Pikillacta: The Wari Empire in Cuzco
"From pyramids to temples to llactas, the ancient landscape shared a desire by the living to preserve the dead. In turn, McEwan and a team of experts bring a keenly honest assessment of how the Wari dead preserved the living--a new perspective on Andean archaeology that scholars must address. With thousands of laborers and tons of building material, the Wari made Pikillacta into a factory of mummification and a center of political allegiance legitimized by these powerful, yet dead, inhabitants. A magisterial reference for Andean researchers."--Patricia J. Knobloch, author of the website Who Was Who in the Middle Horizon Andean Prehistory"Pikillacta is the largest and grandest of all Wari regional centers, and McEwan's volume brings it to its rightful place of prominence in the archaeological literature. McEwan and his associates combine multiple lines of evidence to paint a vibrant portrait of this imperial occupation in its many guises. Archaeologists concerned with ancient empires will strive to emulate the research presented here."--Katharina Schreiber, author of Wari Imperialism in Middle Horizon Peru"Andeanists have been long awaiting the compilation of the Pikillacta investigation; McEwan's book is a substantive contribution to our understanding of what the Wari state was and how it manipulated subject societies. A major contribution to the field of Wari research in particular and to Andean studies in the broader context, this book is also a substantial contribution to any understanding of how empires worldwide are built and sustained. McEwan's writing style is wonderfully engaging; even though six different writers are present, the text essentially speaks with a single voice."--Alana Cordy-Collins, University of San Diego