Gender Inequality in Asset Ownership in Latin America: Female Owners vs Household Heads

Most studies that incorporate a gender dimension into the study of poverty or other development outcomes focus on the sex of the household head. This article argues that a headship analysis gives only a partial view of gender inequality since it does not take into account the position of women within male‐headed households. Drawing primarily on the Living Standard Measurement Studies for Latin America and the Caribbean, the authors present baseline indicators of the degree of gender inequality in asset ownership for the eleven countries in the region that have collected individual‐level data on asset ownership. Disaggregated data on asset ownership within households suggest that the distribution of property by gender is more equitable than a headship analysis alone would imply. But the degree of gender inequality also varies according to the specific asset and among countries. Further comparative work on asset ownership requires attention to the marital regimes governing property rights in marriage. Finally, the authors suggest how household surveys could be improved by standardizing the collection of individual‐level asset data across countries.     

Reviews of books

Historia, utopía y ficción de la Ciudad de los Césares. Metamorfosis de un mito. Por FERNANDO AINSA. Madrid: Alianza Editorial, 1992. Pp. 120.

Cultural Diffusion of Spanish Humanism in New Spain: Francisco Cervantes de Salazar's ‘Diálogo de la dignidad del hombre.’ By DIANNE M. BONO. New York: Peter Lang, 1991. Pp. 161.

Soldiers of the Virgin: The Moral Economy of a Colonial Maya Rebellion. By KEVIN GOSNER. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1992. Pp. xiv, 227.

La crisis del orden colonial. Estructura agraria y rebeliones populares de la Nueva España, 1750–1821. By ERIC VAN YOUNG. México: Alianza Editorial, 1992. Pp. 515.

Esthetic Recognition of Ancient Amerindian Art. By GEORGE KUBLER. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1991. Pp. xvii, 276.

Books of the Brave: Being an Account of Books and of Men in the Spanish Conquest and Settlement of the Sixteenth‐Century New World. By IRVING A. LEONARD. Introduced by ROLENA ADORNO. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1992. Pp. xlvii, 453.

Family and Frontier in Colonial Brazil: Santana de Parnaíba, 1580–1822. By ALIDA C. METCALF. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1992. Pp. xvi, 280.

Los naufragios. By ALVAR NUÑEZ CABEZA DE VACA. Edición crítica de ENRIQUE PUPO‐WALKER. Madrid: Castalia, 1992. Pp. 334.

Estudios de literatura hispanoamericana. Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz y otros poetas barrocos de la colonia. By GEORGINA SABAT‐RIVERS. Barcelona: PPU, 1992. Pp. 355.

Vida i sucesos de la monja alférez. Autobiografía atribuida a Doña Catalina de Erauso. Edición, introducción y notas de RIMA DE VALLBONA. Tempe: Center for Latin American Studies, Arizona State University, 1992. Pp. 236.     

Fluvial spatial taphonomy: a new method for the study of post-depositional processes

Traditional taphonomic analyses do not consider the emergent properties resulting from the relationship of variables. Several of these emergent properties are expressed spatially. Here, we present a spatial taphonomic approach to the understanding of post-depositional processes affecting experimental assemblages modified by fluvial currents. Spatial statistical methods are a great tool to understand how different taphonomic variables relate at a spatial scale. The results of the application of this method to bone assemblages affected by low- and high-energy flows show the loss or modification of most of the original spatial taphonomic relationships. It also shows the degree of bone loss according to element, anatomical section and bone structure, and shape types. Anisotropy is identified in both experimental contexts. These results add new criteria to assess the impact of water flows in bone assemblages and contribute to define the properties of lag assemblages.     

Historical Mortars from the Fortified Upper Town of Eivissa (Balearic Islands,Spain)

Samples of mortars and stone of Portal de ses Taules from the Renaissance city walls of Eivissa (16th century) were characterized using thermal analysis— thermogravimetry and derivative thermogravimetry (DTG)—x-ray diffractometry, and scanning electron microscopy. The granulometric fraction of particle size <63 μm was selected as representative of the binder, while the fraction 0.5–1 mm was taken as representative of the aggregate in order to characterize mortar samples. The results show that local materials were used. Lime was the main component of most of the samples tested. Thermal analysis revealed the hydraulic nature of the lime mortars. High amounts of sodium chloride were found in the samples analysed.     

Application of Non-Destructive Techniques in the Inspection of Wooden Structures of Protected Buildings: The Case of Nuestra Señora de los Dolores Church (Isla Cristina,Huelva)

This study describes a thorough inspection of a 20th century church in the town of Isla Cristina (in the province of Huelva, southwestern Spain), which is currently awaiting restoration. The study indicates the damage processes at work in the building structure materials (brick, concrete, steel, and wood), which are closely related to its geographical location, and analyses the deterioration of the wooden roof structure. The analysis of the wooden roof includes the results of an inspection methodology on a protected building based on traditional techniques such as visual inspection and innovative non-destructive inspection techniques (visual classification, ultrasounds and thermography). Fieldwork consisted of the visual classification of the wooden pieces according to Spanish standard UNE 56544:2007 specifications after which ultrasound and thermography techniques were applied on-site. A second stage involved laboratory tests (anatomic identification, density and bending strength) using wood samples extracted from the structure in order to check the values for the physical and mechanical properties previously recorded by non-destructive techniques (NDT). These non-destructive techniques are used in inspections of the wooden roofs of buildings to identify dampness, deterioration, density loss and defects as a means of assessing their conservation status. This work concludes that the use of ultrasound and thermography techniques constitute an accurate diagnostic tool for the on-site inspection of wooden structures and the evaluation of their condition. Thermography identifies different materials and moisture content while ultrasound detects the various degrees of deterioration and density-loss in areas of the wood with high moisture content.     

Selection and Exploitation of Macro‐Vertebrate Resources During the Upper Palaeolithic in Northern Spain. New Evidence from Coímbre Cave (Peñamellera Alta,Asturias)

The exploitation of ungulates in the Cantabrian region during the Upper Palaeolithic is characterized by the appearance of progressively specialized hunting strategies, especially during the Magdalenian. This specialization focused on either Iberian ibex or red deer, depending on environmental or topographic features. Red deer, for instance, was hunted mostly on the plains while ibex and/or chamois was hunted in rocky and mountainous areas. Here we present new zooarchaeological and taphonomic evidence from Coímbre cave (northern Spain), a site located in the rugged region between the Picos de Europa and Sierra del Cuera (Asturias) which has evidence for specialized ibex hunting. We discuss the possible reasons for such a selective hunting pattern. While the predominance of mountain species such as Iberian ibex or chamois in the Magdalenian levels suggests prey selection based on topographic or environmental criteria, the predominance of large bovids in the Gravettian level could imply that other alternatives were available. We also provide evidence of a pattern of rabbit exploitation which is unusual by comparison with other Upper Palaeolithic sites of northern Spain, and which taphonomic evidence suggests was due to human activity.     

Lime Burning in Clamp Kilns in Scotland's Western Central Belt: Primitive Industry or Simple but Perfectly Adequate Technology?

Lime is a fundamental component in many industrial, agricultural and chemical processes, and is itself produced by an industrial process, namely, the heating in kilns (calcining, or more colloquially ‘burning’) of calcium carbonate rock or other carbonate material. Research and literature on lime burning in Scotland, based largely on lime production in Scotland's eastern Central Belt, are dominated by the view that lime burning in draw kilns is the paradigm for Scottish lime production. Other parts of Scotland, however, largely or completely ignored, draw kilns in favour of simpler clamp kilns, even in major industrial sites of lime production. This paper reports our map- and field-based surveys in Scotland's western Central Belt, which clearly point to the enduring importance and almost exclusive use of clamp kilns in that area's historical lime-burning industry.