Nature and Antiquities: The Making of Archaeology in the Americas

Synopsis

Nature And Antiquities Examines The Relation Between The Natural Sciences, Anthropology, And Archaeology In The Americas In The Nineteenth And Early Twentieth Centuries. Taking The Reader Across The Americas From The Southern Cone To Canada, Across The Andes, The Brazilian Amazon, Mesoamerica, And The United States, The Book Explores The Early History Of Archaeology From A Pan-american Perspective. The Volume Breaks New Ground By Entreating Archaeologists To Acknowledge The Importance Of Ways Of Knowing That Resulted From The Study Of Nature In The History Of Archaeology. Some Of The Contributions To This Volume Trace The Part Conventions, Practices, And Concepts From Natural History And The Natural Sciences Played In The History And Making Of The Discipline. Others Set Out To Uncover, Reassemble, Or Adjust Our Vision Of Collections That Research Historians Of Archaeology Have Disregarded Or Misrepresented--because Their Nineteenth-century Makers Would Refuse To Comply With Today's Disciplinary Borders And Study Natural Specimens And Antiquities In Conjunction, Under The Rubric Of The Territorial, The Curious Or The Universal. Other Contributions Trace The Sociopolitical Implications Of Studying Nature In Conjunction With 'indigenous Peoples' In The Americas--inquiring Into What It Meant And Entailed To Comprehend The Inhabitants Of The American Continent In And Through A State Of Nature-- Nature And Antiquities Analyzes How The Study Of Indigenous Peoples Was Linked To The Study Of Nature And Natural Sciences. Leading Scholars Break New Ground And Entreat Archaeologists To Acknowledge The Importance Of Ways Of Knowing In The Study Of Nature In The History Of Archaeology-- Introduction: Nature In The Making Of Archaeology In The Americas / Stefanie Gänger, Philip Kohl, And Irina Podgorny -- Part I. Interplays. Skulls And Idols : Anthropometrics, Antiquity Collections, And The Origin Of American Man, 1810-1850 / Miruna Achim ; Finding The Ancient In The Andes : Archaeology And Geology, 1850-1890 / Joanne Pillsbury ; Place Names And Indigenous Languages : Samuel Alexander Lafone Quevedo And British Antiquarian Methods In Nineteenth-century Argentina / Máximo Farro -- Part Ii. Settings. Fraternal Curiosity: The Camacho Museum, Campeche, Mexico / Adam T. Sellen ; The Many Natures Of Antiquities : Ana María Centeno And Her Cabinet Of Curiosities, Peru, Ca. 1832-1874 / Stefanie Gänger ; From Lake Titicaca To Guatemala : The Travels Of Joseph Charles Manó And His Wife Of Unknown Name / Irina Podgorny ; Visualizing Culture And Nature : William Taylor's Murals In The Hall Of The Northwest Coast Indians, American Museum Of Natural History / Susan Roy -- Part Iii. Narratives. Arrows And Sciences : Odd Displays For Another Brazil, 1840-1882 / Maria Margaret Lopes, Mariza Corrêa, And Irina Podgorny ; Manifest Destiny As The Order Of Nature / Alice Beck Kehoe ; Saving The Natives : The Long Emergence And Transformation Of Indigeneity / John S. Gilkeson. Edited By Philip L. Kohl, Irina Podgorny, And Stefanie Gänger. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 221-233) And Index.