This author explores the study of human history and cultures through archaeological findings. Her work focuses on uncovering the complex social structures and processes that shaped past civilizations. She examines how material culture reflects human behavior and social dynamics.
The book introduces a new materialist approach to archaeology, integrating site ontology from geography with an innovative analysis of archaeological materiality as traces. It emphasizes the concept of animacy hierarchy to reframe geological materials as dynamic entities, encouraging a deeper understanding of their active role in archaeological contexts. This perspective challenges traditional views and invites readers to reconsider the interactions between materials and their environments.
The author combines archaeological data gleaned from site research in 1980-1983 with anthropological theory about the evolution of social power to reconstruct something of the culture and lifeways of the prehispanic inhabitants of Cerro Palenque.