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The Paleoanthropology and Archaeology of Big-Game Hunting

Protein, Fat, or Politics?

  • Textbook
  • © 2010

Overview

Authors:
  1. John D. Speth

    1. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA

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  • Comprehensive, multifaceted explanation of human nutrition and evolutionary needs
  • Synthesizes increasing number of arguments against the prevailing theories of big-game hunting
  • Provides a new explanation for a human adaptations
  • Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

Part of the book series: Interdisciplinary Contributions to Archaeology (IDCA)

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Table of contents (12 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-xxxiii
    Download chapter PDF

  2. Introduction

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 1-3

  3. How Do We Reconstruct Hunting Patterns in the Past?

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 5-37

  4. Big-Game Hunting in Human Evolution: The Traditional View

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 39-44

  5. The Other Side of Protein

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 45-85

  6. Were Big-Game Hunters Targeting Fat?

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 87-107

  7. Protein and Pregnancy

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 109-112

  8. Other Problems with High-Protein Intakes

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 113-117

  9. Protein and Taste

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 119-127

  10. Protein and Breast Milk

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 129-132

  11. Fat in Infancy

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 133-134

  12. DHA and the Developing Brain

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 135-147

  13. Big-Game Hunting: Protein, Fat, or Politics?

    • John D. Speth
    Pages 149-161

  14. Back Matter

    Pages 163-233
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Keywords

About this book

Since its inception, paleoanthropology has been closely wedded to the idea that big-game hunting by our hominin ancestors arose, first and foremost, as a means for acquiring energy and vital nutrients. This assumption has rarely been questioned, and seems intuitively obvious—meat is a nutrient-rich food with the ideal array of amino acids, and big animals provide meat in large, convenient packages. Through new research, the author of this volume provides a strong argument that the primary goals of big-game hunting were actually social and political—increasing hunter’s prestige and standing—and that the nutritional component was just an added bonus.

Through a comprehensive, interdisciplinary research approach, the author examines the historical and current perceptions of protein as an important nutrient source, the biological impact of a high-protein diet and the evidence of this in the archaeological record, and provides a compelling reexamination of this long-held conclusion. This volume will be of interest to researchers in Archaeology, Evolutionary Biology, and Paleoanthropology, particularly those studying diet and nutrition.

Authors and Affiliations

  • Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA

    John D. Speth

Bibliographic Information

  • Book Title: The Paleoanthropology and Archaeology of Big-Game Hunting

  • Book Subtitle: Protein, Fat, or Politics?

  • Authors: John D. Speth

  • Series Title: Interdisciplinary Contributions to Archaeology

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-6733-6

  • Publisher: Springer New York, NY

  • eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and Law, Social Sciences (R0)

  • Copyright Information: Springer-Verlag New York 2010

  • Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-4419-6732-9Published: 17 September 2010

  • Softcover ISBN: 978-1-4614-2674-5Published: 24 July 2012

  • eBook ISBN: 978-1-4419-6733-6Published: 08 September 2010

  • Series ISSN: 1568-2722

  • Series E-ISSN: 2730-6984

  • Edition Number: 1

  • Number of Pages: XXXIII, 233

  • Number of Illustrations: 20 b/w illustrations

  • Topics: Archaeology, Evolutionary Biology, Nutrition

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