Women in Antiquity

Theoretical Approaches to Gender and Archaeology

Author: Sarah Milledge Nelson, Elizabeth M. Brumfiel, Suzanne M. Spencer-Wood, Marie Louise Stig Sorenson, Bettina Arnold, Julia A. Hendon, Wendy Ashmore, Janet E. Levy and Kathryn Weedman Series: Gender and Archaeology

Part One of Nelson's 'Handbook of Gender in Archaeology.'

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Summary

Part One of Nelson's 'Handbook of Gender in Archaeology.'

Description

Archaeology is one of our most powerful sources of new information about the past, about the lives of our ancient and not-so-ancient ancestors. The contributors to Women in Antiquity consider the theoretical problems involved in discerning what the archaeological evidence tells us about gender roles in antiquity. The book includes chapters on the history of gender research, historical texts, mortuary analysis, household remains, hierarchy, and ethnoarchaeology, with each chapter teasing out the inherent difficulty in interpreting ancient evidence as well as the promise of new understanding. Women in Antiquity offers a fresh, accessible account of how we might grasp the ways in which sexual roles and identities shaped the past.

Critic Reviews

“A brilliant addition to the archaeological literature. Sarah Nelson has commissioned an international group of scholars to assess the state of gender research in their areas of expertise. The result is a treasure trove of essays devoted to theoretical assessments and case studies involving themes that are central to archaeology, such as early domestication, the secondary products revolution, gender identities, landscape studies, mortuary analyses, and much, much more. These essays introduce new perspectives and future directions for research, thus providing readers with models for developing their own projects. The book is indispensable for anyone with serious interests in the organization of society, divisions of labor, and the social dynamics of the human past.”

-- Rita Wright, New York University

About the Author

Sarah Milledge Nelson is the John Evans Professor of Archaeology at the University of Denver. She edited theHandbook of Gender in Archaology, from which this text is adapted.