Download or read book Caves in Context written by Knut Andreas Bergsvik and published by Oxbow Books Limited. This book was released on 2012 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Caves in Context provides the thriving inter-disciplinary field of cave studies with a European-scale survey of current research in cave archaeology. It is unified by a contemporary theoretical emphasis on the cultural significance and diversity of caves over space and time. Caves and rockshelters are found all over Europe, and have frequently been occupied by human groups, from prehistory right up to the present day. Some appear to have only traces of short occupations, while others contain deep cultural deposits, indicating longer and multiple occupations. Above all, there is great variability in their human use, both secular and sacred. The aim of this book is to explore the multiple significances of these natural places in a range of chronological, spatial, and cultural contexts across Europe. The volume demonstrates, through a diversity of archaeological approaches and examples, that cave studies, whist necessarily focussed, can also be of significance to wider, contemporary, archaeological research agendas, particularly when a contextual approach is adopted. The book is also of relevance to other scholars working in the related fields of speleology, earth sciences, landscape studies, and anthropology, which together comprise the inter-disciplinary field of cave studies.
Download or read book Stone Houses and Earth Lords written by Keith M. Prufer and published by University Press of Colorado. This book was released on 2021-05-03 with total page 413 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Stone Houses and Earth Lords is the first volume dedicated exclusively to the use of caves in the Maya Lowlands, covering primarily Classic Period archaeology from A.D. 100 through the Spaniards' arrival. Although the caves that riddled the lowlands show no signs of habitation, most contain evidence of human use - evidence that suggests that they functioned as ritual spaces.
Download or read book Cave Archaeology of the Eastern Woodlands written by David H. Dye and published by Univ. of Tennessee Press. This book was released on 2008 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Patty Jo Watson's prolific career began in the early 1950s as an energetic graduate student at the University of Chicago and culminated with her induction into the National Academy of Sciences and subsequent retirement from Washington University in 2003. During that time her groundbreaking research impacted multiple fields within the discipline of archaeology, but her astonishing research into the underground caves of the eastern United States recognizes her as one of the world's leading experts on cave archaeology. In honor of Dr. Watson and her monumental achievements in the field, twenty-two established scholars present in this volume new and insightful research into prehistoric and historic use of southeastern dark zones. Cave Archaeology of the Eastern Woodlands, edited by David H. Dye, explores how prehistoric and historic peoples utilized caves as a means to further their economic growth and represent cultural values within their societies. The essays range in topics from early gypsum mining to rare American Indian cave art, from historic saltpeter extraction to current archaeobotanical and paleofecal research. Dye and the contributors contend that studies of deep zone caves reveal multiple insights into the values, beliefs, and cultural lifeways of ancient and historic peoples. In addition to presenting new research in the field, contributors also place particular emphasis on Dr. Watson's influential cave research and how it has molded their own work. The essays convey a sense of wonder at the unique and sometimes harrowing world of caves, and readers will get a sense of why Native Americans regarded the Underworld or Beneathworld as a supernatural realm to be tread upon with great respect and caution. This volume of uniformly excellent essays will no doubt be a lantern that sheds light onto the importance of studying and understanding the all too secret world of underground caves. David H. Dye is professor of archaeology in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Memphis and a former student of Patty Jo Watson's. He is author of Cycles of Violence: An Archaeology of Peace and War in Native Eastern North American, coeditor, with Richard J. Chacon, of The Taking and Displaying of Human Body Parts as Trophies by Amerindians, and, with Cheryl Anne Cox, of Towns and Temples Along the Mississippi.
Download or read book Sacred Darkness written by Holley Moyes and published by University Press of Colorado. This book was released on 2012-09-01 with total page 607 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Caves have been used in various ways across human society but despite the persistence within popular culture of the iconic caveman, deep caves were never used primarily as habitation sites for early humans. Rather, in both ancient and contemporary contexts, caves have served primarily as ritual spaces. In Sacred Darkness, contributors use archaeological evidence as well as ethnographic studies of modern ritual practices to envision the cave as place of spiritual and ideological power and a potent venue for ritual practice. Covering the ritual use of caves in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, Mesoamerica, and the US Southwest and Eastern woodlands, this book brings together case studies by prominent scholars whose research spans from the Paleolithic period to the present day. These contributions demonstrate that cave sites are as fruitful as surface contexts in promoting the understanding of both ancient and modern religious beliefs and practices. This state-of-the-art survey of ritual cave use will be one of the most valuable resources for understanding the role of caves in studies of religion, sacred landscape, or cosmology and a must-read for any archaeologist interested in caves.
Download or read book Field Guide to Caves and Karst of Guam written by Danko Taboroši and published by Bess Press. This book was released on 2004 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Annotation This essential reference for cavers, hikers, divers, and students of Guam's geology includes color photographs, diagrams, maps, and a glossary.
Download or read book Stone Houses and Earth Lords written by Keith M. Prufer and published by . This book was released on 2005-11-25 with total page 424 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Stone Houses and Earth Lords is the first volume dedicated exclusively to the use of caves in the Maya Lowlands, covering primarily Classic Period archaeology from A.D. 100 through the Spaniards' arrival. Although the caves that riddled the lowlands show no signs of habitation, most contain evidence of human use - evidence that suggests that they functioned as ritual spaces.
Download or read book Cave and Worship in Ancient Greece written by Stella Katsarou and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-12-30 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cave and Worship in Ancient Greece brings together a series of stimulating chapters contributing to the archaeology and our modern understanding of the character and importance of cave sanctuaries in the fi rst millennium BCE Mediterranean. Written by emerging and established archaeologists and researchers, the book employs a fascinating and wide range of approaches and methodologies to investigate, and interpret material assemblages from cave shrines, many of which are introduced here for the fi rst time. An introductory section explores the emergence and growth of caves as centres of cult and religion. The chapters then probe some of the meanings attached to cave spaces and votive materials such as terracotta fi gurines, and ceramics, and those who created and used them. The authors use sensory and gender approaches, discuss the identity of the worshippers, and the contribution of statistical analysis to the role of votive materials. At the heart of the volume is the examination of cave materials excavated on the Cycladic islands and Crete, in Attika and Aitoloakarnania, on the Ionian islands and in southern Italy. This is a welcome volume for students of prehistoric and classical archaeology,enthusiasts of the history of caves, religion, ancient history, and anthropology.
Download or read book Discovering North American Rock Art written by Lawrence L. Loendorf and published by University of Arizona Press. This book was released on 2006 with total page 360 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the high plains of Canada to caves in the southeastern United States, images etched into and painted on stone by ancient Native Americans have aroused in observers the desire to understand their origins and meanings. Rock paintings and engravings can be found in nearly every state and province, and each region has its own distinctive story of discovery and evolving investigation of the rock art record. Rock art in the twenty-first century enjoys a large and growing popularity fueled by scholarly research and public interest alike. This book explores the history of rock art research in North America and is the only volume in the past twenty-five years to provide coverage of the subject on a continental scale. Written by contributors active in rock art research, it examines sites that provide a cross-section of regions and topics and complements existing books on rock art by offering new information, insights, and approaches to research. The first part of the volume explores different regional approaches to the study of rock art, including a set of varied responses to a single site as well as an overview of broader regional research investigations. It tells how Writing-on-Stone in southern Alberta, Canada, reflects changing thought about rock art from the 1870s to today; it describes the role of avocational archaeologists in the Mississippi Valley, where rock art styles differ on each side of the river; it explores discoveries in southwestern mountains and southeastern caves; and it integrates the investigation of cupules along GeorgiaÕs Yellow River into a full study of a site and its context. The book also compares the differences between rock art research in the United States and France: from the outset, rock art was of only marginal interest to most U.S. archaeologists, while French prehistorians considered cave art an integral part of archaeological research. The bookÕs second part is concerned with working with the images today and includes coverage of gender interests, government sponsorship, the role of amateurs in research, and chronometric studies. Much has changed in our understanding of rock art since Cotton Mather first wrote in 1714 of a strange inscription on a Massachusetts boulder, and the cutting-edge contributions in this volume tell us much about both the ancient place of these enduring images and their modern meanings. Discovering North American Rock Art distills todayÕs most authoritative knowledge of the field and is an essential volume for both specialists and hobbyists.
Download or read book Caves and Ritual in Medieval Europe written by Knut Bergsvik and published by Oxbow Books Limited. This book was released on 2022-04-15 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Presents an interdisciplinary exploration of the use of caves and rock shelters across Europe during the medieval period for a wide range of religious and spiritual purposes by Christian, Muslim, Pictish and non-denominational communities, at both regional and local levels.
Download or read book Palaeolithic Cave Art at Creswell Crags in European Context written by Sergio Ripoll and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2007-03-29 with total page 309 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This comprehensively illustrated book presents the Creswell art itself, the archaeology of the caves and the region, and the context of the Upper Palaeolithic era in Britain, as well as a number of studies of Palaeolithic cave art in Spain, Portugal, France, and Italy.
Download or read book Palaeolithic Cave Art at Creswell Crags in European Context written by Paul Pettitt and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2007-03-29 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Cave art is a subject of perennial interest among archaeologists. Until recently it was assumed that it was largely restricted to southern France and northern Iberia, although in recent years new discoveries have demonstrated that it originally had a much wider distribution. The discovery in 2003 of the UK's first examples of cave art, in two caves at Creswell Crags on the Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire border, was the most surprising illustration of this. The discoverers (the editors of the book) brought together in 2004 a number of Palaeolithic archaeologists and rock art specialists from across the world to study the Creswell art and debate its significance, and its similarities and contrasts with contemporary Late Pleistocene ('Ice Age') art on the Continent. This comprehensively illustrated book presents the Creswell art itself, the archaeology of the caves and the region, and the wider context of the Upper Palaeolithic era in Britain, as well as a number of up-to-date studies of Palaeolithic cave art in Spain, Portugal, France, and Italy which serve to contextualize the British examples.
Download or read book Maroo of the Winter Caves written by Ann Turnbull and published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. This book was released on 2004 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Maroo, a girl of the late Ice Age, must take charge after her father is killed, and lead her little brother, mother, and aged grandmother to the safety of the winter camp before the first blizzards strike.
Download or read book Reading Prehistoric Human Tracks written by Andreas Pastoors and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021 with total page 437 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This Open Access book explains that after long periods of prehistoric research in which the importance of the archaeological as well as the natural context of rock art has been constantly underestimated, research has now begun to take this context into focus for documentation, analysis, interpretation and understanding. Human footprints are prominent among the long-time under-researched features of the context in caves with rock art. In order to compensate for this neglect an innovative research program has been established several years ago that focuses on the merging of indigenous knowledge and western archaeological science for the benefit of both sides. The book gathers first the methodological diversity in the analysis of human tracks. Here major representatives of anthropological, statistical and traditional approaches feature the multi-layered methods available for the analysis of human tracks. Second it compiles case studies from around the globe of prehistoric human tracks. For the first time, the most important sites which have been found worldwide are published in a single publication. The third focus of this book is on firsthand experiences of researchers with indigenous tracking experts from around the globe, expounding on how archaeological sciencecan benefit from the ancestral knowledge. This book will be of interest to professional archaeologists, graduate students, ecologists, cultural anthropologists and laypeople, especially those focussing on hunting-gathering and pastoralist communities and who appreciate indigenous knowledge.--
Download or read book The Caves of Qumran written by Marcello Fidanzio and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2016-11-01 with total page 377 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Qumran studies, the attention of scholars has largely been focused on the Dead Sea Scrolls, while archaeology has concentrated above all on the settlement. This volume presents the proceedings of an international conference (Lugano 2014) dedicated entirely to the caves of Qumran. The papers deal with both archaeological and textual issues, comparing the caves in the vicinity of Qumran between themselves and their contents with the other finds in the Dead Sea region. The relationships between the caves and the settlement of Qumran are re-examined and their connections with the regional context are investigated. The original inventory of the materials excavated from the caves by Roland de Vaux is published for the first time in appendix to the volume.
Download or read book The Archaeology of Caves in Ireland written by Marion Dowd and published by Oxbow Books. This book was released on 2015-01-31 with total page 335 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Archaeology of Caves in Ireland is a ground-breaking and unique study of the enigmatic, unseen and dark silent world of caves. People have engaged with caves for the duration of human occupation of the island, spanning 10,000 years. In prehistory, subterranean landscapes were associated with the dead and the spirit world, with evidence for burials, funerary rituals and votive deposition. The advent of Christianity saw the adaptation of caves as homes and places of storage, yet they also continued to feature in religious practice. Medieval mythology and modern folklore indicate that caves were considered places of the supernatural, being particularly associated with otherworldly women. Through a combination of archaeology, mythology and popular religion, this book takes the reader on a fascinating journey that sheds new light on a hitherto neglected area of research. It encourages us to consider what underground activities might reveal about the lives lived aboveground, and leaves us in no doubt as to the cultural significance of caves in the past.
Download or read book Cave Hunting written by William Boyd Dawkins and published by Good Press. This book was released on 2023-10-28 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Cave Hunting" by William Boyd Dawkins is a pioneering work that delves into the prehistoric world through the lens of caves. Dawkins, a respected geologist and archaeologist, presents a meticulously researched exploration of the evidence found in European caves, shedding light on the early inhabitants of the continent. His in-depth analysis of fossils, artifacts, and geological formations provides valuable insights into the lives and cultures of ancient peoples. This book is a testament to Dawkins' dedication to the field and remains a significant contribution to our understanding of human history and paleontology.
Download or read book Interdisciplinary Approaches to the Ancient Maya Underworld written by Shawn Gregory Morton and published by British Archaeological Reports Oxford Limited. This book was released on 2018 with total page 187 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Asintegrated and varied ritual contexts, how do changing patterns ofpre-Columbian cave use inform the complex of historical, social, political,economic and related ideological processes in action during the inception,florescence, and collapse of Tipan Chen Uitz and other ancient Maya centres inCentral Belize? This book aims to highlight and, within a specific regionalcontext, to address, the tendency of the speleoarchaeology of the Maya area toisolate itself from broader topics of discourse. To this end, it explicitlycontextualizes primary research in several caves along a chain of relatedconcepts and datasets, extending from the broad body of literature on ritualand religion, through discussion of the conceptual cave context drawn fromepigraphic and iconographic sources, and its invocation as recorded incontemporary (or, at least, relatively recent) ethnographic contexts andearlier post-Columbian indigenous historic sources, to the well-travelled pathsof the archaeological study of caves.
