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It used to be received wisdom that hierarchies saved starving pastoralists by inventing irrigation agriculture, complex societies and temples - Mesopotamia and Egypt circa 3500 BC
But then Gobekli Tepe was discovered, a temple complex built by hunter-gatherers and pastoralists circa 9000 BC.
Over the next 5000 years agriculture and cities slowly evolved.
This new theory is set against that backdrop
theconversation.com
"an alternative view, first put forward by anthropologist James Scott, is gaining ground. This proposes that states didn’t emerge from agriculture in general – rather, they almost invariably formed in societies that grew cereal grains.
"Grasses such as wheat, barley, rice and maize grow above ground, ripen at a predictable time, and the grains they produce are readily stored. This makes them perfect for the systems of taxation that Scott argues fuelled state formation.
"By Scott’s account, Mafia-style protection rackets forced people to produce grain, from which tax could be extracted and used to fund further exploitation. Scott proposed that these protection rackets were effectively the original states."
....
Living within the law, follow the rules and live. Become an outlaw and take your chances on dying in a desert.
But then Gobekli Tepe was discovered, a temple complex built by hunter-gatherers and pastoralists circa 9000 BC.
Over the next 5000 years agriculture and cities slowly evolved.
This new theory is set against that backdrop
The real reason states first emerged thousands of years ago – new research
New findings add weight to the theory that states didn’t just spring up from any kind of farming – it had to be grain.
theconversation.com
"an alternative view, first put forward by anthropologist James Scott, is gaining ground. This proposes that states didn’t emerge from agriculture in general – rather, they almost invariably formed in societies that grew cereal grains.
"Grasses such as wheat, barley, rice and maize grow above ground, ripen at a predictable time, and the grains they produce are readily stored. This makes them perfect for the systems of taxation that Scott argues fuelled state formation.
"By Scott’s account, Mafia-style protection rackets forced people to produce grain, from which tax could be extracted and used to fund further exploitation. Scott proposed that these protection rackets were effectively the original states."
....
Living within the law, follow the rules and live. Become an outlaw and take your chances on dying in a desert.
