The Material Culture of the Chumash Interaction Sphere. By Travis Hudson and Thomas C. Blackburn. Los Altos, Calif.: Ballena Press Anthropological Papers, Nos. 25, 27, 28, 30, and 31, 1979-1986. 5 Volumes 2038 pages. Volume 1: $34.95 Cloth, $19.95 Paper; Volumes 2 and 3: $39.95 Cloth, $24.95 Paper; Volume 4: $47.95 Cloth, $29.95 Paper; Volume 5: $41.95, Paper $28.95. Five volume set: $190.00 Cloth, $120.00 Paper. The five volumes of The Material Culture of the Chumash Interaction Sphere present a compilation of all discovered ethnographic notes concerning the traditional material culture of several native southern California societies. The ethnographic notes of John Peabody Harrington represent the largest portion of the data. Other ethnographic sources are incorporated, and photographs of many ethnographic and some archaeological specimens are used to illustrate many artifact types. Most of the ethnographic data were previously available only as unpublished notes. Hudson and Blackburn have carefully organized these notes and incorporated most published references to artifacts. Photographs of many of the numerous ethnographic specimens illustrated in these volumes have never been published previously and they provide important documentation of Chumash material culture.

The study of shell artifacts provides important information concerning economic and political ties between Native American groups over time. California Indian groups participated in wide-ranging exchange networks for thousands of years that involved the trading of shell beads and ornaments. Shell beads and ornaments from the San Diego region provide chronological information concerning numerous sites; more importantly, they also contribute to our knowledge of economic and political networks that included the greater Southwest and the Paci c Coast. Our examination of over 23 assemblages from San Diego County documents the frequent use of beads made in both the Santa Barbara Channel region and in the Southwest, as well as the use of locally-produced shell beads.