Nelson uses a historical framework to review a number of archaeological studies purporting to identify men's and women's roles and statuses. Her subtitle refers both to assumptions of links between power and prestige, artifacts, and gender, and to our own archaeological profession's statuses so often linked to gender. The text is quite accessible to the ordinary undergraduate but its critiques are worth perusal by experienced researchers; instructors will value its analyses of the many standard textbook examples that depend upon poorly supported premises.