Bruce G. Trigger is James McGill Professor in the Department of Anthropology at McGill University. He received his Ph.D. from Yale University and has carried out archaeological research in Egypt and the Sudan. His current interests include the comparative study of early civilizations, the history of archaeology, and archaeological and anthropological theory. He has received various scholarly awards, including the prestigious Prix Léon-Gérin from the Quebec government, for his sustained contributions to the social sciences. He is an honorary fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and an honorary member of the Prehistoric Society (UK). His numerous books include The Children of Aataentsic: A History of the Huron People to 1660 (1976), A History of Archaeological Thought (Cambridge 1989), Early Civilizations: Ancient Egypt in Context (1993), and Sociocultural Evolution (1998), and The Cambridge History of the Native Peoples of the Americas, Volume 1 (Cambridge 1996), co-edited with Wilcomb E. Washburn.
Part I. Introduction: 1. Rationalism and relativism
2. Comparative studies
3. Defining 'early civilization'
4. Evidence and interpretation
Part II. Sociopolitical Organization: 5. Kingship
6. States: city and territorial
7. Urbanism
8. Class systems and social mobility
9. Family organization and gender roles
10. Administration
11. Law
12. Military organization
13. Sociopolitical constants and variables
Part III. Economy: 14. Food production
15. Land ownership
16. Trade and craft specialization
17. Appropriation of wealth
18. Economic constants and variables
Part IV. Cognitive and Symbolic Aspects: 19. Conceptions of the supernatural
20. Cosmology and cosmogony
21. Cult
22. Priests, festivals, and the politics of the supernatural
23. The individual and the universe
24. Elite art and architecture
25. Literacy and specialized knowledge
26. Values and personal aspirations
27. Cultural constants and variables
Discussion: 28. Culture and reason
29. Conclusion
References
Index.
