Craft and the kingly ideal : art, trade, and power

著者

    • Helms, Mary W.

書誌事項

Craft and the kingly ideal : art, trade, and power

Mary W. Helms

University of Texas Press, 1993

1st ed

  • : alk.
  • : pbk. : alk.

大学図書館所蔵 件 / 全3件

この図書・雑誌をさがす

注記

Includes bibliographical references (p. [247]-278) and index

内容説明・目次

巻冊次

: alk. ISBN 9780292730748

内容説明

In ancient Mediterranean cultures, diamonds were thought to endow their owners with invincibility. In contemporary United States culture, a foreign-made luxury car is believed to give its owner status and prestige. Where do these beliefs come from? In this study of craft production and long-distance trade in traditional, nonindustrial societies, Mary W. Helms explores the power attributed to objects that either are produced by skilled artisans and/or come from afar. She argues that fine artisanship and long-distance trade, both of which are more available to powerful elites than to ordinary people, are means of creating or acquiring tangible objects that embody intangible powers and energies from the cosmological realms of gods, ancestors, or heroes. Through the objects, these qualities become available to human society and confer honor and power on their possessors. Helms' novel approach equates trade with artistry and emphasizes acquisition rather than distribution. She rejects the classic Western separation between economics and aesthetics and offers a new paradigm for understanding traditional societies that will be of interest to all anthropologists and archaeologists.
巻冊次

: pbk. : alk. ISBN 9780292730786

内容説明

In ancient Mediterranean cultures, diamonds were thought to endow their owners with invincibility. In contemporary United States culture, a foreign-made luxury car is believed to give its owner status and prestige. Where do these beliefs come from? In this study of craft production and long-distance trade in traditional, nonindustrial societies, Mary W. Helms explores the power attributed to objects that either are produced by skilled artisans and/or come from "afar." She argues that fine artisanship and long-distance trade, both of which are more available to powerful elites than to ordinary people, are means of creating or acquiring tangible objects that embody intangible powers and energies from the cosmological realms of gods, ancestors, or heroes. Through the objects, these qualities become available to human society and confer honor and power on their possessors. Helms' novel approach equates trade with artistry and emphasizes acquisition rather than distribution. She rejects the classic Western separation between economics and aesthetics and offers a new paradigm for understanding traditional societies that will be of interest to all anthropologists and archaeologists.

目次

Preface 1. Introduction to the Problem Prelude The Activities of Gilgamesh Professional Perspectives Part I: Skilled Crafting 2. What Skilled Crafting Means Qualities of Skilled Crafting Crafting as Transformation Crafting and Creation 3. Skilled Artisans in Time and Space Artisans and the Ancestors Artisans and Geographical Distance Travelers, Traders, and Artisans Traveling as Skilled Craft The Authenticity of Distance 4. Qualities of Skilled Artisans Flawed Creators or the Epitome of Humanness Aesthetics 5. Skilled Crafting and Political Authority Crafting and Politics in Egalitarian Societies Power over Things as Power over People The Kingly Craft of Building Part II: Acquisition 6. Exchange, Trade, and Acquisition Acquisition Defined Acquisition Explored 7. Acquisition in Time and Space Original Travelers and Original Trade Craft and the Conduct of Acquisition 8. Qualities of Acquisition The Flawed and the Ideal The Accumulation of Wealth Wealth and the Ancestors 9. Naturally Endowed Goods and Skillfully Crafted Goods The Tangible and the Material Hunting The Skillfully Crafted vs. the Naturally Endowed 10. Acquisition and Political Authority Elites and the Outside Elites as Acquirers Acquisition and Ancestral Conditions Part III: Centers and Origins 11. Superordinate Centers Outside Centers and Ancestral Powers Superordinate Centers 12. Acquisitional Polities Characteristics of Centers-Out-There The Acquisition of "Civilization" 13. Conclusions Notes References Index

「Nielsen BookData」 より

詳細情報

ページトップへ