted foreign goods, especially copper and shell regalia. Ceramic production achieved a level of crafting unknown prior to the mid-sixteenth century. I argue that power-holders increased their grip on trade linkages through expensive rituals, obligatory feasts, and restrictive membership in religious sodalities.
He-Who-Wears-Human-Heads-As-Earrings: Mississippian Culture Heroes, Reincarnation, and Warfare
War and Peace: Conflict and Resolution in Archaeology , 2017
Foundational or charter myths are well-documented for the descendants of Mississippian polities, but they have rarely been unpacked for their role in fostering violence and creating bonds of alliance through adoption. The mythic deeds of ancestors and deities were routinely emulated through dramatic performances that demonstrated and showcased the authority-chartering functions employed by aristocratic elites on behalf of their households and the polity. Warfare and other forms of interpolity violence were often mandated through these sacred charters that compelled the appropriation of vital life forces from one’s enemies through trophy-taking. Mythic narratives, such as the calumet ceremony, the life-giving force imparted in adoption rituals incorporated rebirth and revitalization, forming the basis for interpolity alliance formation through elite adoption. In this paper I present claims for a reassessment of indigenous war and peace in eastern North America and the role charter narratives play in fostering cooperation and conflict.
With Culture Heroes On Our Side: Two Realms of Mississippian Warfare
Warfare existed in two articulated worlds for Mississippian people: the realm of interpolity conflict and human experience, and the celestial realm with its culture heroes. Mississippian iconography offers a rare glimpse into these two worlds and how they were intertwined. In this paper I offer an interpretation of how Mississippian elites defined their relationship with violence and warfare in the quotidian world and how they perceived that relationship with other than human beings in the celestial realm. Sacred narratives recorded in the nineteenth century provide convincing evidence for the role dramatic performance and stories played in chartering warrior behavior. A consistent theme of “trophy-taking” runs through Mississippian iconography, with emphasis on decapitation and dismemberment. Trophy-taking is interpreted here as one way in which life forces were granted by Siouan culture heroes such as He-Who-Wears-Human-Heads-As-Earrings, Morning Star, and Storms-As-He-Walks.
The Langford tradition and the process of tribalization on the Middle Mississippian borders
Midcontinental Journal of Archaeology, 1999
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.
Although the Mississippian culture area has been studied for decades, the frontier of the Mississippian region is less understood. Various Mississippian frontiers appear to have been important for the obtainment of trade goods which were important symbols of chiefly power. Studying these frontiers will allow archaeologists to better understand the emergence and maintenance of power within Southeastern chiefdoms. This dissertation explores one frontier site, Carter Robinson (44LE10) in southwestern Virginia, and its role in Southern Appalachian chiefdom power through its control of trade at the border. This research identifies ceramic and non-utilitarian markers of trade and identifies changes at the frontier site over time, an accumulation of power that occurred through control of trade.
1998
Cahokia is a spectacular eleventh- to twelfth-century village and earth mound complex near the confluence of the Missouri and the Mississippi rivers east of present day St. Louis. This prehistoric community may have supported 10,000 inhabitants and was part of an even larger array of settlements, platform and burial mounds, and cemeteries that stretched across 86,000 acres of fertile flood plains (the American Bottoms). Extensive archaeological work associated with highway construction in the 1970s and 1980s provided rich, diverse evidence for day-to-day domestic activities, as well as regional trade, immense corvee labor projects (e.g., platform mounds, woodhenges, and palisades), military activities, complex burial rites, and politico-religious observances. The Mississippian people, as they are referred to by archaeologists, constructed 120 earth mounds at Cahokia, including Monks Mound (300 meters square and 30 meters high). Mound building at Cahokia involved the transport of 50 ...
2011
Award, the Mensa Foundation, and the Virginia Academy of Sciences. First, I want to thank my advisor and chair, Dick Jefferies. Dick was one of the few people who not only didn't think this idea was crazy when I first suggested it, he thought it was viable and interesting. His interest and support did not wane over six years of graduate school work, qualifying exams, two seasons of fieldwork, and over two years of analysis and writing. His help, advice, and support were invaluable at every stage. My committee members, Chris Pool, Lisa Cliggett, and Fay Yarbrough, were incredibly supportive throughout the whole process, helping it progress smoothly the entire way. Each was chosen for their specific expertise, and each added that and so much more. Chris' knowledge of ceramics and Southeastern archaeology was invaluable many times over, as was his sharp editing skills and ability to see the pertinent trees in the forest. Lisa brought a cultural anthropologist's eye to the study of frontiers, and urged me to see the connections between this work and broader anthropological theory, which made the dissertation more broadly applicable. Fay honed my historiography skills, and helped me make connections between the historic Southeastern Indian societies and those of the past in more meaningful ways. I thank them all for their support and patience during this process. This project would never have been completed without the generous support of Mr. and Mrs. Carl Robinson, the landowners and long-time caretakers of the Carter Robinson site. The Robinson Family is to be highly commended for protecting this mound site for generations; the Robinsons in particular are to be commended for allowing a stranger to come into their midst and excavate the site. Their generosity and selflessness can not be overstated; through their actions, they have created an invaluable legacy for Lee County, for the Commonwealth of Virginia, and for Southeastern archaeology. I can only hope their example is copied by others in the region, and their hard work is rewarded. I can not thank them enough for this life-changing opportunity. Multiple individuals in Southeastern archaeology supported this idea at various stages. Mark Williams was one of the first and most steadfast. He listened to an unformulated idea, saw my passion for it, and urged me to do this for my dissertation. He v Alan's quiet demeanor belies his intelligence and devotion to the field of archaeology, and to Lee County history. I was most proud and pleased to call him my friend and colleague, and I hope to work with him for many years. As Alan is quiet, his cousins, Sue and Jo, are not. They are the epitome of strong southern women who get things done, and thankfully for me, they got things done. From finding water to finding housing; from finding a cook to making life just generally easier, these women exemplified the best that Lee County has to offer. I appreciate their great kindnesses to me, and value their friendships. Their extended families are thanked for both assisting in the field and for allowing them the time and energy to devote to this project. I hope we can all work together again soon. Lee County residents who assisted in this work were many. Shawn Morris was of great assistance in the county, showing me where multiple sites were, visiting the site, and often returning with needed equipment which he donated to the project. Shawn made many things run much more smoothly. He also assisted in spreading the word about the project, and getting others involved. Harry Ho and his wife were very supportive of the project, hosting a relaxing party for the 2008 field school students at their home, a muchneeded respite, and assisting in other ways.