Andrew K. Scherer is a professor of anthropology and archaeology at Brown University. He is the author of Mortuary Landscapes of the Ancient Maya and coeditor of Substance of the Ancient Maya and Smoke, Flames, and the Human Body in Mesoamerican Ritual Practice.

"In this tour de force, Andrew Scherer breaks new ground in the study of war, violence, and sacrifice in precolonial Maya society. Drawing on diverse lines of evidence—from bioarchaeology and archaeology to epigraphy, iconography, and ethnohistory—he offers fresh insights into how the Maya understood and experienced violence. Informed by sensitivity to, and respect for, Maya senses of morality and ontologies, this work challenges us to reflect on our own notions of violence. The book will be of interest to scholars of Maya culture and those more broadly concerned with the intersections of violence and society." - Takeshi Inomata, University of Arizona, coeditor of Mesoamerican Plazas: Arenas of Community and Power

• List of Illustrations Introduction Chapter 1. How the Maya Killed Chapter 2. Morality Chapter 3. Sociality of Killing Chapter 4. Ontology of Killers Chapter 5. By Tooth and Hand Chapter 6. Justice, Punishment, and Vengeance Departing Thoughts Acknowledgments Notes References Index

Andrew K. Scherer is a professor of anthropology and archaeology at Brown University. He is the author of Mortuary Landscapes of the Ancient Maya and coeditor of Substance of the Ancient Maya and Smoke, Flames, and the Human Body in Mesoamerican Ritual Practice.

"In this tour de force, Andrew Scherer breaks new ground in the study of war, violence, and sacrifice in precolonial Maya society. Drawing on diverse lines of evidence—from bioarchaeology and archaeology to epigraphy, iconography, and ethnohistory—he offers fresh insights into how the Maya understood and experienced violence. Informed by sensitivity to, and respect for, Maya senses of morality and ontologies, this work challenges us to reflect on our own notions of violence. The book will be of interest to scholars of Maya culture and those more broadly concerned with the intersections of violence and society." - Takeshi Inomata, University of Arizona, coeditor of Mesoamerican Plazas: Arenas of Community and Power

• List of Illustrations Introduction Chapter 1. How the Maya Killed Chapter 2. Morality Chapter 3. Sociality of Killing Chapter 4. Ontology of Killers Chapter 5. By Tooth and Hand Chapter 6. Justice, Punishment, and Vengeance Departing Thoughts Acknowledgments Notes References Index

Andrew K. Scherer is a professor of anthropology and archaeology at Brown University. He is the author of Mortuary Landscapes of the Ancient Maya and coeditor of Substance of the Ancient Maya and Smoke, Flames, and the Human Body in Mesoamerican Ritual Practice.

"In this tour de force, Andrew Scherer breaks new ground in the study of war, violence, and sacrifice in precolonial Maya society. Drawing on diverse lines of evidence—from bioarchaeology and archaeology to epigraphy, iconography, and ethnohistory—he offers fresh insights into how the Maya understood and experienced violence. Informed by sensitivity to, and respect for, Maya senses of morality and ontologies, this work challenges us to reflect on our own notions of violence. The book will be of interest to scholars of Maya culture and those more broadly concerned with the intersections of violence and society." - Takeshi Inomata, University of Arizona, coeditor of Mesoamerican Plazas: Arenas of Community and Power

• List of Illustrations Introduction Chapter 1. How the Maya Killed Chapter 2. Morality Chapter 3. Sociality of Killing Chapter 4. Ontology of Killers Chapter 5. By Tooth and Hand Chapter 6. Justice, Punishment, and Vengeance Departing Thoughts Acknowledgments Notes References Index