Houses and House-Life of the American Aborigines

Studied as one system, springing from a common experience, and similar wants, and under institutions of the same general character, [forms of aboriginal architecture] are seen to indicate a plan of life at once novel, original, and distinctive.-Lewis H. Morgan, Houses and House-life of the American Aborigines (1881)Houses and House-life of the American Aborigines (1881) by Lewis Morgan is the fourth volume in a nine-part series entitled Contributions to North American Ethnology (all available from Cosimo Classics). In this book, sourced from North and Central American texts and illustrations, Morgan attempted to explain some of the ways domestic architecture reflects the development of kinship and property relations and helped anthropologists and archaeologists understand indigenous social organization. It can be considered a sequel to Morgan's book Ancient Society (also available from Cosimo Classics). This book offers a critical contribution to the history of Native Americans and is a must-read for anthropologists and students of Native American history.