The focus of Conquistador's Wake is a decade-long archaeological project undertaken at a place now known as the Glass Site, located in Telfair County, Georgia. This spot, near the town of McRae, Georgia, offers clues that place Hernando de Soto in Georgia via a different route than previously thought by historians and archaeologists. Rare glass beads-some of the only examples found outside Florida-are among the rich body of evidence signaling Spanish interaction with the Native Americans along the Ocmulgee River. An unusual number and variety of metal and glass artifacts, identified by their distinct patterns and limited production, are the "calling cards" of Soto and other early explorers. As a meditation on both the production of knowledge and the implications of findings at the Glass Site, Conquistador's Wake challenges conventional wisdom surrounding the path of Soto through Georgia and casts new light on the nature of Native American societies then residing in southern Georgia. It also provides an insider's view of how archaeology works and why it matters. Through his research, Dennis Blanton sets out to explain the outcome of one of Georgia's, and the region's, most important archaeological projects of recent years. He tells at the same time a highly personal story, from the perspective of the lead archaeologist, about the realities of the research process, from initial problem formulation to the demands of fieldwork, the collaborative process, data interpretation, and scholarly tribalism.

The focus of Conquistador's Wake is a decade-long archaeological project undertaken at a place now known as the Glass Site, located in Telfair County, Georgia. This spot, near the town of McRae, Georgia, offers clues that place Hernando de Soto in Georgia via a different route than previously thought by historians and archaeologists. Rare glass beads-some of the only examples found outside Florida-are among the rich body of evidence signaling Spanish interaction with the Native Americans along the Ocmulgee River. An unusual number and variety of metal and glass artifacts, identified by their distinct patterns and limited production, are the "calling cards" of Soto and other early explorers. As a meditation on both the production of knowledge and the implications of findings at the Glass Site, Conquistador's Wake challenges conventional wisdom surrounding the path of Soto through Georgia and casts new light on the nature of Native American societies then residing in southern Georgia. It also provides an insider's view of how archaeology works and why it matters. Through his research, Dennis Blanton sets out to explain the outcome of one of Georgia's, and the region's, most important archaeological projects of recent years. He tells at the same time a highly personal story, from the perspective of the lead archaeologist, about the realities of the research process, from initial problem formulation to the demands of fieldwork, the collaborative process, data interpretation, and scholarly tribalism.

North American Indians cultivated tobacco beginning in prehistory, often through great effort and for multiple reasons. Especially valued for its narcotic effects, however, tobacco was as signed sacred status and became a necessary component of any event with cultural or religious significance. As such, ritualistic tobacco use joined cult usage of other plants as Native American societies evolved throughout the Mississippian time period. In Mississippian Smoking Ritual in the Southern Appalachian Region, Dennis B. Blanton surveys smoking pipes found at archaeological sites throughout southern Appalachia and neigh boring areas to present a holistic picture of Native American smoking rituals in the region. While tobacco could also be eaten or infused into tea, native peoples traditionally dried the leaves and smoked them in increasingly ornate pipes. The ritual importance of tobacco translated into a similar status for smoking pipes. Mississippian pipe traditions varied throughout the region but in accordance with distinctive cultural patterns. Blanton's research ties pipe usage and pipe-smoking traditions to particular pipe forms, and sometimes to specific sites, and in doing so, he further informs our knowledge of the complexities of Mississippian societies and their myriad ceremonial rituals. Mississippian Smoking Ritual in the Southern Appalachian Region is an especially useful text for understanding ritual behavior and its patterns of change over time. The historical trajec tory of tobacco begins with adherence to a longstanding smoking tradition but evolves into a complex ceremonial practice with equally complex forms of tobacco pipes. This regional study demonstrates how smoking rituals changed as broader cultural shifts redefined the Mississip pian Era, bringing archaeologists closer to answering the elusive macro question of why rituals evolved within Native American cultures.