Between May 27-29, 2016, a conference on “Trade before Civilization” will be held at the University of Gothenburg. Our Contribution will be on “Long Distance Exchange of Goods and Ideas and Early Social Complexity in the Early Neolithic of the Near East.” [Conference Program – external link]

Conference description (from Conference Website – external link)

The role that long distance exchange may have played in the advent of social complexity has been an important topic of debate among scholars. While many efforts have shed valuable light on the genesis of social complexity, many models put forth seek to understand the topic at hand through the narrow lenses of their respective disciplines. Moreover, many studies limit their investigations to a constricted geographical analysis. That is to say that with relatively few exceptions, many investigations fail to incorporate interdisciplinary perspectives and do not extend their analysis to encompass broad regions. The lack of interdisciplinary perspective and relatively narrow geographical focus characterizing many recent studies limits the explanatory scope and potential of these scholarly activities. The Trade Before Civilizationconference explores, from an interdisciplinary perspective, the role that long distance trade may have played in the establishment and/or maintenance of social complexity in transegalitarian and chiefdom level societies. This conference brings together scholars of diverse nationalities, disciplines and theoretical perspectives which is conducive to the cross-fertilization of ideas. Symposium participants include a cadre of world renowned archaeologists, social and cultural anthropologists, ethnohistorians, and historical sociologists. In order to expand the multidisciplinary breadth, global scope, and theoretical perspectives deemed essential to a more comprehensive treatment of the topic under consideration, research papers on European, Asian, African, Oceanian, North American, and South American sites/case studies are included in this conference.