Water and power in past societies / edited by Emily Holt.

Contributor(s): Material type: TextTextSeries: University of Buffalo. IEMA proceedings ; v. 7. | Institute for European and Mediterranean Archaeology distinguished monograph seriesPublisher: Albany, NY : State University of New York Press, [2018]Description: xiv, 320 pages : illustrations, maps ; 27 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9781438468754
  • 143846875X
  • 9781438468761
  • 1438468768
Subject(s): Additional physical formats: Online version:: Water and power in past societies.DDC classification:
  • 930.1 23
LOC classification:
  • CB482 .W387 2018
Contents:
Water and power in past societies : an introduction / Emily Holt -- Part I. Productive power and the ecological history of waterscapes. The political ecology of Chinampa landscapes in the basin of Mexico / Christopher T. Morehart -- Irrigation and social organization : a Longue Durée perspective from the Jordan Valley / Eva Kaptijn -- Water management by mobile pastoralists in the Middle East / Emily Hammer -- Water and workshops : inequality among mining sites in ancient Laurion (Greece) / Kim Van Liefferinge -- Part II. Waterscapes, power plays, and display. From elite villas to public spaces : the first decorative fountains in Ancient Rome / Brenda Longfellow -- From urban oasis to desert hinterland : the decline of Petra's water system. The case of the Petra garden and pool complex / Leigh-Ann Bedal -- Spatial archaeology, hydrology, and the historical dynamics of water in ancient Southern Arabia (Yemen and Oman) / Michael J. Harrower -- Part III. Coastal water. The sea and Bronze Age transformations / Christopher Prescott, Anette Sand-Eriksen, Knut Ivar Austvoll -- Southeast Asian maritime power, seventeenth-century spice wars, and Tiworo's neglected fortifications / Jennifer L. Gaynor -- The power of coastal resources : assessing maritime economic opportunity in the Roman Mediterranean / Justin Leidwanger -- Part IV. Water archaeology : pasts, presents, futures. Rivers as material infrastructure : a legacy from the past to the future / Matt Edgeworth -- Geologies of belonging : the political ecology of water in Central Anatolia / Ö̈mür Harmanşah -- Some perspectives on the frequency of significant, historically forcing, drought and subsistence crises in Anatolia and region / Sturt W. Manning -- A framework for facing the past / Vernon L Scarborough.
Summary: Water, an essential resource in all cultures, is at the heart of human power structures. Utilizing a diverse range of theoretical perspectives, the contributors to Water and Power in Past Societies provide a broad introduction to the archaeology of water-related power structures. The studies herein explore the long history of water politics in human society, offering new insights into the power structures and inequalities surrounding irrigation systems, the collection of rainwater as a component of ancient industrial production, and sea water as a facilitator of communication, trade, and aggression. In addition to examining the role of different types of water in creating power relationships, the volume presents case studies from a variety of climatic regions, ranging from the very dry to the tropical. This geographical breadth facilitates cross-cultural comparison, making Water and Power in Past Societies an essential resource for instructors and students of the archaeology of water. Finally, in addition to reaching conclusions with significant implications for archaeologists and anthropologists, the volume has real contemporary relevance, often drawing explicit parallels with issues of current and future water management.
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Current library Call number Copy number Status Date due Barcode
Sultan Qaboos Cultural Center Library OVERSIZE CB482 .W387 2018 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Copy 1 Available 197013202

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Water and power in past societies : an introduction / Emily Holt -- Part I. Productive power and the ecological history of waterscapes. The political ecology of Chinampa landscapes in the basin of Mexico / Christopher T. Morehart -- Irrigation and social organization : a Longue Durée perspective from the Jordan Valley / Eva Kaptijn -- Water management by mobile pastoralists in the Middle East / Emily Hammer -- Water and workshops : inequality among mining sites in ancient Laurion (Greece) / Kim Van Liefferinge -- Part II. Waterscapes, power plays, and display. From elite villas to public spaces : the first decorative fountains in Ancient Rome / Brenda Longfellow -- From urban oasis to desert hinterland : the decline of Petra's water system. The case of the Petra garden and pool complex / Leigh-Ann Bedal -- Spatial archaeology, hydrology, and the historical dynamics of water in ancient Southern Arabia (Yemen and Oman) / Michael J. Harrower -- Part III. Coastal water. The sea and Bronze Age transformations / Christopher Prescott, Anette Sand-Eriksen, Knut Ivar Austvoll -- Southeast Asian maritime power, seventeenth-century spice wars, and Tiworo's neglected fortifications / Jennifer L. Gaynor -- The power of coastal resources : assessing maritime economic opportunity in the Roman Mediterranean / Justin Leidwanger -- Part IV. Water archaeology : pasts, presents, futures. Rivers as material infrastructure : a legacy from the past to the future / Matt Edgeworth -- Geologies of belonging : the political ecology of water in Central Anatolia / Ö̈mür Harmanşah -- Some perspectives on the frequency of significant, historically forcing, drought and subsistence crises in Anatolia and region / Sturt W. Manning -- A framework for facing the past / Vernon L Scarborough.

Water, an essential resource in all cultures, is at the heart of human power structures. Utilizing a diverse range of theoretical perspectives, the contributors to Water and Power in Past Societies provide a broad introduction to the archaeology of water-related power structures. The studies herein explore the long history of water politics in human society, offering new insights into the power structures and inequalities surrounding irrigation systems, the collection of rainwater as a component of ancient industrial production, and sea water as a facilitator of communication, trade, and aggression. In addition to examining the role of different types of water in creating power relationships, the volume presents case studies from a variety of climatic regions, ranging from the very dry to the tropical. This geographical breadth facilitates cross-cultural comparison, making Water and Power in Past Societies an essential resource for instructors and students of the archaeology of water. Finally, in addition to reaching conclusions with significant implications for archaeologists and anthropologists, the volume has real contemporary relevance, often drawing explicit parallels with issues of current and future water management.