Archaeological and Ethnographic Evidence of Domination in Indigenous Latin America

This
volume explores the nature of power relations and social control in Indigenous
societies of Latin America. Its chapters focus on instances of domination in
different contexts as reflected in archaeological, osteological, and
ethnohistorical records, beginning with prehistoric case studies to examples from
the ethnographic present.

Ranging
from the development of nautical and lacustrine warfare technology in
precontact Mesoamerica to the psychological functions of domestic violence
among contemporary Amazonian peoples, these investigations shed light on how leaders
often use violence or the threat of violence to advance their influence. The
essays show that while social control can be overt, it may also be veiled in
the form of monumental architecture, fortresses or pukara, or rituals
that signal to friends and foes alike the power of those in control.
Contributors challenge many widely accepted conceptions of violence, warfare,
and domination by presenting new evidence, and they also offer novel
interpretations of power relations in the domestic, local, and regional spheres.

Encompassing
societies from tribal to state levels of sociopolitical complexity, the studies
in this volume present different dimensions of conflict and power found among the
prehistoric and contemporary Indigenous peoples of Latin America.