Philip Ainsworth Means

Philip Ainsworth Means (April 3, 1892 – November 24, 1944) was an American anthropologist, historian, and author. He was best known for his study of South America, specifically of the Inca Empire. Means made five extended trips to Peru where he studied the Incas of the Cuzco area and supervised excavations. He studied Hispanic America, combing archeology, history, and literature. Means believed Precolumbian art was worthy of recognition and supported its inclusion in art exhibits. For the most part, he wrote these two books in the United States, conducting research at the Harvard and Yale libraries.

Means returned to Peru in 1932 as an associate in anthropology for the Peabody Museum. His last trip to Peru was from 1933 to 1934. However, he died before finishing the third book of his Inca trilogy.

Newport Tower

In 1942, Means published Newport Tower, a book about an unusual structure in Newport, Rhode Island. The Newport Tower is a circular stone structure that was thought by some to be evidence of ancient Vikings in the new world. The stone shell of the building is tall and was historically known as the Old Stone Mill of Governor Benedict Arnold. Scholars debated whether the tower was evidence of Norse Vikings or an abandoned windmill or tower from colonial times. The arguments for Viking construction were based primarily on architectural details, and Means decided to tackle the issue from a scholarly angle.

Although his book was well-researched and attempted to be unbiased, Means argued against a colonial origin for the tower and his pro-Norse stance is evident. He tentatively dated the tower to around A.D. 1120, give or take a hundred years but noted the need for an archaeological excavation. La Civilización Precolombina de los Andes. Quinto: Imprenta de la Universidad Central, 1919 Distribution and Use of Slings in Pre-columbian America, with Descriptive Catalogue of Ancient Peruvian Slings in the United States National Museum. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1917 Ciertos aspectos de la rebelión de Túpac Amaru II, 1780–1781. Lima, Peru: Sanmarti y Ca., 1920 Ancient Civilizations of the Andes. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1931 Fall of the Inca Empire and the Spanish Rule in Peru, 1530–1780. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1932 A Study of Peruvian Textiles. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, 1932 The Spanish Main: Focus of Envy, 1492–1700. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1935 The Incas, Empire Builders of the Andes. Press of Judd and Detweiler, 1938 Pre-Columbian Art and Culture in the Andean Area. Rhode Island Museum Press, 1941 Newport Tower. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1942

Monographic series Preliminary Survey of the Remains of the Chippewa Settlements on La Pointe Island, Wisconsin. Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections, vol. 66, no. 14 (January 1917) A History, of the Spanish Conquest of Yucatan and of the Itzas (Papers of the Peabody Museum of American Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, vol. VII). Cambridge, MA: The University Press, 1917 A Survey of Ancient Peruvian Art. Transactions of the Connecticut Academy of Arts and Sciences, vol 21 (May 1917): 314–442 "An Outline of the Culture Sequence in the Andean Area." Proceedings of the 19th International Congress of Americanists (1917) pp. 236–52 "A Note on the Guarani Invasions of the Inca Empire." Geographical Review 4, no. 6 (1917): 482–84 "Race and Society in the Andean Countries." The Hispanic American Historical Review 1, no. 4 (1918): 415–25 "Race Appreciation and Democracy." The Journal of Race Development 9, no. 2 (1918): 180–88 "Social Conditions in the Piura-Tumbes Region of Northern Peru." The Scientific Monthly 7, no. 5 (1918): 385–99 "The Domestication of the Llama." Science 47, no. 1211 (1918): 268–69 "Anthropological Notes." American Anthropologist 20, no. 2 (1918): 245–48 "Pre-Columbian Peruvian Chronology and Cultures." Man 18 (1918): 168–69 "The Rebellion of Tupac-Amaru II, 1780–1781." The Hispanic American Historical Review 2, no. 1 (1919): 1–25 "Indian Legislation in Peru." The Hispanic American Historical Review 3, no. 4 (November 1920): 509–34 "Aspectos, Cronológicos de las Civilizaciones Andinas", Boletin, de la Academla Nacional de Historia, vol. 1 (1921) 195–226 "Some Comments on the Inedited Manuscript of Poma de Ayala." American Anthropologist 25, no. 3 (1923): 397–405 "Art in Peru Prior to the Incas." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 10, no. 8 (1923): 136–41 "A Note on an Early Chimu Vessel in the Cleveland Museum of Art." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 10, no. 9 (1923): 158–71 "The Origin of Tapestry Technique in Pre-Spanish Peru." Metropolitan Museum Studies 3, no. 1 (1930): 22–37 "A Re-Examination of Prescott's Account of Early Peru." The New England Quarterly 4, no. 4 (1931): 645–62 "Zelia Nuttall: An Appreciation." The Hispanic American Historical Review 13, no. 4 (1933): 487–89 "Gonzalo Pizarro and Francisco de Orellana." The Hispanic American Historical Review 14, no. 3 (1934): 275–95 "Ancient Peruvian Art on Loan at the Fogg Art Museum." Bulletin of the Fogg Art Museum 5, no. 3 (1936): 1–4 "The Incas: Empire Builders of the Andes". The National Geographic Magazine, vol. LXXIII, no. 2 (February 1938) "Ancient American Papermaking." Isis 35, no. 1 (1944): 13–15.

Books for children Tupak of the Incas. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1942