Abstract
This paper explores the many dimensions of power exercised by ceremonial bundles that have been held by North American Plains groups since time immemorial. Because bundles are multifarious but strictly ordered sets of objects, they embody the corpus of ecological and cosmological knowledge needed to survive in the human and supernatural worlds. Bundles, like persons, are subject to hierarchical and heterarchical power relations that parallel societal relations within tribal groups. Observations are drawn about the value of studying complex objects such as bundles for expanding and refining archaeological systematics.
Original language | English (US) |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 362-378 |
Number of pages | 17 |
Journal | Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory |
Volume | 15 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Dec 2008 |
Keywords
- Animacy
- Blackfoot
- Bundles
- Taxonomy
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Archaeology
- Archaeology