George L. Cowgill is Emeritus Professor of Anthropology in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. He is the director of the ASU-managed archaeological laboratory at Teotihuacan, Mexico. His work on Teotihuacan, anthropological theory, and quantitative methods in archaeology has been published in numerous major peer-reviewed journals. He is co-author, with René Millon and R. Bruce Drewitt, of Urbanization at Teotihuacan, Mexico, Volume 1: The Teotihuacan Map, Part 2: Maps (1973) and co-editor, with Norman Yoffee, of The Collapse of Ancient States and Civilizations (1988). He was the keynote speaker at the fifth Round Table on Teotihuacan at the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia in Mexico in 2011.

'Drawing on half a century of intimate involvement with the archaeology of Teotihuacan, George L. Cowgill provides a lucid and synthetic account of this iconic early city and civilization. It will appeal to anyone interested in the deep roots of urbanism and human creation of cities.' David M. Carballo, Boston University

• 1. Preliminaries; 2. Situating Teotihuacan; 3. Urbanism begins in central Mexico: 500–100 BCE; 4. Teotihuacan takes off: 100–1 BCE; 5. Teotihuacan supremacy in the basin of Mexico: 1–100 CE; 6. Great pyramids and early grandeur: 100–250 CE; 7. Teotihuacan at its height: 250–550 CE; 8. Teotihuacan ideation and religion: imagery, meanings, and uses; 9. 'Interesting times': Teotihuacan comes apart and a new story begins: after 550 CE; 10. Teotihuacan in a wider perspective.

George L. Cowgill is Emeritus Professor of Anthropology in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. He is the director of the ASU-managed archaeological laboratory at Teotihuacan, Mexico. His work on Teotihuacan, anthropological theory, and quantitative methods in archaeology has been published in numerous major peer-reviewed journals. He is co-author, with René Millon and R. Bruce Drewitt, of Urbanization at Teotihuacan, Mexico, Volume 1: The Teotihuacan Map, Part 2: Maps (1973) and co-editor, with Norman Yoffee, of The Collapse of Ancient States and Civilizations (1988). He was the keynote speaker at the fifth Round Table on Teotihuacan at the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia in Mexico in 2011.

'Drawing on half a century of intimate involvement with the archaeology of Teotihuacan, George L. Cowgill provides a lucid and synthetic account of this iconic early city and civilization. It will appeal to anyone interested in the deep roots of urbanism and human creation of cities.' David M. Carballo, Boston University

• 1. Preliminaries; 2. Situating Teotihuacan; 3. Urbanism begins in central Mexico: 500–100 BCE; 4. Teotihuacan takes off: 100–1 BCE; 5. Teotihuacan supremacy in the basin of Mexico: 1–100 CE; 6. Great pyramids and early grandeur: 100–250 CE; 7. Teotihuacan at its height: 250–550 CE; 8. Teotihuacan ideation and religion: imagery, meanings, and uses; 9. 'Interesting times': Teotihuacan comes apart and a new story begins: after 550 CE; 10. Teotihuacan in a wider perspective.

George L. Cowgill is Emeritus Professor of Anthropology in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. He is the director of the ASU-managed archaeological laboratory at Teotihuacan, Mexico. His work on Teotihuacan, anthropological theory, and quantitative methods in archaeology has been published in numerous major peer-reviewed journals. He is co-author, with René Millon and R. Bruce Drewitt, of Urbanization at Teotihuacan, Mexico, Volume 1: The Teotihuacan Map, Part 2: Maps (1973) and co-editor, with Norman Yoffee, of The Collapse of Ancient States and Civilizations (1988). He was the keynote speaker at the fifth Round Table on Teotihuacan at the Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia in Mexico in 2011.

'Drawing on half a century of intimate involvement with the archaeology of Teotihuacan, George L. Cowgill provides a lucid and synthetic account of this iconic early city and civilization. It will appeal to anyone interested in the deep roots of urbanism and human creation of cities.' David M. Carballo, Boston University

• 1. Preliminaries; 2. Situating Teotihuacan; 3. Urbanism begins in central Mexico: 500–100 BCE; 4. Teotihuacan takes off: 100–1 BCE; 5. Teotihuacan supremacy in the basin of Mexico: 1–100 CE; 6. Great pyramids and early grandeur: 100–250 CE; 7. Teotihuacan at its height: 250–550 CE; 8. Teotihuacan ideation and religion: imagery, meanings, and uses; 9. 'Interesting times': Teotihuacan comes apart and a new story begins: after 550 CE; 10. Teotihuacan in a wider perspective.