Asian Perspectives, 1997 - Volume 36, Number 2 (Fall)
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Asian Perspectives is the leading peer-reviewed archaeological journal devoted to the prehistory of Asia and the Pacific region. In addition to archaeology, it features articles and book reviews on ethnoarchaeology, palaeoanthropology, physical anthropology, and ethnography of interest and use to the prehistorian. International specialists contribute regional reports summarizing current research and fieldwork, and present topical reports of significant sites. Occasional special issues focus on single topics.
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Center for South Asian Studies
University of Hawai'i, Manoa
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Recent Submissions
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ItemReview of The Wet and the Dry: Irrigation and Agricultural Intensification in Polynesia, by Patrick V. Kirch; Archaeology of a Coastal Exchange System: Sites and Ceramics of the Papuan Gulf, by David Frankel and James W. Rhoads (eds.); Pots and Palaces: The Earthenware Ceramics of the Noblemen's Quarter of Vijayanagara, by Carla Sinopoli.(University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu), 1997)
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ItemSome Memories of Sood Sangvichien(University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu), 1997)
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ItemSood Sangvichien, 1907-1995(University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu), 1997)
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ItemReview of Resolving the Enigmas of New Caledonian and Melanesian Prehistory: A Review; The Dynamic Realm of the Indian Ocean: A Review(University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu), 1997)
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ItemThe Salient Features of Site Location in the Andaman Islands, Indian Ocean(University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu), 1997)The results of archaeological surveys in the Andamans have been combined with information gleaned from local oral traditions in order to correlate the ecological determinants of site location with the criteria for marking and identifying encampments. The implications of the distinction between the two sets of criteria are examined. KEYWORDS: Andaman Islands, South Asia place names, settlement patterns.
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ItemMaori Subsistence Change: Zooarchaeological Evidence from the Prehistoric Dog of New Zealand(University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu), 1997)The dental wear and the post-cranial dimensions of the prehistoric dog of New Zealand (kuri) are shown to reflect the Maori environment in which it lived. Midshaft dimensions became smaller and tooth wear advanced in late prehistoric groups. Nutrition is likely to have been the single most important causative factor in the observed temporal shift. The changes match archaeological evidence for a subsistence move by Maori away from large game taxa toward a focus on marine and horticultural products. It is suggested that there is potential for profitable collaboration between zooarchaeologists, studying commensal species, and physical anthropologists involved in the analysis of prehistoric human remains. KEYWORDS: Maori, dog, kuri, skeletal variation, tooth wear, New Zealand.
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ItemDating Lapita Pottery in the Bismark Archipelago, Papua New Guinea(University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu), 1997)Dates for the appearance of Lapita pottery suggest a rapid expansion from the Bismarck Archipelago in the north to Western Polynesia in the south. Kirch and Hunt (1988a, 1988b) see this as instantaneous in archaeological and radiocarbon terms, but Spriggs (1990) proposes a "pause" in the Bismarck Archipelago. We review the dates from the Bismarck area and note that two interpretations are possible, depending on which dates are accepted. Lapita pottery may have begun there later than the accepted date of cal. 3450-3550 B.P., or it could have begun in the Mussau Islands earlier than in New Britain. Both views raise questions about Lapita presence in this region and have implications for its spread to more southerly islands. A maximum time range of from cal. 3300 to 2100 B.P. is suggested for the Bismarck Archipelago, with most dates falling between 3100 and 2300 B.P. The end date of Lapita is problematical, since it depends on how the end is defined. The paper concludes with some observations on the implications of the revised dating for understanding Lapita sites. KEYWORDS: dating, calibration, Lapita, shell, charcoal.
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ItemOn Early Pottery-Making in the Russian Far East(University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu), 1997)Until recently, the Japanese archipelago has been the only known area oflate Pleistocene- early Holocene pottery-making sites in both the Japan Sea basin and eastern Asia as a whole. During the 1990s, however, a series of sites containing ceramics similar to early pottery from Japan (i.e., Jomon) was discovered in the Russian Far East, including the Lower Amur River basin. Basic traits of the ceramics at the sites include untempered or plant tempered paste, simplicity of forming technique and shape, undeveloped surface treatment technology, and low-temperature firing. The ages of these Russian Far Eastern early ceramic assemblages range from 13,000 to 7000 B.P., corresponding to the transition from late Pleistocene to early Holocene. The oldest Russian Far East ceramics are accompanied by stone artifacts made in the blade technique. This association is common at sites from the Japan Sea basin containing early pottery. KEYWORDS: Russian Far East, late Pleistocene, early Holocene, early ceramics, pottery-making technology.
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Item36:2 Table of Contents - Asian Perspectives(University of Hawai'i Press (Honolulu), 1997)