bs2
> ..research at #Kirikongo has revealed a,, socio-political sequence, with the development of institutionalized inequalities over the course of the 1st millennium CE, followed by an egalitarian revolution in the early 2nd millennium CE. The consequent social formation, despite being structurally egalitarian was actually more complex than the vertically oriented system.. and..question common assumptions of #directionality in #SocioPoliticalEvolution.
https://blogs.uoregon.edu/dueppen/kirikongo-archaeological-project/
#StephenDueppen
Kirikongo Archaeological Project | Dr. Stephen Dueppen

Mar 4, 2023 at 5:51amWeb
Show threadbs2Mar 4, 2023

> Kirikongo’s chickens are currently the earliest known in sub-Saharan Africa, and I have argued that

> #chickens are of greater relative importance in #egalitarian political systems since they are less likely than other domestic animals to be a symbol of inequality.

> These results are featured in the 2014 popular science book Why Did the Chicken Cross the World: The Epic Saga of the Bird that Powers Civilization by #AndrewLawler

Show threadbs2Mar 4, 2023

#AndrewLawler's book:
> Dueppen believes that the rejection of cattle and hierarchy hinged on the availability of the chicken.

> Come the revolution, the fowl provided a viable alternative to the cow.
> Chicken bones quickly replace those from cattle. #Cattle are traditionally a male domain, whether in Britain or Burma, while chickens are typically under female control in pre-industrial cultures. #Dueppen suspects that women may have played a key role in overturning Kirikongo’s nascent elite.

Show threadbs2Mar 4, 2023
> The bird made it possible to make offerings without straining a family’s budget. In his 2010 paper in American Antiquity, Dueppen writes “chickens provided a means to maintain the rich spiritual life within a consciously reinvented egalitarian society without creating wealth differentials.” In other words, you didn’t need to be a rich cattle baron to maintain your connection with the gods.
#Chickens #ChickenEquality #HumanScale #MiniScale #Egalitarianism
Show threadbs2Mar 4, 2023

> .. “the reinvention of equality in the creation of a novel society.”
> The chicken revolution still reverberates in the region. Men can marry without selling off their land or animals and women can divorce their husbands with a freedom not found in many other West African societies.

Reading #AndrewLawyer's
#WhyDidTheChickenCrossTheWorld is a good motivation to raise chickens and spread the wealth! We got a few adopters coming to visit tomorrow.

Show threadbs2Mar 4, 2023

The #IndigoGirls
provide the soundtrack for Andrew Lawler's book:
> Born of the wild
Riddled to spend my time
Defending my land
You are my only one
Born in the sun
Riddled to spend your time
Defending my plan...
> And it's one more life for the taker
Chickenman chickenman
One more song for the maker
Chickenman chickenman...
Hold my hand..

https://yewtu.be/watch?v=IwkUoEc_FRY
#ChickenMan
... I may not lead...
... I may not follow...
Walk beside me as a friend...

Indigo Girls- Chicken Man

Song Chicken Man, by the Indigo Girls. From the album Rites of Passage.

Kat | Invidious