Fifteen years in the making, this book emerges as a new approach to presenting culinary information. It showcases a myriad of sumptuous, mouth-watering recipes comprising the many commonalities in ingredients and methods of food preparation of people of color from various parts of the globe. This powerful book traces and documents the continent's agricultural and mineral prosperity and the strong role played by ancient explorers, merchants, and travelers from Africa's east and west coasts in making lasting culinary and cultural marks on the United States, the Caribbean, Peru, Brazil, Mexico, India, and Southeast Asia. Groundbreaking in its treatment of heritage survival in African and African American cooking, this illuminating book broadens the scope of cuisine as it examines its historical relationship to a host of subjects—including music, advertising, sexual exploitation, and publishing. Provocative in its perspective, The Peppers, Cracklings, and Knots of Wool Cookbook dispels the long-standing misnomer that African cuisine is primitive, unsophisticated or simply non-existent, and serves as a reference in understanding how Africa's contributions continue to mark our cuisine and culture today.

This essay in cultural anthropology provides a comprehensive view of the way primitive people in all parts of the world once utilized knots; mnemonic knots—to record dates, numbers, and cultural traditions; magic knots—to cure diseases, bewitch enemies, and control the forces of nature; and practical knots—to tie things and hold things together. In his discussion of mnemonic knots, the author analyzes the Peruvian quipus (or knot-calendars and knot-records) and suggests that the Inca astronomer-priests, known to have been accurate observers of the movements of the planets, may also have been able to predict the dates of lunar eclipses; and he shows how it is possible to manipulate the Ina abacus in accordance with the decimal system. His treatment of magic knots includes instances from Babylonian times to the present, with curious examples of the supernatural power attributed to the Hercules knot (i.e., the square knot) in Egypt, Greece, and Rome. His analysis of a little-known treatise on surgeons’ slings and nooses, written by the Green physician Heraklas, is the first detailed account of the specific practical knots used by the ancient Greeks and Romans. Quipus and Witches’ Knots, which is abundantly illustrated, often surprises the reader with the unexpected ways in which the once universal dependence of men on knots has left its mark on the language, customs, and thought of modern civilized peoples.

This classic study notes the origin of a mathematical symbol, the competition it encountered, its spread among writers in different countries, its rise to popularity, and its eventual decline or ultimate survival. 1929 edition.

In view of the explosion of mathematical theories of knots in the past decade, with consequential applications, this book sets down a brief, fragmentary history of mankind's oldest and most useful technical and decorative device - the knot.

The world's leading authority on Inka khipus presents a comprehensive overview of the types of information recorded in these knotted strings, demonstrating how they can serve as primary documents for a history of the Inka empire.

This multidisciplinary study analyzes the visual, linguistic, and cultural significance of the imagery used by the Moche in their ceramics and murals.

A groundbreaking work on how the topic of scale provides an entirely new understanding of Inca material culture Although questions of form and style are fundamental to art history, the issue of scale has been surprisingly neglected. Yet, scale and scaled relationships are essential to the visual cultures of many societies from around the world, especially in the Andes. In Scale and the Incas, Andrew Hamilton presents a groundbreaking theoretical framework for analyzing scale, and then applies this approach to Inca art, architecture, and belief systems. The Incas were one of humanity's great civilizations, but their lack of a written language has prevented widespread appreciation of their sophisticated intellectual tradition. Expansive in scope, this book examines many famous works of Inca art including Machu Picchu and the Dumbarton Oaks tunic, more enigmatic artifacts like the Sayhuite Stone and Capacocha offerings, and a range of relatively unknown objects in diverse media including fiber, wood, feathers, stone, and metalwork. Ultimately, Hamilton demonstrates how the Incas used scale as an effective mode of expression in their vast multilingual and multiethnic empire. Lavishly illustrated with stunning color plates created by the author, the book's pages depict artifacts alongside scale markers and silhouettes of hands and bodies, allowing readers to gauge scale in multiple ways. The pioneering visual and theoretical arguments of Scale andthe Incas not only rewrite understandings of Inca art, but also provide a benchmark for future studies of scale in art from other cultures.

Some of the most interesting and mysterious people of the ancient world were the Incas. They were located in South America, primarily in Peru. The author was once the curator of Peruvian Archaeology at a major museum, so had access to many artifacts that are displayed in this book. We are shown what life was like for an ancient Incan warrior, priest, astronomer, housewife or leader. Also covered are the mysterious ruins of Tiahuanaco, the huge network of ancient Inca Roads, and their method of record-keeping, without using any written language, is revealed.

This lavishly illustrated volume, based on extensive archeological research and Spanish colonial documentation, provides important insights into many questions and contradictions regarding the Inca Empire. 337 illustrations, 106 in color. 12 maps.