Cities are the largest "artifacts" investigated by
archaeologists--entities that have been under academic scrutiny for a
long time. Urban places are both physical and social agglomerations,
fostering the most intense interaction of any human settlement.
Archaeological evidence illustrates how ancient cities worldwide were
similar in origin, development, and maturation, showing considerable
isomorphism with modern cities. This book explores issues of definition
and the essential elements of cities, offers a new heuristic typology of
cities, and reviews case studies of six ancient cities (Copan, Great
Zimbabwe, Gyeongju, Hierakonpolis, Rome, and Teotihuacan) with
illustrative exercises at the end of each chapter. Cities have been
characterized as "social reactors" working much like a star in creating
an explosive increase in human connectivity. Urban planning, both
ancient and modern, helps us understand the essence of this--the most
exciting and vibrant product of the human tendency to nucleate.