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Social Science Archaeology

Mortuary Landscapes of North Africa

edited by David Stone & Lea Stirling

Publisher
University of Toronto Press
Initial publish date
Mar 2007
Category
Archaeology
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9780802090836
    Publish Date
    Mar 2007
    List Price
    $111.00
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781442659414
    Publish Date
    Dec 2007
    List Price
    $90.00

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Description

Cemetery and landscape studies have been hallmarks of North African archaeology for more than one hundred years. Mortuary Landscapes of North Africa is the first book to combine these two fields by considering North African cemeteries within the context of their wider landscapes. This unique perspective allows for new interpretations of notions of identity, community, imperial influence, and sacred space.

 

Based on a wealth of material research from current fieldwork, this collection of essays investigates how North African funerary monuments acted as regional boundaries, markers of identity and status, and barometers of cultural change. The essays cover a broad range in terms of space and time – from southern Libya to eastern Algeria, and from the seventh century BCE to the seventh century CE. A comprehensive introduction explains the importance of the 'landscape perspective' that these studies bring to North African funerary monuments, while individual case-studies address such topics as the African way of death among the Garamantes, the ritual reasons for the location of certain Early Christian tombs, Punic burials, Roman cupula tombs, and the effects of rapid state formation and imperial incorporation on tomb builders. Unique in both scope and perspective, this volume will prove invaluable to a cross-section of archaeological scholars.

About the authors

David L. Stone is an assistant professor in the Department of Classics at Florida State University.

David Stone's profile page

Lea M. Stirling is an associate professor in the Department of Classics at the University of Manitoba and holds a Canada Research Chair in Roman Archaeology.

Lea Stirling's profile page