Ebook: Archaeology of City-States: Cross-Cultural Approaches

Independent of larger regional authority, perceived as being ethnically distinct, and supported by a productive hinterland, the city-state was a system of political and social organization that existed as early as 5,000 years ago in Mesopotamia and as recently as the 19th century in West Africa. In this volume, 15 prominent archaeologists and historians explore the emergence, structure, and function of city-states in Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indus Valley, China, Greece, Okinawa, the Maya Lowlands, Central Mexico, the coast of Peru, and the Andes. They discuss area and population size, settlement patterns, economic organization, political systems, and duration. ¿The book revives the analytic power of a classic historical concept.¿ Illustrations.