Resources and Society in Ancient China

This collection contains the abstracts of the papers presented in the session entitled "Resources and Society in Ancient China" at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

The connection between society and resources does not involve a deterministic relationship whereby resources directly and inevitably determine social organization, benefit, and survival. Instead, the relationship entails a dialectic, and social forces exert an impact on, and sometimes completely determine aspects of the use of resources and their distribution. In archaeological contexts, various subjects have been explored concerning the interaction between resources and society. The deep history of societies in East Asia and the diversity of associated resources provide a unique opportunity for studying the interaction between resources and society in the past, present, and future. By bringing together the recent archaeological work on a wide range of topics and approaches, including metals, ceramics, lithics, animals, plants, and various other forms of natural and social resources, this session hopes to provide a more comprehensive understanding of resources and society in ancient East Asia.