Bioarchaeology and Behavior
The People of the Ancient Near East

Edited by Megan A. Perry

Foreword by Clark Spencer Larsen
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“A fine volume for anyone wishing [for] a survey of bioarchaeological research in the eastern Mediterranean and the Near East.”—HOMO: Journal of Comparative Human Biology
 
“Makes a convincing argument for the efficacy of historical bioarchaeology. . . . A timely overview of a cutting-edge discipline.”—Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research
 
“Very interesting. . . . Impressive temporal and methodical variability.”—Bioarchaeology of the Near East
 
"A well-edited and organized book that will provide anyone interested in the ancient Middle East the opportunity to encounter the quality and diversity of skeletal research being conducted in the region."--Jerome C. Rose, University of Arkansas

"A welcome contribution to the literature on burial practices and human skeletal remains; includes some innovative analytical techniques for determining groups of individuals dating from the Natufian to the Medieval period in the Near East and eastern Mediterranean."--Michelle Bonogofsky, editor of The Bioarchaeology of the Human Head: Decapitation, Decoration, and Deformation

While mortuary ruins have long fascinated archaeologists and art historians interested in the cultures of the Near East and eastern Mediterranean, the human skeletal remains contained in the tombs of this region have garnered less attention. In Bioarchaeology and Behavior, Megan Perry presents a collection of essays that aim a spotlight on the investigation of the ancient inhabitants of the circum-Mediterranean area.
 
Composed of eight diverse papers, this volume synthesizes recent research on human skeletal remains and their archaeological and historical contexts in this region. Utilizing an environmental, social, and political framework, the contributors present scholarly case studies on such topics as the region's mortuary archaeology, genetic investigations of migration patterns, and the ancient populations' health, disease, and diet.
 
Other key anthropological issues addressed in this volume include the effects of the domestication of plants and animals, the rise of state-level formations, and the role of religion in society. Ultimately, this collection will provide anthropologists, archaeologists, and bioarchaeologists with an important foundation for future research in the Near East and eastern Mediterranean.

Megan A. Perry is associate professor of anthropology at East Carolina University and codirector of the Petra North Ridge Project.
 
Contributors: Brenda J. Baker | Elizabeth Carter | Drew S. Coleman | Sherry Fox | David Dettman | Suellen Gauld | Lesley A. Gregoricka | Sarah Whitcher Kansa | Ioanna Moutafi | James S. Oliver | Donald J. Ortner | Amy Papalexandrou | Alejandro Peréz-Peréz | Megan A. Perry |  William J. Pestle | Despo Pilides | Elena Prevedorou | Susan Guise Sheridan | Abdel Halim al-Shiyab | Christina Torres-Rouff  | Jaime M. Ullinger 
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Designed to further the biological work that [J. Lawrence] Angel began in the Near East and Mediterranean . . . a fine volume.
--Journal of Comparative Human biology

These accounts of vital, active research. . . . provide a timely overview of a cutting-edge discipline bursting onto a very old scene.
--Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research

Shows [the] great potential of bioarchaeological studies that are carefully and properly set in archaeological and historical context.
--Bioarchaeology of the Ancient Near East

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