The Archaeology of Ancient Cities

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"This book is about the archaeology of cities in the ancient world, but many of its elements are also part of the study of urbanization in the modern world. The goals we have for this book are fivefold. (1) Wrestle with the question of what constitutes a city. That is, as we explore the origin of cities, we try to define a concept that has historically lacked definitional consensus and search for a definition applicable to both ancient and modern cities. (2) Explore what constitutes an ancient city in physical terms--space and population--and try to characterize what is essential to social life in cities. (3) Introduce a simple typology of cities that provides a systematic way to identify various types of cities, which gives proper recognition to the low-density settlements of the past that scholars are now acknowledging as urban. (4) Look at six case studies of ancient cities--three primary cities (Hierakonpolis in Egypt, Teotihuacan in Mexico, Copán in Honduras) and three secondary cities (Rome, Gyeongju [Kyongju] in South Korea, and Great Zimbabwe). (5) Review the cases for some settlements called cities by some and denied that status by others--specifically, Cahokia and Chaco in North America. Each chapter will include brief exercises that assist the reader in understanding some of the principles for the proper appreciation of the archaeology of ancient cities"--