The Archaeology of Communities develops a critical evaluation of community and shows that it represents more than a mere aggregation of households. This collection bridges the gap between studies of ancient societies and ancient households. The community is taken to represent more than a mere aggregation of households, it exists in part through shared identities, as well as frequent interaction and inter-household integration.
Drawing on case studies which range in location from the Mississippi Valley to New Mexico, from the Southern Andes to the Blue Ridge Mountains of Madison...

Using a broad comparative approach combined with a theoretical diversity, this volume employs a range of case studies to address the importance of the community (as opposed to the individual household or the larger polity) in understanding ancient societies. There is discussion of different ways of defining the community in the archaeological record, and social issues of identity and interaction are stressed. The volume also examines whether a universal, cross-culturally applicable notion of community is useful or even possible.

Most treatments of large Classic Maya sites such as Caracol and Tikal regard Maya political organization as highly centralized. Because investigations have focused on civic buildings and elite palaces, however, a critical part of the picture of Classic Maya political organization has been missing.
The contributors to this volume chart the rise and fall of the Classic Maya center of Xunantunich, paying special attention to its changing relationships with the communities that comprised its hinterlands. They examine how the changing relationships between Xunantunich and the larger kingdom of...