The Archaeology of Complex Societies: A project presented by the graduate students of The Ohio State University Department of Anthropology Main Menu

Case Studies Lobby

12380 Teotihuacan
Now it's time to take what you've learned about complex societies and apply it to some actual archaeological data. We have included seven case studies here, spanning many different time periods and geographical areas. For a better understanding of the geographic spread of the societies, we've included the map above. Each case study includes information about subsistence strategies, political organization, economy, environment, and ideology for a particular site or civilization. We've included some guiding questions alongside each case study, but what we really would like you to focus on are which, if any, of the provided theoretical definitions best explain the cases, and whether or not you think the civilizations can be classified as complex. After you finish moving through the case studies, be sure to visit the "Conclusions" page for a wrap-up of the exhibit. Enjoy!

This page has paths:

  1. Politics of Representation Alexandra Wilkins
  2. Nok Alexandra Wilkins
  3. Cahokia Alexandra Wilkins
  4. Conclusion Alexandra Wilkins
  5. Çatalhöyük Alexandra Wilkins
  6. Ugarit Alexandra Wilkins
  7. Teotihuacan Alexandra Wilkins
  8. Cusco Alexandra Wilkins
  9. Athens Sarah Hinkelman

Contents of this path:

  1. Cahokia
  2. Athens
  3. Teotihuacan
  4. Ugarit
  5. Çatalhöyük
  6. Nok
  7. Conclusion
  8. Introduction: What does it mean to call a society "complex?"