Archaeological Perspectives on Conflict and Warfare in Australia and the Pacific
When James Boswell famously lamented the irrationality of war in 1777, he noted the universality of conflict across history and across space - even reaching what he described as the gentle and benign southern ocean nations. This volume discusses archaeological evidence of conflict from those souther...
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Main Author | |
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Format | eBook |
Language | English |
Published |
Canberra
ANU Press
2022
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Edition | 1 |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | When James Boswell famously lamented the irrationality of war in
1777, he noted the universality of conflict across history and
across space - even reaching what he described as the gentle and
benign southern ocean nations. This volume discusses archaeological
evidence of conflict from those southern oceans, from Palau and
Guam, to Australia, Vanuatu and Tonga, the Marquesas, Easter Island
and New Zealand. The evidence for conflict and warfare encompasses
defensive earthworks on Palau, fortifications on Tonga, and
intricate pa sites in New Zealand. It reports evidence of
reciprocal sacrifice to appease deities in several island nations,
and skirmishes and smaller scale conflicts, including in Easter
Island. This volume traces aspects of colonial-era conflict in
Australia and frontier battles in Vanuatu, and discusses depictions
of World War II materiel in the rock art of Arnhem Land. Among the
causes and motives discussed in these papers are pressure on
resources, the ebb and flow of significant climate events, and the
significant association of conflict with culture contact. The
volume, necessarily selective, eclectic and wide-ranging, includes
an incisive introduction that situates the evidence persuasively in
the broader scholarship addressing the history of human
warfare. |
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ISBN: | 1760464880 9781760464882 9781760464899 1760464899 |
DOI: | 10.2307/j.ctv2ff6h5r |