Books by Anthony P. Graesch
""Life at Home in the Twenty-First Century cross-cuts the ranks of important books on social hist... more ""Life at Home in the Twenty-First Century cross-cuts the ranks of important books on social history, consumerism, contemporary culture, the meaning of material culture, domestic architecture, and household ethnoarchaeology. Far richer in information and more incisive than America at Home (Smolan and Erwitt), it also moves well beyond Rick Smolan's Day in the Life series. It is a distant cousin of Material World and Hungry Planet in content and style, but represents a blend of rigorous science and photography that none of these books can claim. Using archaeological approaches to human material culture, this volume offers unprecedented access to the middle-class American home through the kaleidoscopic lens of no-limits photography and many kinds of never-before acquired data about how people actually live their lives at home. Media reactions to early findings from the nine-year project that spawned this book indicate that it will appeal not only to scientists but also to the book-buying public, people who share intense curiosity about what goes on at home in their neighborhoods. Many who read the book will see their own lives mirrored in these pages and can reflect on how other people cope with their mountains of possessions and other daily challenges. Readers abroad will be equally fascinated by the contrasts between their own kinds of materialism and the typical American experience, as a sample of Italians' and Swedes' responses to our corpus of photographs and our study's findings have demonstrated. The book will interest a range of designers, builders, and architects as well as scholars and students who research various facets of U.S. and global consumerism, cultural history, and economic history."
Winner of the Jo Anne Stolaroff Cotsen Prize - 2012
The first edition (July 2012) sold out in late summer 2012. The second printing is available on as of October 15, 2012.
Available at the UNM Press: http://www.unmpress.com/books.php?ID=20000000005616&Page=book
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/life.at.home.in.the.twentyfirst.century?ref=hl""
Articles - Archaeological Anthropology by Anthony P. Graesch
Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 2025
Salmon fishing and storage have been integral elements of Stó:lō-Coast Salish household life, eco... more Salmon fishing and storage have been integral elements of Stó:lō-Coast Salish household life, economy, and identity in the Fraser Valley and lower Fraser Canyon of southwestern British Columbia for millennia. However, taphonomic factors affecting salmon remains make it difficult to directly study variability in food-related labor allocations, prompting us to focus instead on fish processing tools. This study employs experimental archaeology, archaeological collections analyses, and geochemistry to investigate the production of kw'éts'tel-ground slate fish knives essential to the precontact Stó:lō-Coast Salish salmon economy. Our objectives are to examine the forms and attributes of finished kw'éts'tel blades, explore potential slate sources, and assess decisions, techniques, and labor involved in blade production. Using an integrated methodological framework, our analyses offer nuanced insights into kw'éts'tel production and its role in Stó:lō-Coast Salish social organization. We argue that this approach enhances our ability to interpret the kw'éts'tel-focused archaeological record, shedding light on social change over time. This is particularly significant in a region where the emergence of a high-ranking social elite was partly driven by positioning and placement within the means and mode of production in the salmon-focused fishing economy.
Archaeology Outside of the Box, 2023
Graesch, A. P., and T. Hartshorn. (2023). Litterscapes in the anthropocene: an
archaeology of di... more Graesch, A. P., and T. Hartshorn. (2023). Litterscapes in the anthropocene: an
archaeology of discarded cigarettes. In Archaeology Outside of the Box, edited by Hans Barnard, pp.147–132. Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press, Los Angeles.
Archaeologies of the Heart, 2020
The objects we choose to throw away, and how we discard those objects, can reveal much about mate... more The objects we choose to throw away, and how we discard those objects, can reveal much about materiality and the material basis of capitalism in the twenty-first century. This chapter explores how analyses of the assemblages and locations of recent illegal dumping events illuminate tensions between structural forces, the ways we relate to our possessions, and the motivations prompting the severance of those relationships. Using data gathered during a faculty-student research project addressing contemporary surface assemblages, we also examine the emotive capacities of illegally discarded belongings. With an analytic emphasis on intact assemblages, we argue that acknowledging the emotional contours of unsanctioned discard not only complements methodologically rigorous, data-driven archaeologies of the contemporary, but also provides a forum for grappling with fieldworkers’ affective responses to handling culturally familiar objects. Such responses, in turn, can help to cultivate deeper-seated empathy and respect for non- Western connections to objects, space, and place in other archaeological research contexts.
Citation:
Graesch, A. P., C. Maynard, and A. Thomas. (2020). Discards, emotions, and empathy on the margins of the waste stream. Archaeologies of the Heart, edited by Kisha Supernant, Jane E. Baxter, Natasha Lyons, and Sonya Atalay, pp. 141–161. Springer Nature, Switzerland.
The identification of earthen house floors or living surfaces during archaeological field investi... more The identification of earthen house floors or living surfaces during archaeological field investigations can be hampered by the scale of excavation, variable fieldworker experiences, and any number of site formation processes. Furthermore, although time and context-sensitive sampling protocols (e.g., those required of macrobotanical and microartifact data collection) rely on in-the-moment identifications of floors, strong empirical evidence for the presence of house floors often comes well after the field season has concluded. Pocket penetrometers—inexpensive instruments that measure the compaction strength of soil—can lend empirical support to decisions about sampling procedures during onsite investigations. In this study, we present findings from the analysis of 4,463 penetrometer readings recorded during the excavation of residential and non-residential architecture at Welqámex, a Stó:lō-Coast Salish settlement in southwestern British Columbia. We show how pocket penetrometer data reveal quantifiable differences in the compaction of floors and other cultural deposits. We argue that compaction measurements can provide an additional line of data (ratio scale) to affirm or challenge onsite interpretations of stratigraphy based on other tactile and observational data, particularly as such interpretations pertain to surfaces expected to have been exposed to recurrent foot traffic.
"Despite its ubiquity in residential middens at many North American archaeological sites, thermal... more "Despite its ubiquity in residential middens at many North American archaeological sites, thermally modified rock (TMR) is among the least studied elements of the archaeological record. TMR assemblages, however, may provide key insights into routine cooking practices, patterns of refuse disposal, and midden formation processes. This article outlines the results of experimental research aimed at understanding the conditions by which TMR assemblages were created in residential settlements in the Pacific Northwest. We present baseline data addressing the thermal properties of the hearth, the rate and circumstances of cobble fracturing, the extent to which different kinds of cobbles break when exposed to heat for varying durations, and the effectiveness of hot cobbles at achieving cooking temperatures."
An earlier build of this article took the form of a collaborative research poster presented at the 2013 Society for American Archaeology annual meetings in Honolulu, Hawaii (see linked poster, below). The article (above) and poster (linked on my Academia.edu page) are complementary, although the NAA article contains more details concerning the experiments and outcomes. As such, the article (above) is likely the most appropriate for citation purposes, although feel free to cite the poster as well.
Keywords: thermally modified rock, fire-cracked rock, fire-altered rock, hot rock cooking, experimental archaeology, TMR, FCR, FAR, Pacific Northwest Coast, Welqamex
In Across the Great Divide: Continuity and Change in Native North American Societies, A.D. 1400-... more In Across the Great Divide: Continuity and Change in Native North American Societies, A.D. 1400-1900, edited by L. Scheiber and M. Wagner, pp. 212-238. University of Arizona Press, Tucson.
Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, Jan 1, 2007
Foundations of Chumash complexity, Jan 1, 2004
Foundations of Chumash Complexity, Jan 1, 2004
H sroric COnt3Ct between ex pa nd ing state-level soc ieties and bunrer-ge tberer cultures in Ca ... more H sroric COnt3Ct between ex pa nd ing state-level soc ieties and bunrer-ge tberer cultures in Ca liforn ia was a complex and dynamic process. T he Late prehistoric-Histo ric period tra nsition mar ked t he beginni ng o f th ree tempora lly d istinct phases of colon ial expansion in to Ca lifornia. Spa nish co lo nizatio n in 17 69, M exica n domination in 1822, a nd ultimatel y Anglo-America n co nq uest in I 846 result ed in a succession of uniq ue ep isodes of culture conracr for resident Ind ian soc ieties. Widely var ying pol itical age ndas of these co lonia l pre sences fostered the development of a d iverse ar ray o f soc ia l, pol itica l, and economic relationships with a n eq ua lly d iverse po p ulatio n o f Californian groups. T he impos itio ns a nd problems accompa nying Eu ro pea n la bo r systems, military ca mpaigns, a nd d iseases were felt differentl y throughou t the state, resulting in con siderable va riation in the co nd itions o f cultu re co ntact (Castillo 19 78 ). H owever, accelerated de mog raph ic d ecline a nd the brevity of the Historic period have limi ted o u r understa nd ing of Ca lifo rn ia n gro ups' ada ptations to these circumstances of cultural d isr uption. Well befo re 19 00 most traditio na l eco nomies in California had co lla psed, a nd the po pulat io n had plumme ted to only 5 percent o f that at co ntact (Cha rtko ff a nd Cbarrkoff 1984; Hu rt ad o .1 988 ).
Articles - Mixed-Methods Social Science by Anthony P. Graesch
Fast-Forward Family: Home, Work, and Relationships in Middle-Class America, 2013
Family counselors, newspaper columnists, academic researchers—even bloggers—all agree on a core p... more Family counselors, newspaper columnists, academic researchers—even bloggers—all agree on a core problem of contemporary American families: there is too much to do and too little time to get it done. Amidst the hustle and bustle of fast-paced daily life in urban America, to what extent do parents and children use unscheduled opportunities to spend time together in and among home spaces? At Home - Chapter 2 in Fast-Forward Family: Home, Work, and Relationships in Middle-Class America (2013) - examines how and how often dual-earner families with two or more children achieve togetherness or cohesion in the home when balancing the time-demands and obligations of career and school. Data presentations and discussion draw heavily from an extensive archive of person-centered observations of family members’ locations, activities, and interactions as recorded by ethnographers every 10 minutes over the course of weekday mornings and afternoons in the home. Unique ethnographic datasets, including systematic observations of family members’ spatial proximity and shared activities, are evaluated against data that speak to the routine lives of working families - work hours, daily commutes, and organization of home spaces.
Journal of Family …, Jan 1, 2009
Sociological …, Jan 1, 2007
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Books by Anthony P. Graesch
Winner of the Jo Anne Stolaroff Cotsen Prize - 2012
The first edition (July 2012) sold out in late summer 2012. The second printing is available on as of October 15, 2012.
Available at the UNM Press: http://www.unmpress.com/books.php?ID=20000000005616&Page=book
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/life.at.home.in.the.twentyfirst.century?ref=hl""
Articles - Archaeological Anthropology by Anthony P. Graesch
archaeology of discarded cigarettes. In Archaeology Outside of the Box, edited by Hans Barnard, pp.147–132. Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press, Los Angeles.
Citation:
Graesch, A. P., C. Maynard, and A. Thomas. (2020). Discards, emotions, and empathy on the margins of the waste stream. Archaeologies of the Heart, edited by Kisha Supernant, Jane E. Baxter, Natasha Lyons, and Sonya Atalay, pp. 141–161. Springer Nature, Switzerland.
An earlier build of this article took the form of a collaborative research poster presented at the 2013 Society for American Archaeology annual meetings in Honolulu, Hawaii (see linked poster, below). The article (above) and poster (linked on my Academia.edu page) are complementary, although the NAA article contains more details concerning the experiments and outcomes. As such, the article (above) is likely the most appropriate for citation purposes, although feel free to cite the poster as well.
Keywords: thermally modified rock, fire-cracked rock, fire-altered rock, hot rock cooking, experimental archaeology, TMR, FCR, FAR, Pacific Northwest Coast, Welqamex
Articles - Mixed-Methods Social Science by Anthony P. Graesch
Winner of the Jo Anne Stolaroff Cotsen Prize - 2012
The first edition (July 2012) sold out in late summer 2012. The second printing is available on as of October 15, 2012.
Available at the UNM Press: http://www.unmpress.com/books.php?ID=20000000005616&Page=book
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/life.at.home.in.the.twentyfirst.century?ref=hl""
archaeology of discarded cigarettes. In Archaeology Outside of the Box, edited by Hans Barnard, pp.147–132. Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press, Los Angeles.
Citation:
Graesch, A. P., C. Maynard, and A. Thomas. (2020). Discards, emotions, and empathy on the margins of the waste stream. Archaeologies of the Heart, edited by Kisha Supernant, Jane E. Baxter, Natasha Lyons, and Sonya Atalay, pp. 141–161. Springer Nature, Switzerland.
An earlier build of this article took the form of a collaborative research poster presented at the 2013 Society for American Archaeology annual meetings in Honolulu, Hawaii (see linked poster, below). The article (above) and poster (linked on my Academia.edu page) are complementary, although the NAA article contains more details concerning the experiments and outcomes. As such, the article (above) is likely the most appropriate for citation purposes, although feel free to cite the poster as well.
Keywords: thermally modified rock, fire-cracked rock, fire-altered rock, hot rock cooking, experimental archaeology, TMR, FCR, FAR, Pacific Northwest Coast, Welqamex
This poster was the basis for an article published in Advances in Archaeological Practice 3(2): 93-106 (see linked paper, below). The poster highlights only some of the published findings.
https://www.academia.edu/12359552/The_Pocket_Penetrometer_An_Onsite_Method_for_Discerning_the_Presence_of_Earthen_House_Floors_and_Other_Trampled_Surfaces_2015_
This poster was the basis for an article published in North American Archaeologist in 2014 (see linked paper, below). The two presentations of information are complementary, although the article contains more details on the experimental study. https://www.academia.edu/7327181/Thermally_Modified_Rock_The_Experimental_Study_of_Fire-Cracked_Byproducts_of_Hot_Rock_Cooking_2014_