Religion in the Prehispanic Southwest

by David A. Phillips Jr.

Religion mattered to the prehistoric Southwestern people, just as it matters to their descendents today. Examining the role of religion can help to explain architecture, pottery, agriculture, even commerce. But archaeologists have only recently developed the theoretical and methodological tools with which to study this topic. Religion in the prehispanic Southwest marks the first book-length study of prehistoric religion in the region. Drawing on a rich array of empirical approaches, the contributors show the importance of understanding beliefs and ritual for a range of time periods and southwestern societies. For professional and avocational archaeologists, for religion scholars and students, Religion in the prehispanic Southwest represents an important contribution.

276 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good collection of essays attempting to idenitfy religious beliefs archaeologically which is an area I have been trying to work on in Rock Art. Pretty difficult to do but I'm glad archaeologists are looking at these issues and trying to figure out how to see them in the material record.