Vernacular Architecture in the Pre-Columbian Americas

Vernacular Architecture in the Pre-Columbian Americas reveals the dynamism of the ancient past, where social relations and long-term history were created post hole by post hole, brick by brick. This collection shift attention away from the elite and monumental architectural traditions of the ancient past to instead investigate the creativity, subtlety and variability of common architecture and the people who built and dwelled in them. At the heart of this study of vernacular architecture is an emphasis on ordinary people and their built environments, and how these everyday spaces were pivotal in the making and meaning of social and cultural dynamics.

Providing a deeper and more nuanced temporal perspective of common buildings in the Americas, the editors have deftly framed a study that highlights sociocultural diversity while at the same time facilitating broader comparative conversations around the theme of vernacular architecture. With diverse case studies covering a broad range of periods and regions,Vernacular Architecture in the Pre-Columbian Americas is an important addition to the growing body of scholarship on indigenous architecture of the Americas and a key contribution to our archaeological understandings of past built environments.

Christina T. Halperin is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at the Universite de Montreal, Canada. She has published a number of papers and books, with her research focusing on the household, political economy, gender, materiality and daily life within this social unit.

Lauren E. Schwartz is Assistant Professor of Anthropology at Kenyon College, USA. Identifying as an anthropological archaeologist, her research focuses on how the study of households, architecture and the built environment, can inform our understanding of ancient social identity.