Archaeology by period / region Books

Book SynopsisSyria has been a major crossroads of civilizations in the ancient Near East since the dawn of human kind. Until the current crisis began in 2011, Syria was one of the foremost pioneers in the investigation of past human knowledge, diversity, and identity. However, due to the ongoing war, archaeological excavations came to an abrupt halt. Since then, there have been countless alarming reports of damage or destruction inflicted on archaeological, historical, and museum sites. The International Syrian Congress on Archaeology and Cultural Heritage (ISCACH), held December 3-5, 2015 in Beirut, Lebanon, was designed to bring together international scholars who have directed or participated in archaeological expeditions in Syria, and colleagues from Syria. By doing so, not only could the results of years of archaeological investigations and cultural heritage management in Syria be shared and discussed, but also a spirit of friendship and collaboration could be fostered and strengthened during this turbulent period. The Congress focussed on the scientific aspects of each explored site and region allowing researchers to examine in detail each heritage site, its characteristics and identity. Archaeological Explorations in Syria 2000-2011: Proceedings of ISCACH-Beirut 2015 consists of two parts. The first part presents the results of archaeological investigations conducted between 2000 and 2010. The second part comprises abstracts of papers and posters presented during the Congress. It is hoped that this book will represent an important contribution to the scientific dialogue between international and Syrian scholars, and will appeal to the general public interested in the culture and history of Syria.Table of ContentsIntroduction – by Jeanine Abdul Massih and Shinichi Nishiyama ; THE EXCAVATIONS IN SYRIA 2000-2010: Aleppo: The Paleolithic Excavations at the Dederiyeh Cave, Afrin Valley (1989-2011) – by Takeru Akazawa and Yoshihiro Nishiaki ; Archaeological Excavations at Tell Qaramel 1999-2011 (Aleppo-North Syria) – by Yousef Kanjou ; The Last Excavation at Arslan Tash/Shiran – by Serena Maria Cecchini and Fabrizio Venturi ; Unfinished Work at Tell Ahmar. Early and Middle Bronze Age Finds – by Guy Bunnens ; A Colonnaded Building in a Commercial Area at Seleucid Jebel Khalid – by Heather Jackson ; The Monuments of Cyrrhus - Nebi Houri – by Jeanine Abdul Massih ; Archaeological and Architectural Studies in Northern Syria (Dead Cities): General Presentation with Three Missions in El-Bâra and Ruweiha – by Maamoun Abdulkarim and Gérard Charpentier ; Damascus ; A New Place of Worship Dedicated to Zeus Theandrios inside the Temple Precinct of Damascene Jupiter – by Houmam Saad ; Al-Qaryatayn in the Heart of the Syrian Desert: Deir Mar Elian Al-Sheikh – by Wouroud Brahim ; Daraa/Suweida: A Survey of Prehistoric Sites in Daraa, Southern Syria – by Ahmad Diab ; Tell Al-Ashaari in Hauran Throughout the Bronze Age: The 2010 Excavation Results – by Qasem Al-Mohammad ; Hassake: Tell Fekheriye. A Synopsis of Excavations and Ongoing Research Questions – by Dominik Bonatz ; Tell Halaf (Ancient Guzana) - Excavation Results between 2006-2010 – by Mohammad Fakhro ; The Pre-Pottery to Pottery Neolithic Settlement of Tell Seker Al-Aheimar, Hassake, Upper Mesopotamia – by Yoshihiro Nishiaki ; Excavations at Tell Taban: Culture and History at Ṭābatum/Ṭābetu during the Second Millennium BC – by Hirotoshi Numoto, Daisuke Shibata and Shigeo Yamada ; Tell Barri/Kahat 2000-2010: The Contribution of the Excavations to the History of the Jezireh – by Raffaella Pierobon Benoit ; Tell Feres: The First Proto-Urban Societies in Northern Mesopotamia Through a Rural Perspective – by Johnny Samuele Baldi and Régis Vallet ; Homs/Hama: The Lower Paleolithic of the El-Kowm Area (Central Syria) and the Question of the First Inhabitants of the Syrian Desert – by Jean-Marie Le Tensorer, Hélène Le Tensorer, Reto Jagher, Pietro Martini, Peter Schmid, Juan José Villalain, Fabio Wegmüller, and Sultan Muhesen ; The Long Paleolithic Sequence of Hummal (Central Syria) – by D. Wojtczak and J.-M. Le Tensorer ; Japanese Archaeological Work in Palmyra from 1990 to 2010 – by Kiyohide Saito ; Archaeological Investigations of the German Archaeological Institute in the Hama Region 2003-2010 – by Karin Bartl ; Holocene Paleoenvironments and Settlement Patterns in Western Syria and Lebanon: the PaleoSyr/PaleoLib Project – by Bernard Geyer and Frank Braemer ; Qalaat al-Mudiq, Citadel of Apamea: Past and Present – by Mathilde Gelin and Shaker Al-Shbib ; Tell Maksour – by Abdel Wahab Abou Saleh ; A Summary of the Archaeological Discoveries in the Homs Gap by a Syrian-Lebanese-Spanish Mission (2004-2010) – by Maya Haïdar-Boustani, Juan José Ibáñez and Michel Al-Maqdissi ; Palmyra. 30 Years of Syrian-German-Austrian Archaeological Research (1981-2010) – by Andreas Schmidt-Colinet, Khaled Al-Assaad (†), and Waleed Al-Assaad ; The Nymphaeum in Apamea – by Andreas Schmidt-Colinet ; Idlib: Tell El-Kerk. A Neolithic Mega Site in the Province of Idlib – by Akita Tsunematsu ; Excavations at Tell Mardikh - Ebla 2004-2010: The Temples of EB IVA-B and the Royal Citadel of MB I-II – by Paolo Matthiae ; The Archaeological Park of Ebla. A Long-Term Plan for the Site and its Region – by Frances Pinnock ; Tell Afis: From the Late Bronze to the Iron Age – by Stefania Mazzoni ; Tell Mastuma: Rise and Fall of an Iron Age Rural Settlement in Northwest Syria – by Shinichi Nishiyama ; Lattakieh: Tell Nahr El-Arab (Al-Shamiyeh) – by Ahmad Deb ; Tell Kazel - Sumur and the Kingdom of Amurru – by Leila Badre ; The Syrian-French Archaeological Mission of Ras Shamra – Ugarit – by Valérie Matoïan ; Archaeological Excavations at Tell Tweini – Syrian Mission (Field B) – by Massoud Badawi ; Archaeological Site of Amrit. Excavation Results, Seasons 2003-2011 – by Yasser Youssef ; Raqqa/Deir Ez-Zor: Resafa-Sergiupolis/Rusafat Hisham. Pilgrim City and Caliphal Residence. A Multidisciplinary Approach for Reconstructing the Development of the City – by Dorothée Sack and Martin Gussone ; Emergency Excavations of Hwejet Al-Halaweh, Raqqa Governorate (2011-2012) – by Ayham Al-Fakhri and Yarob Al-Abdallah ; The Necropolises of Halabiya-Zenobia – by Sylvie Blétry ; Syrian Excavations in the Byzantine City of Tell Al-Kasra, 2006-2010 – by Yarob Al-Abdallah ; Tell Halula (Euphrates Valley, Syria). New Research Conducted between 2011 and 2015 – by Miquel Molist, Maria Bofill, Chiara Marchiori, Anabel Ortiz and Anna Gómez ; Published Abstracts ; Final Conclusions and Remarks – by Jeanine Abdul Massih and Shinichi Nishiyama

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Book SynopsisGreek myths abound in images of beauty and perfection: charming gods, attractive goddesses, and handsome heroes, all of them standards of physical and spiritual flawlessness. However, the ancient Greeks were not fond of absolutes. No god or hero is shown without blemishes in character and ethics, and some are even physically imperfect, like Hephaestus, who is ugly and lame. Another element that dominates Greek mythology is the idea of balance. Good and evil, light and darkness, hubris and punishment. What could not be missing from this world is the image of reversed beauty: monstrosity. The aim of this book is to explore the realm of the imaginary world of Greek mythology and present the reader with a categorization of monstrosity, referring to some of the most noted examples in each category.Table of ContentsPreface ; Introduction, by Richard Buxton ; Introduction ; Chapter 1 Humanoid Monsters ; Chapter 2 Serpentine Creatures ; Chapter 3 Partly Human ; Chapter 4 Monstrous Animals ; Chapter 5 Ghosts and Daemons ; Works Cited

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Book SynopsisThis book is about how the author became an archaeologist at a time when opportunities for employment were rare and how he worked as a field researcher in West Africa and wrote about his work there. It traces his archaeological training and employment at Cambridge and his practical experience on British excavations and explains how he became one of the pioneers of Nigerian archaeology during a decade in that country. It is not so much a study of the archaeology that was done, as an account of how it was done; its circumstances, organization, and economic and social and cultural context. As a result, it is both a professional and personal account, for these two aspects of life were inseparably intertwined, his wife Beryl becoming an integral part of the story. Other archaeologists and many non-archaeologists also feature in the account. The period in Nigeria from 1961 to 1971 included the Nigerian Civil War from 1967 to 1970, when archaeological work continued with difficulty. Both circumstances and preference meant that the author always worked with a labour team of Nigerians and with Nigerian assistants, of whom few had any experience in archaeology and none had any formal training; there were no postgraduates or others from outside the country. Success in excavations in Benin City, in the south of the country, and in Borno, in its far north-east, was as much the achievement of those Nigerians as it was the author’s.Trade ReviewReading this book what surprises is the enormous amount of detail presented in it, textually as well as in figures and photographs. The documents from Connah’s excavations and fieldwork are a valuable addition to already published material, while the text passages are fun and exciting to read. ...[Connah’s] autobiography provides a fascinating insight into a personal life and career during the pioneering days of African archaeology. - Detlef Gronenborn (2019), AZANIA:Archaeological Research in AfricaTable of ContentsPreface ; 1. Restarting: March–September 1956 ; 2. Essays and excavations: Cambridge, October 1956–October 1959 ; 3. Lucky Jim: Cambridge, October 1959–October 1961 ; 4. A ‘first tour’ in Africa: October 1961–July 1962 ; 5. Rediscovering one’s own country: July–September 1962 ; 6. A Benin sequence and Borno reconnaissance: September 1962–June 1964 ; 7. A perfect summer: June–September 1964 ; 8. Getting to grips with Borno: October 1964–July 1965 ; 9. A long sequence at last: August 1965–June 1966 ; 10. Island refuge and Nigerian data analysis: July 1966–December 1966 ; 11. Borno again and work at Ibadan University: January–September 1967 ; 12. Civil war and analysing the Borno data: October 1967–September 1968 ; 13. War, analysis, and more excavation: October 1968–September 1969 ; 14. Adoption, writing, the war ends: October 1969–September 1970 ; 15. Study leave and goodbye to all that: October 1970–September 1971 ; References

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Book SynopsisThe flourishing civilisations of Mesopotamia, nowadays Iraq and Syria, imported all kinds of materials from the surrounding regions. Iron oxide rock (hematite, goethite and magnetite) was very popular for weight stones and cylinder seals around 2000 BC. This research aims to determine the region of origin for the raw material, what made people start using iron oxide rock, and what led them to stop using it. To answer these questions, a multidisciplinary approach was applied. Geology and archaeology were combined to identify Northern Syria as the region of origin. Archaeometric research of the production process showed that technological change concurred with the start and end of the use of iron oxide rock. Cuneiform texts yielded, among other information, the earliest description of magnetism known to mankind. Furthermore, element and mineral composition of 50 artefacts from three Dutch collections were determined with modern, non-destructive analysis techniques.Table of ContentsList of Figures; List of tables; Acknowledgements; 1. General introduction; 2. Formation, mineralogy and occurrence of iron oxide rocks; 3. The archaeological evidence – a qualitative approach; 4. The archaeological evidence – a quantitative approach; 5. Hematite – the evidence from the cuneiform sources; 6. Material Analyses; 7. Conclusions and synthesis; Summary; Appendix I: Overview of Syrian and Mesopotamian history, and cylinder seal styles ca. 3000-1200 BC; Appendix II: The Database; Appendix III: Reference numbers used in the database; Appendix IV: Concordance of artefacts from the De Liagre Böhl Collection; Appendix V: Medical-magical texts mentioning iron oxide rock; Appendix VI: Material analyses per artefact

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Book SynopsisThe importance of the Law of Treasure is largely the result of the spectacular growth in the activity of metal detecting which, starting in the 1960’s, has grown so much in popularity that it now brings to our knowledge each year more than a thousand objects of historical, cultural or archaeological interest. The nature and volume of these finds has in turn led to a greater public concern to ensure that measures exist which will be conducive to the retention and effective preservation of the more important of those objects. It is, of course, essential that facilities exist for the physical examination and conservation of finds and that those facilities should be accessible and adequate. But the law has an important part to play in this process by ensuring that finds of substantial value or importance should be preserved for the nation and made available to the public in museums. For many hundreds of years, the Law of Treasure was the common law of treasure trove. Today it is essentially based on the Treasure Act 1996. Although the Act is a great improvement on the common law it is nevertheless not always rational and the meaning of some of its provisions is sometimes obscure. This book aims to provide a reliable guide to the Law of Treasure in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and also to explain the role played by legal institutions, such as the Coroner, in that process. This book will be of interest to archaeologists, museums, coroner’s offices, finds liaison officers, farmers and landlords’ associations. It will also be of interest and utility to metal detectorists since, in addition to explaining what objects are considered to be treasure by the law, it explains the legal restrictions on searching for artefacts, the duty to report finds of treasure and the structure of the valuation process and rewards.Table of ContentsPreface; Table of Cases; Table of Statutes; Table of Statutory Instruments; Chapter 1: Treasure Trove; Chapter 2: The Treasure Act 1996; Chapter 3: Searching for Artefacts; Chapter 4: Reporting Finds of Treasure and Non-Treasure Objects; Chapter 5: The Coroner; Chapter 6: Acquisition of Treasure by Museums; Chapter 7: Valuation of Treasure and Rewards; Chapter 8: Disclaimer of Treasure and Title; Appendix A. The Treasure Act 1996; Appendix B. The Treasure (Designation) Order 2002

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Book SynopsisThis volume includes the archaeological and archaeometrical analysis of the lead finds from the Roman Republican military fort of Sanisera in northern Minorca. The fort was built after the Roman conquest of the island in 123 BC and abandoned during the last third of the 1st century BC. By correlating typological-archaeological and scientific methods, the site’s unusual large number of lead objects/artefacts are examined within their find context and reviewed for superregional connections to contemporary sites within the Mediterranean. Furthermore, based upon the results of the find analyses as well as the examination of written sources, the site’s embedding within the historical context of the development of the late Roman Republic and early Imperial times is presented, especially in respect to the conquest of the Mediterranean and the consolidation of the Roman authority there.Table of ContentsVorwort und Dank ; Hinweise zur Nutzung der Publikation ; 1. Sanisera – die Anlage ; 2. Das Fundmaterial ; 3. Bleiisotopie – archäometrische Untersuchungen ; 4. Schriftliche Quellen ; 5. Historischer Kontext ; 6. Synthese ; 7. Zusammenfassung ; 8. Anhänge ; 9. Literaturverzeichnis ; 10. Katalog ; 11. Tafeln ; 12. Liste der Karten ; 13. Karten

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Book SynopsisScholar and artist John Clegg made a pioneering contribution to the study of rock art. He was the first in the Australian academy to teach rock art research as a dedicated subject (Sydney University 1965-2000), supervising the first graduate students with such specialty, subsequently supporting their careers. He is honoured here for much more than his novelty and the contributions in this monograph pay homage to the late John Kay Clegg’s diverse influence. Rock art researchers from around the globe traverses topics such as aesthetics, the application of statistical analyses, frontier conflict and layered symbolic meanings, the deliberate use of optical illusion, and the contemporary significance of ancient and street art. They cover rock art assemblages from Columbia, South Africa, Europe and across Clegg’s beloved Australia. They interrogate descriptive and analytic concepts such as repainting, memorialisation and graffiti, as well as questioning the ethical impactions of research practices touching rock art as a part of its study. The tributes in this book are necessarily as individual as the man they honour, and John Clegg was certainly an individual. The longevity of ideas and perspectives Clegg brought to the pursuit of rock art research is demonstrated in this collection of works. Clegg’s continued relevance is testament to the value and magnitude of his contribution. He is a deserving subject for a Festschrift.Table of ContentsForeword – by Claire Smith Prologue – by Jillian Huntley Introduction – by Jo McDonald AESTHETICS Rock Art and the Possibility of Sensitive Cognition in the Ancient Americas – by Reinaldo Morales Jr. and Howard Risatti Rock art in the landscape: John Clegg’s path – by Thomas Heyd APPLICATIONS Rock engravings in western New South Wales: A comparative analysis of the Panaramitee Tradition site of Sturts Meadows – by Natalie R. Franklin The Rock Art of Aboriginal Australia from Pleistocene to the Present – by Josephine Flood The contemporary cultural significance of Gallery Rock, a petroglyph complex recently found in Wollemi National Park, New South Wales, Australia – by Paul S.C. Taçon, Wayne Brennan, Graham King, Dave Pross and Matthew Kelleher ARTISTRY Degrees of change: amendment and alteration in Australian Aboriginal rock art – by Robert G. Gunn Optical illusions and perceptual determinants in rock art – by Ben Watson Symbolism, aesthetics, and narrative in rock art – by Jamie Hampson ANARCHY On thinking outside the square as a strategy for seeing into the innermost circle or how a reading of graffiti may help to penetrate the cave wall with thanks to John Clegg – by Margaret Bullen Breaking the House Rules: The Politics and Grammar of Disrespecting Contemporary Graffiti – by George Nash APPENDICES A Touching Debate – by compiled by Jane Kolber John Clegg at the antipodes of Palaeolithic representations: the Panaramitee Style – by Denis Vialou University Administrators and Mathesis – by Christopher Chippindale Parting Remarks – by Jillian Huntley and George Nash John Clegg’s published works Select sculptural works by John Clegg

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Book SynopsisMore than quarter of a century ago Richard Bradley published The Passage of Arms. It was conceived as An Archaeological Analysis of Prehistoric Hoards and Votive Deposits, but, as the author concedes, these terms were too narrowly focused for the complex subject of deliberate deposition and the period covered too short. A Geography of Offerings has been written to provoke a reaction from archaeologists and has two main aims. The first is to move this kind of archaeology away from the minute study of ancient objects to a more ambitious analysis of ancient places and landscapes. The second is to recognise that problems of interpretation are not restricted to the pre-Roman period. Mesolithic finds have a place in this discussion, and so do those of the 1st millennium AD. Archaeologists studying individual periods confront with similar problems and the same debates are repeated within separate groups of scholars – but they arrive at different conclusions. Here, the author presents a review that brings these discussions together and extends across the entire sequence. Rather than offer a comprehensive survey, this is an extended essay about the strengths and weaknesses of current thinking regarding specialised deposits, which encompass both sacrificial deposits characterised by large quantities of animal and human bones and other collections which are dominated by finds of stone or metal artefacts. It considers current approaches and theory, the histories of individual artefacts and the landscape and physical context of the of places where they were deposited, the character of materials, the importance of animism and the character of ancient cosmologies.Trade ReviewBuilding upon, but greatly expanding, his earlier influential work, this small book will be widely read and much appreciated for the way in which it demonstrates that ‘big data’ also require big ideas. * Antiquity *This elegant, stimulating, dialogous book will hopefully appeal to all archaeologists, whatever their period persuasion… This book readily bears several reading either of its entirety or its discreet but connected parts and its compact, travel-anywhere size helps to facilitate that. * Medieval Archaeology *A pocket-sized archaeology book that is packed full of useful information…accessible both to those new to the subject and to those with a detailed knowledge of individual periods or types of evidence. * Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society *The relatively small size of this book belies its ambition. A Geography of Offerings is as accessible as it is erudite, and will appeal to anyone with an interest in ancient landscapes and specialised deposits, regardless of specialism… a fresh perspective on a subject that I believed could not be usefully reconsidered. Bradley has proven me wrong. * Time and Mind: The Journal of Archaeology, Consciousness and Culture *Table of ContentsChapter One Beginning again Chapter Two A chapter of accidents The Broadward hoard The Mästermyr hoard Reassessments Bridges and troubled waters Iron Age deposits at La Tène Roman artefacts from the Rhine near Mainz Reassessments Literary sources Ritual and non-ritual, religious and secular deposits The ubiquity of water Hidden in plain sight Chapter Three Faultlines in contemporary research Chronological faultlines Controversy and uncertainty The sources of confusion Unfinished business The next stage Chapter Four Proportional representation The variety of deposits Excavations at two spring deposits Excavations at other wetland deposits Excavations at dryland deposits A question of scale A question of time Summary Chapter five The hoard as a still life Pronkstillevens Accumulations Display Summary and conclusions Chapter Six The nature of things Technologies and myths Stone and metal Metals Chapter Seven A kind of regeneration The final act Whole and undamaged artefacts Incomplete or damaged artefacts Friendly fire Fragmentation Weights Numbers the last act Chapter 8 Vanishing point Sinking treasures Giving and taking Artefacts with attitude Profiting from loss Exquisite corpses Chapter Nine A guide to strange places Naming places Going under Going forward Northern lights Southern comforts A note of caution Chapter 10 Thresholds and transitions Introduction Bridges, fords and causeways Other kinds of boundaries River names and their associations The character of water The character of mountains The earth compels A final reflection

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Book SynopsisThe Earliest Europeans explores a fundamental question: how did Europe’s first hominin occupants cope with the year-round practical challenges of life. To do so, the book adopts a ‘year in the life’ perspective that draws on the increasingly rich and robust archaeological and Quaternary Science records for the European Lower Palaeolithic, combined with insights from modern ethnography and zoological studies. By exploring potential survival strategies and behaviours, Hosfield offers new insights into the character of Europe’s earliest occupations across more than 1 million years, and ultimately asks: what sorts of ‘humans’ were these hominins?The innovative season-by-season structure of the book explores cyclical fluctuations in resources and weather conditions. From the depths of cold winters to the bountiful foods of late summer, it considers the implications of these variations for hominin behaviours. Hosfield draws on a range of supporting examples and evidence from Lower Palaeolithic sites across Europe, spanning technology, palaeoenvironmental reconstructions, hominin life history, and plant and animal food resources. In doing so, The Earliest Europeans highlights both the current and future potential of Europe’s earliest archaeological record.Trade ReviewThis book will be of interest to students of Palaeolithic archaeology and human origins, and Quaternary scientists with an interest in the hominin part of the faunal community. It would make a comprehensive, up-to-date textbook for final year undergraduate or postgraduate teaching. * The Holocene *...this is an excellent book that represents a long-overdue approach to understanding the Lower Palaeolithic archaeological record. * Antiquity *

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Book SynopsisHigh Pasture Cave, located on the island of Skye, Scotland, occupies a liminal location on the very edge of a settlement, and appears to have been a focus for specific and special activities. Its extended period of use is indicated by ephemeral signs of Neolithic Activity, limited Bronze Age usage, and vast artefactual and environmental assemblages recovered dating to the Early to Middle Scottish Iron Age, c. 800 BC to AD 150. High Pasture Cave details the research-led excavations at the cave and its context in the landscape, including geology and stratigraphy, the use and transformation of the cave from the Neolithic, post-Medieval activity after the site's closure, chronology and radiocarbon dating, the human remains, and stable isotope analysis. The examination of the site indicates that the High Pasture Cave Complex was a special place, a focus for significant communal events, for undertaking ritual and special activities, and a place for deposition of significant objects - a place whose significance remained embedded in social memory long after active use ceased. These findings challenge our current understanding with regards to cave use and function, and with relation to the wider understanding of Iron Age cultural and religious beliefs.

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Book SynopsisMany ancient, even prehistoric, monuments and temples around the world show an amazingly sophisticated understanding of the heavens. They reflect this sacred knowledge in celestial alignments – to the eternal cycles of the sun, moon, stars and planets. The ceremonies performed at sites such as Stonehenge in England or Teotihuacan in Mexico are now lost to us. But the time-worn stones and structures remain, and archaeoastronomers (experts in ancient astronomy) have studied how their sightlines relate to astronomical phenomena such as midwinter or midsummer sunrise or the rising of the Pleiades star cluster. Within, Ken Taylor dives into the fantastical: The principles of astronomy – the seasons, the solstices and equinoxes, the rising and setting of stars, the “lunar standstills” Solar alignments – the language of light and shadow, and the life-giving shows of the sun Lunar alignments – the drama of the eclipse and the mysterious energies of the night Alignments to stars and planets – reaching out to the immensity of the cosmos In exploring such connections, in words, superb photographs and clear explanatory artworks, Celestial Geometry opens a whole universe of mystery and wonder, and a window on the inner life of ancient civilizations.Trade Review'This book is subtitled, ‘Understanding the Astronomical Meanings of Ancient Sites’, and that is exactly what it does. There have been many attempts to rationalise and find a reason for the truly remarkable structures worldwide made by our forefathers. The author uses the comparatively recent science of ‘archaeoastronomy’ and sticks to what we know and can prove concerning such iconic sites as Stonehenge and Avebury in England, Chichen Itza in Mexico, Carnac in France, The Pyramids in Egypt, Hovenweep in the USA and the truly astonishing array of ancient standing stones predating the Pyramids at Callanish on the Western Isles of Scotland. Many of the other sites (and there are many) will be unknown to the reader, yet they are there and they fulfil exactly the same function. Our ancestors attempted to recreate heaven here on earth (as above so below) and show just how powerful the appeal of the heavens was. This is irrespective of whether it is the sun, the moon or indeed the stars and how many of the structures follow, track and frequently predict the way in which these celestial bodies move through the sky. This is a beautifully presented book with full colour plates and printed on high quality glossy paper that deals with a remarkable era in human development. It sets out its message in a readily accessible form and is well worth the purchase price'- Phenomena MagazineWhether digging down or dipping in, this stunningly illustrated book offers an unprejudiced, congenial and revelatory journey into the realms of archaeological astronomy. Chariots of the Gods this is not, so don’t be put off by the title. The informed and lucid narrative, suiting both young and old, casual and academic, eases you through the required principles of astronomy - the solstices and equinoxes, ‘lunar standstills’, the rising and setting stars. Then, suitable armed, you get to explore over 50 archaeological sites through spectacular photographs, floor plans and diagrams. It’s a fascinating collection that invites you to ponder the curiosity and creativity behind the structures that are seemingly aligned with the movements of the Sun, Moon, planets and stars.This isn’t however your usual celestial geometry fare. Yes, we have Stonehenge’s Darren stones, as well as the pyramids of Egypt, Machu Picchu’s temples, Easter Island and Chichen Itza’s nine-tiered Kukulcan marvel. But this book delves deeper. This lesser-known ancient, even prehistoric, megalithic structures, sacred sites and artefacts are also subject to Ken Taylor’s scrutiny. Spanning Europe, North and Central American, India, Australia, Indonesia and China, Taylor’s research unearths an amalgam of art, history, astronomy and mythology from star charts and tomb paintings. All reveal humankind’s fascination with the heavens, whether past, present or future. Is there a connection? That’s for you to decide. One thing’s for sure, I want to connect with my credit card and get visiting.-BBC Sky at Night

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Book SynopsisHaving worked on projects around the world, strengthening and restoring historically significant structures from Windsor Castle to the parliament buildings in Canada, Peter James brings insight to the structural engineering of ancient Egypt. After fourteen years working on the historic buildings and temples of Egypt, and most recently the world's oldest pyramid, he now presents some of the more common theories surrounding the `collapsing' pyramid - along with new and innovative projections on the construction of the pyramids and the restoration of some of Cairo's most monumental structures from the brink of ruin. The decoding of historic construction from a builder's perspective is examined and explained - often contrary to many existing theories - and the book provides a new outlook on long-held assumptions, to embrace modern theories in a bid to preserve the past.Trade Review"A history of the pyramids and the technical innovation that has gone into saving them is a fascinating combination that should interest all of us involved in building conservation. . . . This book presents an extra dimension and interest, which again is a fascinating tale."--John Edwards, University of Wales Trinity Saint David

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The Cairo Genizah is considered one of the world’s greatest Hebrew manuscript treasures. Yet the story of how over a quarter of a million fragments hidden in Egypt were discovered and distributed around the world, before becoming collectively known as “The Cairo Genizah,” is far more convoluted and compelling than previously told. The full story involves an international cast of scholars, librarians, archaeologists, excavators, collectors, dealers and agents, operating from the mid-nineteenth to the early twentieth century, and all acting with varying motivations and intentions in a race for the spoils. Basing her research on a wealth of archival materials, Jefferson reconstructs how these protagonists used their various networks to create key alliances, or to blaze lone trails, each one on a quest to recover ancient manuscripts. Following in their footsteps, she takes the reader on a journey down into ancient caves and tombs, under medieval rubbish mounds, into hidden attic rooms, vaults, basements and wells, along labyrinthine souks, and behind the doors of private clubs and cloistered colleges. Along the way, the reader will also learn about the importance of establishing manuscript provenance and authenticity, and the impact to our understanding of the past when either factor is in doubt.

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Book SynopsisNow available in paperback, Egyptomania takes us on a historical journey to unearth the Egypt of the imagination, a land of strange gods, mysterious magic, secret knowledge, monumental pyramids, enigmatic sphinxes and immense wealth. Egypt has always exerted a powerful attraction on the Western mind, and an array of figures have been drawn to the idea of Egypt. Even the practical-minded Napoleon dreamed of Egyptian glory and helped open the antique land to explorers. Ronald H. Fritze goes beyond art and architecture to reveal Egyptomania's impact on religion, philosophy, historical study, literature, travel, science and popular culture. All those who remain captivated by the ongoing phenomenon of Egyptomania will revel in the mysteries uncovered in this book.Trade Review'A broader interpretation of the subject, going back to the Greek historian Herodotus and forward to Cecil B. DeMille and Tutankhamen . . . Fritze reminds us that what fascinated later artists and their public was not what Egyptologists considered important. Largely self-nourishing, Egyptomania was often detached from its original sources, and the stream of dime novels and films about mummies and their curses have, according to scholars, more to do with Western guilt over imperialism than with the supernatural. Even the artifacts exhumed from Tutankhamens tomb with great fanfare beginning in 1922 did not, in fact, add much to our knowledge of ancient Egypt, although they were responsible for the museum world’s first blockbuster traveling exhibition . . . Document[s] an enduring fascination with its subject, based, as the author points out, on the fact that it is both comfortably familiar and intriguingly exotic.' - The New York Times, 'The richness, distinction and diversity of ancient Egyptian culture has fired imaginations for millennia. Here, historian Ronald Fritze examines Egyptomania in detail and through time. As Herodotus and other classical scholars extolled Giza’s pyramids and the great lighthouse at Alexandria, Egyptian cults and esoteric tracts seeped into Greece and Rome to later fascinate and befuddle medieval and Renaissance scholars. The cracking of hieroglyphs, discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb, and mummymania from the nineteenth century onwards ensured that the craze persists almost unabated today.' - Nature, 'Ronald H. Fritze proves himself an expert guide on this journey through the history of our fascination with Ancient Egypt in all its forms ranging from the serious study of Egyptology to its more bizarre manifestations in popular culture . . . an entertaining, enlightening work.' - Minerva magazine, 'Fritze has used this amazingly fertile field to produce a well-researched and comprehensive history of enthusiasm for all things Egyptological, from ancient times right up to the twenty-first century, spanning the whole spectrum. It is a remarkable achievement and makes for a fascinating read . . . there is a rich mine of factual material here which could repay detailed study.' - Ancient Egypt Magazine, 'Fritze surveys the bewildering variety of Egyptian rites dreamed up by the Rosicrucians, Freemasons and Theosophists, and takes us on an entertaining tour of fringe and alternative history set in the Land of the Nile.' - Fortean Times, 'The particular craze that’s the focus of veteran historian Ronald Fritzes new book Egyptomania is one of the oldest intellectual fads in the history of mankind: the fixation with ancient Egypt that’s been felt by the rest of the world for so long that it actually started when ancient Egypt wasn’t even ancient . . . Fritze’s narrative is dense with historical detail and frequently sparkles with wit. Anyone who has ever felt the touch of Egyptomania . . . will find plenty in these pages to feed their curiosity.' - Open Letters Monthly, 'It’s an enormous subject, and Fritze works his way through it all with a thoroughness no other account has ever quite matched . . . Delves into how the realities of Egyptology have been reimagined or misinterpreted as sources of hermeticism, portals to another reality, or tokens to confer knowledge and respectability . . . Fritze’s entertaining and enlightening work does well in separating ancient Egypt’s actual legacy from the pseudo-history of occultists and assorted charlatans.' - Publishers Weekly, 'From Medieval Christians and Muslims to Napoleon, a detailed but readable account of how Ancient Egypt has been a focus of fascination throughout history, capturing our imagination through its strange gods, murky magic, secret knowledge, immense wealth and mystifying mummies.' - The Bookseller, 'a fascinating read for any who are interested in Egyptian culture.' - Decatur Daily, 'Ron Fritze has an enviable ability to dig deep into the worlds of popular history. Well written, his new book, which goes right up to date, is wide-ranging, both chronologically and thematically. Fritze covers the pyramids, archaeology, film, popular fiction and a wide range of concerns and forms. Deserves wide attention.' - Jeremy Black, author of Contesting History.Table of ContentsIntroduction Part One: Egyptomania through the Ages One: The Real Egypt Two: Ancient Egyptomania: Hebrews, Pharaohs and Plagues Three: Classical Egyptomania: The Greeks and Romans Four: Medieval Egyptomania: From St. Augustine to the Renaissance Five: Egyptomania from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment Six: Napoleon’s Expedition to Egypt and the Birth of Modern Egyptomania Seven: Nineteenth-century Egyptomania to the Discovery of Tut Eight: The Rise of Mass Egyptomania: Tutankhamun, Tutmania and the Curse of the Mummy Part Two: Varieties of Modern Egyptomania Nine: Occult Egyptomania Ten: Egyptomania on the Fringe of History Eleven: African American Egyptomania Twelve: Egyptomania and Fiction Postscript References Select Bibliography Acknowledgements Photo Acknowledgements Index

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Book SynopsisThis book reveals how the ancient Maya - and their buildings, ideas, objects and identities - have been perceived, portrayed and exploited over 500 years in the Americas, Europe and beyond. Engaging in interdisciplinary analysis, the book summarizes ancient Maya art and history from the Preclassic period to the Spanish invasion, as well as the history of engagement with the ancient Maya, from Spanish invaders in the sixteenth century, to later explorers and archaeologists, taking in scientific literature, visual arts, architecture, world's fairs and Indigenous activism. It also looks at the decipherment of Maya inscriptions, Maya museum exhibitions and artists' responses, and contemporary Maya people's engagements with their ancestral past. Featuring the latest research, this book will interest scholars as well as general readers who wish to know more about this ancient, fascinating culture.

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Book SynopsisTo secure a comfortable afterlife, ancient Egyptians built fortress-like tombs and filled them with precious goods, a practice that generated staggering quantities of artefacts over the course of many millennia, but one which has also drawn thieves and tomb-raiders to Egypt since antiquity. Drawing on modern scholarship, reportage and period sources, this book tracks the history of treasure-seekers in Egypt and the social contexts in which they operated, revealing striking continuities throughout time. Readers will recognize the foibles of today’s politicians and con artists, the perils of materialism, and the cycles of public compliance and dissent in the face of injustice. In describing an age-old pursuit and its timeless motivations, A Short History of Tomb-Raiding shows how much we have in common with our Bronze Age ancestors.

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Book SynopsisCompared to modern standard, the Roman army of the imperial era was surprisingly small. However, when assessed in terms of their various tasks, they by far outstrip modern armies – acting not only as an armed power of the state in external and internal conflicts, but also carrying out functions which nowadays are performed by police, local government, customs and tax authorities, as well as constructing roads, ships, and buildings.With this opulent volume, Thomas Fischer presents a comprehensive and unique exploration of the Roman military of the imperial era. With over 600 illustrations, the costumes, weapons and equipment of the Roman army are explored in detail using archaeological finds dating from the late Republic to Late Antiquity, and from all over the Roman Empire. The buildings and fortifications associated with the Roman army are also discussed. By comparing conflicts, border security, weaponry and artefacts, the development of the army through time is traced.This work is intended for experts as well as to readers with a general interest in Roman history. It is also a treasure-trove for re-enactment groups, as it puts many common perceptions of the weaponry, equipment and dress of the Roman army to the test.Trade ReviewThe range of material covered in this work is remarkable, making this book a useful resource for students looking deeper into the material culture of the Roman army, including dress, equipment, and infrastructure. Fischer’s book provides a strong notion of the development over time of military equipment and infrastructure. All readers will find the tools of this book—illustrations and end matter—especially useful. This book is a great starting point for learning about the hierarchy and structure, the equipment used, buildings and infrastructure, and other material culture of the Roman military. It can serve as a reference work that sums up the archaeological and historical evidence. * H-Net Reviews *In this work, Thomas Fischer gives an excellent overview of the buildings and equipment of the Roman military from the Republic to Late Antiquity, completed by the excellent contributions of the co-authors. All authors involved are proven experts, which is all too clear in the contributions. Numerous illustrations and the presentation of numerous finds, some of which have not yet been published, complete the book. This is certainly a standard work on the Roman military and can only be warmly recommended to anyone who is interested. * Bonner Jahrbücher *Table of ContentsTranslator’s Preface Acknowledgements Introduction The state of research The iconographic sources On armament, equipment, and the buildings Basic information on the history and structure of the Roman army Notes to introduction Part I Iconographic sources for the Roman military by Dietrich Boschung 1. Introduction 2. Republican representations 3. The Early Empire: Augustus to Domitian 4. Representations from the middle imperial period 5. Representations from the Tetrarchic period 6. Representations from Late Antiquity Notes to Part I Part II General remarks on the Roman army 1. Introduction 2. A history of research 3. Armament and equipment 4. Find contexts of Roman weapons and equipment parts 5. Legionary or auxiliary equipment? 6. Rank insignia 7. On the reconstruction of Roman fighting methods 8. Comments on the re-enactment scene 9. Forgeries Notes to Part II Part III Costumes, weapons, and equipment of the army from original archaeological finds 1. Infantry 2. Cavalry 3. Artillery 4. Standards and instruments for signalling 5. Awards and decorations 6. Pioneer tools, tents, field pack Notes to Part III Part IV The buildings of the Roman army 1. Introduction 2. Roman camps and forts 3. The most important types of camps and forts 4. Late Roman fortifications 5. Military infrastructure 6. Limites and ripae Notes to Part IV Part V The development periods of Roman military history 1. Introduction 2. Republic 3. The early Imperial period from Augustus to Nero 4. The middle Imperial period from Vespasian to Trajan 5. The middle Imperial period from Hadrian to Septimius Severus 6. The middle Imperial period from Caracalla to the reforms of Diocletian 7. Late Antiquity Notes to Part V Part VI The Roman navy 1. Arming and equipping the marines 2. Bases of the Roman fleets in the Imperial period by Thomas Schmidts 3. Roman warships by Ronald Bockius Notes to Part VI End matter 375 Bibliography Abbreviations Illustration credits Index Persons and peoples Places Subjects

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Book SynopsisThese papers highlight recent archaeological work in Northern England, in the commercial, academic and community archaeology sectors, which have fundamentally changed our perspective on the Neolithic of the area. Much of this was new work (and much is still not published) and has been overlooked in the national discourse. The papers cover a wide geographical area, from Lancashire north into the Scottish Lowlands, recognising the irrelevance of the England/Scotland Border. They also take a broad chronological sweep, from the Mesolithic/Neolithic transition to the introduction of Beakers into the area.The key themes are: the nature of transition; the need for a much-improved chronological framework; regional variation linked to landscape character; links within northern England and with distant places; the implications of new dating for our understanding of the axe trade; the changing nature of settlement and agriculture; the character of early Neolithic enclosures; and the need to integrate rock art into wider discourse.Trade ReviewThe authors, editors and contributors are to be congratulated and commended on bringing these excellent volumes to publication. * Antiquity *This fine volume … [is] a fine counterbalance to the biases at the very core of the historical narrative of the Neolithic in Britain. * Archaeological Journal *Until recently, archaeologists took a broad-brush, sometimes ignoring local and regional nuances, so it is refreshing that Hey, Frodsham, and their team look at the Neolithic in terms of a northern tradition … The editors have skilfully integrated the academic, commercial and community sectors to provide a multi-interpretive approach to this dynamic period … This book is a much-needed addition to the Neolithic bookshelf and will be a useful reference for ongoing and future research. * Current Archaeology *This book, like the 2016 conference in Carlisle from which it derives, is an explicit bid to sing the glories of stone axe quarries, rock art, stone circles and other landscape features which proclaim the intense regionality of Britain’s earliest farming communities. * British Archaeology *Table of ContentsList of contributors List of figures List of tables and appendices Introduction Gill Hey and Paul Frodsham Acknowledgements Chapter 1: Langdale and the Northern Neolithic Richard Bradley and Aaron Watson Chapter 2: Stainton West: a Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic Site on the Banks of the River Eden Fraser Brown Chapter 3: The last hunter of a wise race: evidence for Neolithic practices in northern England Seren Griffiths Chapter 4: ‘Weird and atypical, even degenerate’… or then again, maybe not? Early Neolithic Enclosures in the North Al Oswald and Mark Edmonds Chapter 5: Documenting English Rock Art: a review of the ‘big picture’ Kate E. Sharpe Chapter 6: New Light on the Neolithic: a perspective from North-East England Clive Waddington Chapter 7: Street House in the Neolithic Period, Stephen J. Sherlock Chapter 8: Recent work on the Neolithic landscapes of Cumbria and North Lancashire Helen Evans, Antony Dickson and Denise Druce Chapter 9: Out of the Shadows: an emerging Neolithic in the Yorkshire Dales Yvonne Luke Chapter 10: ‘A most noble work', at the Heart of Neolithic Britain. Some Thoughts on the Long Meg Complex in the Light of Recent Fieldwork Paul Frodsham Chapter 11: A View from North of the Border Alison Sheridan Chapter 12: Monumentality in Neolithic Britain: The Case of South West Scotland Julian Thomas Chapter 13: A New Survey of The Carles Stone Circle, Castlerigg, Cumbria Al Oswald and Constance Durgeat Chapter 14: Two Newly-Identified Possible ‘Hengiform’ Monuments in the North Pennines Stewart Ainsworth, David McOmish, Al Oswald and Andrew Payne Chapter 15: The End of the Neolithic?: Early Bell Beaker Groups in Northern England A. P. Fitzpatrick

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Book SynopsisThe island of Sicily was a highly contested area throughout much of its history. Among the first to exert strong influence on its political, cultural, infrastructural, and demographic developments were the two major decentralized civilizations of the first millennium BCE: the Phoenicians and the Greeks. While trade and cultural exchange preceded their permanent presence, it was the colonizing movement that brought territorial competition and political power struggles on the island to a new level. The history of six centuries of colonization is replete with accounts of conflict and warfare that include cross-cultural confrontations, as well as interstate hostilities, domestic conflicts, and government violence.This book is not concerned with realities from the battlefield or questions of military strategy and tactics, but rather offers a broad collection of archaeological case studies and historical essays that analyze how political competition, strategic considerations, and violent encounters substantially affected rural and urban environments, the island’s heterogeneous communities, and their social practices. These contributions, originating from a workshop in 2018, combine expertise from the fields of archaeology, ancient history, and philology. The focus on a specific time period and the limited geographic area of Greek Sicily allows for the thorough investigation and discussion of various forms of organized societal violence and their consequences on the developments in society and landscape.Trade ReviewThe volume […] remains an excellent tool and information base of the methodology for new research on the Sicilian territory. * Bonner Jahrbücher *In fact, the multilingual foundation of this book is to be lauded, as is the book itself for looking past the wars that plagued Sicily to examine the socio-political effects of warfare on the island and its populations. * American Journal of Archaeology *The contributions’ quality is high, showcasing the combination of archaeological and literary evidence that characterizes the best work on ancient Sicily. […] For specialists in ancient Sicily and ancient warfare, it will also be an exciting and enlightening read. For archaeologists and historians of the Classical period who do not work on Sicily, this volume offers an excellent way in. * Ancient West & East *Melanie Jonasch has edited a truly splendid volume on the impact of war on the societies, politics, and landscapes of Sicily, from the archaic period to the Roman conquest. [...] This volume is an excellent example of why we should strive more in this direction, and hopefully a powerful stimulus as well. * Greece and Rome *…both books constitute very valuable contributions to the study of ancient Sicily. They reflect an ever-increasing international interest in the archaeology and history of the island and many of the papers will be essential reading for years to come. All the involved editors are to be congratulated for putting together these volumes. * Opuscula *...deserves the attention of ancient historians and archaeologists alike and will be an important point of departure for anyone interested in violent conflict in Classical Greek history. * Bryn Mawr Classical Review *

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Book SynopsisSince early discoveries of so-called Celtic Art during the 19th century, archaeologists have mused on the origins of this major art tradition, which emerged in Europe around 500 BC. Classical influence has often been cited as the main impetus for this new and distinctive way of decorating, but although Classical and Celtic Art share certain motifs, many of the design principles behind the two styles differ fundamentally. Instead, the idea that Celtic Art shares its essential forms and themes of transformation and animism with Iron Age art from across northern Eurasia has recently gained currency, partly thanks to a move away from the study of motifs in prehistoric art and towards considerations of the contexts in which they appear. This volume explores Iron Age art at different scales and specifically considers the long-distance connections, mutual influences and shared ‘ways of seeing’ that link Celtic Art to other art traditions across northern Eurasia. It brings together 13 papers on varied subjects such as animal and human imagery, technologies of production and the design theory behind Iron Age art, balancing pan-Eurasian scale commentary with regional and site scale studies and detailed analyses of individual objects, as well as introductory and summary papers. This multi-scalar approach allows connections to be made across wide geographical areas, whilst maintaining the detail required to carry out sensitive studies of objects.Trade ReviewAs to be expected from an Oxbow publication, the quality of presentation is high: with a generous array of tables, figures and eyecatching photographs to support each contribution. * Later Prehistoric Finds Group *Table of ContentsList of figures and tables List of contributors Introduction: Context, connections and scale Chris Gosden, Helen Chittock, Peter Hommel and Courtney Nimura 1. Art, ambiguity and transformation Chris Gosden 2. Collecting Iron Age art Courtney Nimura, Peter Hommel, Helen Chittock and Chris Gosden 3. Eurasian Iron Age interactions: A perspective on the sources and purposes of La Tène Style (‘Celtic’) art Peter Wells 4. Fantastic beasts and where to find them: Composite animals in the context of Eurasian Early Iron Age art Rebecca O’Sullivan and Peter Hommel 5. Bodies and objects in Iron Age Europe and beyond: An integrated approach to anthropomorphic imagery Helen Chittock 6. How Celts perceived the world: Early Celtic art and analogical thought Laurent Olivier 7. How can Celtic art styles and motifs act? A case study from Later Iron Age Norfolk Jody Joy 8. Visual memory and perceptions in ancient Celtic art Nathalie Ginoux 9. Celtic art before the Early Style: Some new data from south-west Germany and the Heuneburg Dirk Krausse 10. Sign o’the times: The re-use of pre-Roman Iron Age British and European symbols on Late Iron Age Irish equestrian equipment Rena Maguire 11. ‘Damn clever metal bashers’: The thoughts and insights of 21st century goldsmiths, silversmiths and jewellers regarding Iron Age gold torus torcs Tess Machling and Roland Williamson 12. Refugees, networks, politics and east–west connections in Early Celtic art: Paul Jacobsthal’s ‘History of a Monster’ in context Sally Crawford and Katharina Ulmschneider 13. The history of a monster Paul Jacobsthal Discussion: Dialogues with Jacobsthal Tim Champion

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Book SynopsisThe book draws on the evidence of landscape archaeology, palaeoenvironmental studies, ethnohistory and animal tracking to address the neglected topic of how we identify and interpret past patterns of movement in the landscape. It challenges the pessimism of previous generations which regarded prehistoric routes such as hollow ways as generally undatable.The premise is that archaeologists tend to focus on ‘sites’ while neglecting the patterns of habitual movement that made them part of living landscapes. Evidence of past movement is considered in a multi-scalar way from the individual footprint to the long distance path including the traces created in vegetation by animal and human movement. It is argued that routes may be perpetuated over long timescales creating landscape structures which influence the activities of subsequent generations. In other instances radical changes of axes of communication and landscape structures provide evidence of upheaval and social change. Palaeoenvironmental and ethnohistorical evidence from the American North West coast sets the scene with evidence for the effects of burning, animal movement, faeces deposition and transplantation which can create readable routes along which are favoured resources.Evidence from European hunter-gatherer sites hints at similar practices of niche construction on a range of spatial scales. On a local scale, footprints help to establish axes of movement, the locations of lost settlements and activity areas. Wood trackways likewise provide evidence of favoured patterns of movement and past settlement location. Among early farming communities alignments of burial mounds, enclosure entrances and other monuments indicate axes of communication. From the middle Bronze Age in Europe there is more clearly defined evidence of trackways flanked by ditches and fields. Landscape scale survey and excavation enables the dating of trackways using spatial relationships with dated features and many examples indicate long-term continuity of routeways. Where fields flank routeways a range of methods, including scientific approaches, provide dates.Prehistorians have often assumed that Ridgeways provided the main axes of early movement but there is little evidence for their early origins and rather better evidence for early routes crossing topography and providing connections between different environmental zones. The book concludes with a case study of the Weald of South East England which demonstrates that some axes of cross topographic movement used as droveways, and generally considered as early medieval, can be shown to be of prehistoric origin. One reason that dryland routes have proved difficult to recognise is that insufficient attention has been paid to the parts played by riverine and maritime longer distance communication. It is argued that understanding the origins of the paths we use today contributes to appreciation of the distinctive qualities of landscapes. Appreciation will help to bring about effective strategies for conservation of mutual benefit to people and wildlife by maintaining and enhancing corridors of connectivity between different landscape zones including fragmented nature reserves and valued places. In these ways an understanding of past routeways can contribute to sustainable landscapes, communities and quality of life.Trade Review[…] this important book […] could not be more topical. * British Archaeology *There is a good deal of novel thought and synthesis in this essentially stall-setting book; a research agenda that will intrigue many. * Northern Earth *It’s incredibly wide ranging, detailed and thorough. All the things I’d hoped to read about were there in spades along with an entire tranche of evidence and opinions that were new to me and kept me happily turning pages, right to the end. I’d definitely advise this book for anyone with an interest in prehistory. * The Prehistoric Society *This is an interesting and incredibly readable book examining the physical environmental evidence for the most basic of human needs, subsistence mobility and community interaction. The text is supported by well-chosen illustrations, it is extremely well-referenced and though descriptive in parts, it is critical throughout and delivers much food for thought. * Archaeologia Cambrensis - Cambrian Archaeological Association *Table of ContentsAcknowledgements List of Figures List of Tables List of Supplementary Tables (on WWW) Chapter 1: Steps towards understanding: routeways in practice, theory and life Chapter 2 Walks in the temperate rainforest: developing concepts of niche construction and linear environmental manipulation Chapter 3 Niche construction and place making: hunter-gatherer routeways in north west Europe Chapter 4 Footprints of people and animals as evidence of mobility Chapter 5 Early farmers: mobility, site location and antecedent activities Chapter 6 Wetland trackways and communication Chapter 7 Barrow alignments as clues to Bronze Age routes Chapter 8 Trackways in later prehistoric agricultural landscapes Chapter 9 Maritime and riverine connectivity: the allure of the exotic Chapter 10 A case study of the Wealden District in South East England Chapter 11 Conclusions: why routes matter Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThe central issues discussed in this new collected work in the highly successful ancient textiles series are the relationships between fiber resources and availability on the one hand and the ways those resources were exploited to produce textiles on the other. Technological and economic practices - for example, the strategies by which raw materials were acquired and prepared - in the production of textiles play a major role in the papers collected here.Contributions investigate the beginnings of wool use in western Asia and southeastern Europe. The importance of wool in considerations of early textiles is due to at least two factors. First, both wild as well as some domesticated sheep are characterized by a hairy rather than a woolly coat. This raises the question of when and where woolly sheep emerged, a question that has not up to now been resolvable by genetic or other biological analyses. Second, wool as a fiber has played a major role both economically and socially in both western Asian and European societies from as early as the 3rd millennium BCE in Mesopotamia, and it continues to do so, in different ways, up to the modern day. Despite the importance of wool as a fiber resource contributors demonstrate clearly that its development and use can only be properly addressed in the context of a consideration of other fibers, both plant and animal. Only within a framework that takes into account historically and regionally variable strategies of procurement, processing, and the products of different types of fibers is it possible to gain real insights into the changing roles played by fibers and textiles in the lives of people in different places and times in the past.With relatively rare, albeit sometimes spectacular exceptions, archaeological contexts offer only poor conditions of preservation for textiles. As a result, archaeologists are dependent on indirect or proxy indicators such as textile tools (e.g., loom weights, spindle whorls) and the analysis of faunal remains to explore a range of such proxies and methods by which they may be analyzed and evaluated in order to contribute to an understanding of fiber and textile production and use in the past.Trade ReviewThe research will be a valuable resource for those who study the history of clothing and weaving, as well as ethnographers and archaeologists. * Journal of Dress History *Table of ContentsPreface 1 Introduction 2 The Neolithic Revolution in the Fertile Crescent and the origins of fiber technology 3 Early Wool of Mesopotamia, ca. 7000-3000 BC. Between prestige and economy 4 Continuity and Discontinuity in Neolithic and Chalcolithic Linen Textile Production in the Southern Levant 5 Fibers, Fabrics and Looms: A link between animals fibers and warp weighted looms in the Iron Age Levant 6 An archaic, male exclusive, loom from Oman 7 The TOPOI Research Group "Textile Revolution" - Archaeological background and a multi-proxy approach 8 Fibres to Fibres. Thread to Thread. Comparing Diachronic Changers in Large Spindle Whorl Samples 9 Finding the woolly sheep: meta-analyses of archaeozoological data from Southwest- Asia and Southeast-Europe 10 Taming the Fibres: Traditions and Innovations in the Textile Cultures of Neolithic Greece 11 Ex Oriente Ars? "Anatolianizing" spindle whorls in the Early Bronze Age Aegean islands and their implications for fiber crafts 12 Different skills for different fibres? The use of flax and wool in textile technology of Bronze Age Greece in light of archaeological experiments 13 Neolithic flax production in the pre-Alpine region - Knowledge increase since the 19th century 14 Underrated. Textile-making in Neolithic lakeside settlements in the Northern Alpine Foreland 15 Textile materials in the Mesolithic and Neolithic and their processing 16 Raw materials, Textile Technologies, Innovations and Cultural Response in Central Europe in the 3rd to 1st mill. BC 17 First genetic evidence for the origin of Central European sheep (Ovis ammon f. aries) populations from two different routes of Neolithisation with contributions to the history woolly sheep 18 Sheep Husbandry in the Ancient Near East

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Book SynopsisBritannia Romana: Roman Inscriptions and Roman Britain is based on the author’s 40 years’ experience of the epigraphy of Roman Britain. It collects 487 inscriptions (mostly on stone, but also on metal, wood, tile and ceramic), the majority from Britain but many from other Roman provinces and Italy, so as to illustrate the history and character of Roman Britain (AD 43–410). Each inscription is presented in the original (in Latin, except for eight in Greek), followed by a translation and informal commentary; they are linked by the narrative which they illustrate, and more than half (236) are accompanied by photographs. All Latin terms in the narrative and commentary are translated and explained. The author demonstrates his unrivalled ability to read and understand Roman inscriptions and their importance as a source of historical knowledge. They are treated by chronology or theme in 14 chapters. The first eight take the narrative from Claudius’ invasion (AD 43) to the death of the last emperor to attempt the conquest of Britain, Septimius Severus (AD 211). The next four cover the general themes of soldier and civilian, economy and society, government, religion. The last two continue the narrative to the death of the last emperor to rule Roman Britain, Constantine III (AD 411).Trade ReviewThis book is a joy, learned, insightful and witty. His [Roger Tomlin’s] contributions have ever been amongst the most erudite, informative and readable contributions to that journal. Now Tomlin has drawn on his deep knowledge of the Roman inscriptions from Britain, and also Roman inscriptions relating to Britain from elsewhere in the empire, to offer us a personal panorama of life and death in the province. * Northern History *

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Book SynopsisThis innovative study examines and analyses the wealth of evidence provided by the monumental effigies of Yorkshire, from the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, including some of very high sculptural merit. More than 200 examples survive from the historic county in varying states of preservation. Together, they present a picture of the people able to afford them, at a time when the county was frequently at the forefront of national politics and administration, during the Scottish wars.Many monuments display remarkable realism, depicting people as they themselves wished to be remembered, and are accompanied by a great volume of contemporary sculptural and architectural detail. Stylistic analysis of the effigies themselves has been employed, better to understand how they relate to one another and give a firmer basis for their dating and production patterns. They are considered in relation to the history and material culture of the area at the time they were produced. A more soundly based appreciation of the sculptor's intentions and the aspirations of patrons is sought through close attention to the full extent of the visible evidence afforded by the monuments and their surroundings.The corpus is of sufficient size to permit meaningful analysis to shed light on aspects such as personal aspiration, social networks, patterns of supply and production, piety and wealth. It demonstrates the value of funerary monuments to the wider understanding of medieval society.The text will be accompanied by a comprehensive catalogue, making available a substantial body of research for the first time. The study considers the relationship between the monuments and related sculpture, architecture, painting, glass etc, together with contemporary documentary evidence, where it is available. This material and the underlying methodology are now available to illuminate monuments of the medieval period across the whole country. Its methods and messages extend understanding of all monuments, broadening its potential audience from the purely local to everyone concerned with medieval sculpture and church archaeology.Trade Review...the Gittos’ very evident expertise and dedication to these monuments have come together so fruitfully in this comprehensive book. * Medieval Archaeology *This engaging, authoritative and affordable study, with its additional online components, is indeed worth the wait. It will reinvigorate older debates and undoubtedly encourage new scholarship. * The Ecclesiological Society *Every medieval monument tells a story, both in its intent and origins, and in its subsequent history. It is clear that the authors realize this, and do their best to convey these stories, and the evidence that allows their recreation, to the reader. Their enthusiasm for this is contagious. * Archaeological Journal *Overall this a superbly researched and well-presented book which will doubtless become one of the great publications on medieval effigies and a much sought after addition to any bookshelf. For those interested in medieval arms and armour of the 13th and 14th centuries, this work is essential. * Arms and Armour: The Journal of Royal Armouries *The observational skills and contextual awareness of the authors, their breadth of scholarship and indomitable persistence are apparent throughout. […] While the effigies perpetuate the memories of the dead, this study if a worthy monument to the craftsmen who created them. * The Local Historian *Table of ContentsList of figures List of colour plates Acknowledgements Conventions 1 Introduction 2 The effigies 2a Description of the corpus 2b Aspects of design 2c Fate and fortune 2d Conclusions 3 Monuments in context 3a Introduction 3b Freestanding monuments 3c Canopied recesses 3d Tomb chests 3e Glass and painting 3f Armour and hearses 3g Dedicated locations 3h The churchyard 3i Conclusions 4 Makers and making 4a Fundamentals 4b Techniques 4c Relationships and series 4d Conclusions 5 Patrons and patronage 5a Historical context and Yorkshire society 5b The commemorated, their families and networks 5c Symbolism 6 Complexity and conclusions 6a The enigmatic priest’s monument at Welwick 6b Concluding remarks Bibliography Index List of Yorkshire's effigies to 1400

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Book SynopsisThe Chalcolithic, the phase in prehistory when the important technical development of adding tin to copper to produce bronze had not yet taken place, is not a term generally used by British prehistorians and whether there is even a definable phase is debated. Is There a British Chalcolithic? brings together many leading authorities in 20 papers that address this question.Papers are grouped under several headings. Definitions, Issues and Debate considers whether appropriate criteria apply that define a distinctive period (c. 2450 - 2150 cal BC) in cultural, social, and temporal terms with particular emphasis on the role and status of metal artefacts and Beaker pottery. Continental Perspectives addresses various aspects of comparative regions of Europe where a Chalcolithic has been defined. Around Britain and Ireland presents a series of large-scale regional case studies where authors argue for and against the adoption of the term. The final section, Economy, Landscapes and Monuments, looks at aspects of economy, land-use and burial tradition and provides a detailed consideration of the Stonehenge and Avebury landscapes during the period in question.The volume contains much detailed information on sites and artefacts, and comprehensive radiocarbon datasets that will be invaluable to scholars and students studying this enigmatic but pivotal episode of British Prehistory.Additional information originally found on included CD ROM can be downloaded here.Table of ContentsDEFINITIONS, ISSUES and DEBATE 1. Case and Place for the British Chalcolithic (STUART NEEDHAM) 2. Drawing Boundaries and Building Models: investigating the concept of the ‘Chalcolithic frontier’ in northwest Europe (BENJAMIN W. ROBERTS and CATHERINE FRIEMAN) 3. A Rumsfeld Reality Check: what we know, what we don’t know and what we don’t know we don’t know about the Chalcolithic in Britain and Ireland (ALISON SHERIDAN) 4. Before 29Cu became copper: tracing the recognition and invention of metalleity in Britain and Ireland during the third millennium BC (PETER BRAY) CONTINENTAL PERSPECTIVES 5. The importance of being insular: Britain and Ireland in their North-West European context during the 3rd millennium BC (MARC VANDER LINDEN) 6. Sense and non-sense of the term ‘Chalcolithic’ (MARTIN BARTELHEIM and RAIKO KRAUSS) 7. Growth and expansion; social, economic and ideological structures in the European Chalcolithic (VOLKER HEYD) 8. Dutchmen on the Move? A discussion of the adoption of the Beaker package (HARRY FOKKENS) 9. Working copper in the Chalcolithic; a long term perspective on the development of metallurgical knowledge in Central Europe and the Carpathian Basin (TOBIAS KIENLIN) AROUND BRITAIN & IRELAND 10. Chronology, corpses, copper and lithics (FRANCES HEALY) 11. Is there a Scottish Chalcolithic? (IAN SHEPHERD† (completed by Alison Sheridan and Lekky) ) 12. A date with the Chalcolithic in Wales; a review of radiocarbon determinations for the period 2450- 2100 BC (STEVE BURROW) 13. Searching for the Chalcolithic: continuity and change in the Irish Final Neolithic/Early Bronze Age (NEIL CARLIN and JOANNA BRÜCK) 14. The Chalcolithic in Ireland; a chronological and cultural framework (WILLIAM O’BRIEN) PEOPLE 15. The Beaker People Project: an interim report on the progress of the isotopic analysis of the organic skeletal material (MANDY JAY, MIKE PARKER PEARSON, MIKE RICHARDS, OLAF NEHLICH, JANET MONTGOMERY, ANDREW CHAMBERLAIN, and ALISON SHERIDAN) 16. The Regionality of Beakers and Bodies in the Chalcolithic of North-East Scotland (NEIL CURTIS and NEIL WILKIN) 17. Stepping out together: men, women and their Beakers in time and space (ALEXANDRA SHEPHERD) ECONOMY, LANDSCAPES and MONUMENTS 18. Beaker land-use, animals and economy – a chronological changing point? (MICHAEL J. ALLEN and MARK MALTBY) 19. The present dead: the making of past and future landscapes in the British ‘Chalcolithic’ (PAUL GARWOOD) 20. The Revenge of the Native: monuments, material culture and burial and other practices in the third quarter of the 3rd millennium BC in Wessex (ROSAMUND CLEAL and JOSHUA POLLARD) Index CD 1. Case and Place for the British Chalcolithic (STUART NEEDHAM) Appendix 1.1: Key Chalcolithic grave groups Appendix 1.2: Selected radiocarbon dated ceremonial sites mentioned in the text Bibliography 10. Chronology, corpses, copper and lithics (FRANCES HEALY) Table 10.4 Radiocarbon measurements used in models and/or cited in the text, in laboratory number order Figures 10.3a, 10.3b. 10.3c, 10.3d, 10.3e, 10.5b, 10.5c, 10.5d, 10.5e, 10.5f, 10.5g, and 10.5i Bibliography 15. The Beaker People Project: an interim report on the progress of the isotopic analysis of the organic skeletal material. (MANDY JAY, MIKE PARKER PEARSON, MIKE RICHARDS, OLAF NEHLICH, JANET MONTGOMERY, ANDREW CHAMBERLAIN, and ALISON SHERIDAN) Table 15.1: List of individuals included in the Beaker People Project for isotope analysis 16. The Regionality of Beakers and Bodies in the Chalcolithic of North-East Scotland (NEIL CURTIS and NEIL WILKIN) Appendix 2: Figures 16.9, 16.10, 16.11 and 16.12 17. Stepping out together: men, women and their Beakers in time and space. (ALEXANDRA SHEPHERD) Case studies Borrowstone Cists 1 & 2 Fig 17.11 Borrowstone Cists 4, 5 & 6 Broomhend of Crichie cist 2 Broomhend of Crichie cist 1 Garton Slack 163 Painsthorpe Wold 4 Huggate and Warter Wold 254

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Book SynopsisTextile production and the manufacture of clothing was one of the most essential daily activities in prehistory. Textiles were significant objects of practical use, and at the same time had cultural, social and symbolic meaning, crucial for displaying the identity, gender, social rank and status, or wealth of their users. However, evidence of ancient clothing is scarce due to unfavourable preservation of organic materials. Only occasionally are prehistoric textiles and associated implements preserved, mainly as a result of exceptional environmental conditions, such as waterlogged contexts like bogs, or in very dry or cold climates. In other cases textiles are sporadically mineralised, carbonised or preserved by metal corrosion. Textiles and leather can also be visible as imprints on clay.The beginning of textile manufacture is still vague, but can be traced back to the upper Palaeolithic. Important developments in textile technology, e.g. weaving, spinning with a spindle, introduction of wool, appeared in Europe and the Mediterranean throughout the Neolithic, Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age. This book is devoted to the early textile production in Europe and the Mediterranean and aims to collect and investigate the combined evidence of textile and leather remains, tools, workplaces and textile iconography.The chapters discuss the recent achievements in the research of ancient textiles and textile production, textile techniques such as spinning, fabric and skin manufacture, use of textile tools and experimental textile archaeology. The volume explores important cultural and social aspects of textile production, and its development.Trade ReviewThis is an important, well-illustrated and well-edited publication that I highly recommend to anyone interested in prehistory and ancient protohistory. * Revue de l’Archéologie du Vêtement et du Costume *Table of ContentsList of contributors Preface 1. Introduction Małgorzata Siennicka, Lorenz Rahmstorf and Agata Ulanowska 2. Early loom types in ancient societies Eva Andersson Strand 3. Discussing flax domestication in Europe using biometric measurements on recent and archaeological flax seeds – a pilot study Sabine Karg, Axel Diederichsen and Simon Jeppson 4. From adorned nudity to a dignitary’s wardrobe: symbolic raiment in the southern Levant 13 500 BC–3900 BC Janet Levy 5. The earliest cloth culture in Denmark Ulla Mannering 6. Loom weights and weaving at the archaeological site of São Pedro (Redondo, Portugal) Catarina Costeira and Rui Mataloto 7. Evidence of textile technology in the Early Neolithic site of La Draga (Banyoles, Spain). Some hypotheses Miriam de Diego, Raquel Piqué, Antoni Palomo, Xavier Terradas, Maria Saña, Ignacio Clemente and Millán Mozota 8. From east to west: the use of spinning bowls from the Chalcolithic period to the Iron Age María Irene Ruiz de Haro 9. From the loom to the forge. Elements of power at the end of Neolithic in western Europe: a focus on textile activities Fabienne Médard 10. Textile manufacture in the prehistoric pile dwellings of south-west Germany: planned investigation Johanna Banck-Burgess 11. Late Neolithic weaving tools from Melk-Spielberg in Austria: experiments with crescent-shaped weights Karina Grömer 12. Two sides of a whorl. Unspinning the meanings and functionality of Eneolithic textile tools Ana Grabundžija 13. Plant textiles in a grave mound of the Early Bronze Age in eastern Romania Neculai Bolohan and Ciprian-Cătălin Lazanu 14. Social contexts of textile production in Bulgaria during the Late Chalcolithic: from multimedia work-areas to material, social and cultural transformations Petya Hristova 15. Experimenting with loom weights. More observations on the functionality of Early Bronze Age textile tools from Greece Agata Ulanowska 16. Textile tools and manufacture in the Early Bronze Age Cyclades: evidence from Amorgos and Keros Giorgos Gavalas 17. Fibre crafts and social complexity: yarn production in the Aegean islands in the Early Bronze Age Sophia Vakirtzi 18. In search of ‘invisible’ textile tools and techniques of band weaving in the Bronze Age Aegean Agata Ulanowska 19. The Early Bronze Age textile implements from the Eskişehir region in inland north-western Anatolia Deniz Sarı 20. Investigating continuity and change in textile making at Arslantepe (Malatya, Turkey) during the 4th and 3rd millennia BC Romina Laurito

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Book SynopsisIreland's First Settlers tells the story of the archaeology and history of the first continuous phase of Ireland’s human settlement. It combines centuries of search and speculation about human antiquity in Ireland with a review of what is known today about the Irish Mesolithic. This is, in part, provided in the context of the author's 50 years of personal experience searching to make sense of what initially appeared to be little more than a collection of beach rolled and battered flint tools.The story is embedded in how the island of Ireland, its position, distinct landscape and ecology impacted on when and how Ireland was colonised. It also explores how these first settlers evolved their technologies and lifeways to suit the narrow range of abundant resources that were available.The volume concludes with discussions on how the landscape should be searched for the often ephemeral traces of these early settlers and how sites should be excavated. It asks what we really know about the thoughts and life of the people themselves and what happened to them as farming began to be introduced.Table of ContentsAcknowledgements Part I 1. why 2. Understanding Ireland’s environment and ecology 3. It’s about time Part II. Laying the foundations 4. Where did it all come from? 5. Chronology, flint facts and other artefacts Part III. Often an island too far? 6. Anything earlier? 7. The first arrivals 8. Settling in Part IV. Lifeways 9. Patterns in the landscape 10. Food, sustenance and procurement Part V. Where to now? 11. A critical analysis of fieldwork and methodolgies 12. Life, death, the universe and everything Bibliography

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Book SynopsisButrint, ancient Buthrotum , has taken many forms in different ages, shaped by the near-constant interaction between the place, its lagoonal landscape and the Mediterranean. Though Butrint does not appear on any of the records of early Greek colonisation to identify it as a Corcyrean settlement, strong links must have existed between it and the metropolitan Corinthian colony of Corfu. Blessed with springs that possessed healing qualities, a small polis was created - extended to incorporate a healing sanctuary dedicated to Asclepius. Julius Caesar, harbouring at Butrint in urgent need of supplies to sustain his struggle against Pompey, must have viewed the sanctuary, ringed by largely dried-out marshland, as the perfect site to settle veterans as a colony. It was an obvious cornerstone in controlling the passage from the Adriatic to the Aegean. The early settlers seem to have been limited in number and possibly mainly of civilian status. However, the political changes to the city's magistrature were immediate, and within a relatively short time-span fundamental changes to the physical make-up of the city were set in motion. Its new Roman status also located Butrint as a directly before the highest authorities in Rome, and within fifteen years or so, under Augustus's guidance following his victory at Actium, the city was refounded as a colony and awarded a pivotal role in Virgil's court-sponsored foundation epic, The Aeneid. Now linked to the Victory City of Nicopolis rather than in the shadow of Corfu, Butrint prospered. The urban fabric evolved, sometimes faltered, but was essentially sustained until the later 6th century A.D. This present volume is an assessment of the Roman archaeology, a compilation of studies and field reports that focuses upon the foundation and early history of the colony.Table of ContentsIntroduction (Richard Hodges and Inge Lyse Hansen) The artistic and historical evidence The sanctuary of Asklepios (Milena Melfi) La structure politique de la colonie romaine de Buthrotum (Elisabeth Deniaux) Appendix: A dedication to Minerva Augusta from Butrint (John R Patterson) The Trojan connection: Butrint and Rome (Inge Lyse Hansen) The monumental togate statue (Iris Pojani) The Roman coins from Butrint (Sam Moorhead, Shpresa Gjongecaj and Richard Abdy) The archaeological investigations on the Vrina Plain Geoarchaeological investigation at Roman Butrint (David J Bescoby) The archaeology of the Vrina Plain: an assessment (Andrew Crowson and Oliver J Gilkes) Two Roman monuments: proposals for function and context (Ryan Ricciardi) Comparative studies Butrinto e Phoinike a confronto (Sandro De Maria) Butrint and Nicopolis: urban planning and the 'Romanization' of Greece and Epirus (William Bowden) Index

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Book SynopsisThis volume summarizes 30 years of fieldwork in Denmark, some of the evidence for the spread of agriculture and the Neolithic into Scandinavia and some opinions about the origins of agriculture. It is intended to be both academic and personal and to describe the actual process of research, because most projects involve elements of both. Each chapter will deal with one of the components of the project – survey, testing and excavations. Eight sites were excavated from the Late Mesolithic and Early Neolithic and these are discussed in this volume. The concluding chapter summarizes research in the area and proffers opinions on a variety of archaeological subjects, with visits to climate change, seasonality and sedentism, hunter-gatherer complexity, aDNA, inequality and the origins and spread of agriculture.Table of ContentsPreface 1. An Introduction – Setting the Table 2. Field Survey 3. Site Testing 4. Smakkerup Huse 5. Trustrup 6. Dragsholm and Bøgebjerg 7. Fårevejle 8. Asnæs Havnemark 9. Conclusions References

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Book SynopsisThis book shows how a military colony became a large, impressive and prosperous city. Legendary for its walls and port, it was able to play a basic role in the great strategy of ancient Rome between the Po and the Danube, spanning the centuries from its foundation (181 BC) to the fateful days of blood and violence of its fall (AD 452).Based on a study of ancient sources, contemporary literature and the latest archaeological research, and written in a fast-paced and accessible style, the book provides a portrait of Aquileia in a diachronic key, under various aspects; it sets the city in the complex societal and political system of the time, gives a thorough account of the great events of which it was a protagonist or victim and offers detailed portraits of key figures, whether famous or less well-known, and analyses of epic battles.Combining academic scholarship with storytelling, biographies of important personalities and stories of political intrigue, assassinations and full-scale warfare which narrate the evocative epic of the rise, decline and disappearance of ancient cities, the volume highlights a significant topic in Roman political, social, economic, religious and military history, but one which has been inexplicably neglected in the Anglo-Saxon world until now.Trade ReviewThis book traces the history of the Roman city-fortress of Aquileia, the fulcrum of the defensive system of the eastern Alps, from its foundation in 181 BCE. to its fall in 452 CE. to Attila the Hun, based on a study of ancient sources, contemporary literature, and the latest archaeological research. It shows how what started as a military colony became a large, impressive, and prosperous city, legendary for its wall and its port on the Adriatic Sea, and able to play a fundamental role in the strategy of ancient Rome between the Po and the Danube. * New Testament Abstracts *Table of ContentsAbbreviations Preface Introduction: The background 1. The northernmost stronghold 2. Caesar's seat for Illyrian affairs 3. The capital of the Regio X-Venetia et Histria 4. A portrait of a Roman city in the Early Empire 5. In the whirlwind of the Marcomannic Wars 6. Aquileia’s War 7. The Great Constantinian Aquileia 8. A residence of emperors and an evangelizing Church 9. Aquileia in the sunset of the Empire 10. Aquileia's fall Appendix: The Roman expansion in northern Italy Chronology Contemporary references Further reading

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Book SynopsisThe Danubian provinces represent one of the largest macro-units within the Roman Empire, with a large and rich heritage of Roman material evidence. Although the notion itself is a modern 18th-century creation, this region represents a unique area, where the dominant, pre-Roman cultures (Celtic, Illyrian, Hellenistic, Thracian) are interconnected within the new administrative, economic and cultural units of Roman cities, provinces and extra-provincial networks. This book presents the material evidence of Roman religion in the Danubian provinces through a new, paradigmatic methodology, focusing not only on the traditional urban and provincial units of the Roman Empire, but on a new space taxonomy. Roman religion and its sacralised places are presented in macro-, meso- and micro-spaces of a dynamic empire, which shaped Roman religion in the 1st-3rd centuries AD and created a large number of religious glocalizations and appropriations in Raetia, Noricum, Pannonia Superior, Pannonia Inferior, Moesia Superior, Moesia Inferior and Dacia.Combining the methodological approaches of Roman provincial archaeology and religious studies, this work intends to provoke a dialogue between disciplines rarely used together in central-east Europe and beyond. The material evidence of Roman religion is interpreted here as a dynamic agent in religious communication, shaped by macro-spaces, extra-provincial routes, commercial networks, but also by the formation and constant dynamics of small group religions interconnected within this region through human and material mobilities. The book also presents for the first time a comprehensive list of sacralised spaces and divinities in the Danubian provinces.Trade ReviewThis book presents the material evidence of Roman religion in the seven Danubian provinces through a new methodology, focusing not only on the traditional urban and provincial units of the Roman empire, but on a new space taxonomy. * New Testament Abstracts *Table of ContentsList of illustrations Foreword 1. Introduction 2. Emerging Roman religion: the beginnings 3. Lived religion and its macro-spaces in the Danubian provinces 4. Space sacralisation in meso-spaces 5. Religious experience in micro-paces: housing the gods 6. Conclusions: beyond the materiality of Roman religious communication Annexes 1. Sanctuaries in the Danubian provinces 2. Divinities in the Danubian provinces 3. Diagrams Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIstanbul, Europe's largest city, became an urban centre of exceptional size when it was chosen by Constantine the Great as a new Roman capital city. Named after him, the city has been studied through its rich textual sources and surviving buildings, but its archaeology remains relatively little known compared to other great urban centres of the ancient and medieval worlds. Constantinople: Archaeology of a Byzantine Megapolis is a major archaeological assessment of a key period in the development of this historic city. It uses material evidence, contemporary developments in urban archaeology and archaeological theory to explore over a thousand years of the city's development. Moving away from the scholarly emphasis on the monumental core or city defences, the volume investigates the inter-mural area between the 5th-century land walls and the Constantinian city wall – a zone which encompasses half of the walled area but which has received little archaeological attention. Utilising data from a variety of sources, including the 'Istanbul Rescue Archaeology Project', created to record material threatened with destruction, the analysis proposes a new model of Byzantine Constantinople. A range of themes are explored including social, economic and cognitive development, Byzantine perceptions of the city, the consequences of imperial ideology, and the impact of 'self-organization' brought about by many minor decisions. Constantinople casts new light on the transformation of an ancient Roman capital to an Orthodox Christian holy city and will be of great importance to archaeologists and historians.Trade ReviewSubstantially packaged with sensible and informative generalisation, above all in the history of archaeology in Istanbul, and in the explanation of the project’s methodology. These introductory sections are worth reading for their own sake. The book is, as a whole, well written and cites an impressive secondary bibliography. * The Bryn Mawr Classical Review *Table of ContentsChapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: The Istanbul Archaeological Project 1997-2004: history, organisation and methods Chapter 3: The Southern part of the Study Area Chapter 4: The Northern part of the Study Area Chapter 5: The Blachernae Palace Chapter 6: The Church of the Holy Apostles Chapter 7: Conclusion: the archaeology of a Byzantine megapolis

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Book SynopsisThe Archaeology of Roman Portugal contributes to the wider debate on Roman imperialism and expansionism, by bringing to the fore a much-underrepresented area of the Roman empire, at least in English-language scholarship: its westernmost edge in modern day Portugal. Highlighting the perspective from Roman Portugal contributes to our understanding of the Roman empire, through presenting both an extraordinary landscape in the sense of economic opportunities (ocean resources, marble and metal mining), and also settlement history. The volume presents new data and insights from both archaeology and ancient history, discussing their significance for our understanding of Roman expansion and imperialism.A key goal of the volume is to discuss how the Portuguese panorama compares to other areas of the Iberian peninsula, and to better integrate Portuguese scholarship in the academic debate on the Mediterranean Roman world, and to contextualise it firmly within the wider Iberian and Western Mediterranean. The volume brings together an internationally diverse team of scholars in archaeology and ancient history from Portugal, Spain, Germany, the UK, the US, the Netherlands, Belgium and Italy. It explicitly discusses different national and disciplinary research traditions and historical frameworks in order to assess the potential of integrating best practices in archaeological approaches and methodology.Table of ContentsAcknowledgements List of contributors Introduction Tesse D. Stek and André Carneiro I. Contested landscapes: between pre-Roman polities and early Roman encroachment 1. Exploring Rome’s early military deployment strategies in the north-east of the Iberian Peninsula Jordi Principal and Carles Padrós Gómez 2. Late Iron Age and early Roman conflict and interaction in southern Callaecia (north-west Iberia) João Fonte 3. Towers, territory, and the negotiation of a colonial landscape in the early Roman Central Alentejo Joey Williams, Rui Mataloto, and Karilyn Sheldon 4. The last frontier: Late Iron Age society, Roman conquest, and the Romanisation of the territory north of the River Duero Jesús García Sánchez II. Economic targets: integrating and energising resources 5. Upgrading town appearances: relating white marble exploitation and town development in Roman Lusitania Devi Taelman 6. Shifting landscapes: change and adaptation in the Lusitanian territory during the first globalisation André Carneiro 7. Adding complexity to a complex world: the role of tableware imports in Portugal during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC Vincenzo Soria III. Cities and hillforts: settlement organisation in the Roman west 8. Land-use and settlement patterns around Ercavica in Antiquity: initial findings Miguel Ángel Valero Tévar 9. Understanding the town-territory relationship: a case study from Lusitania Cristina Corsi 10. Why would we need a city? The dispersed civitates in Lusitania Pieter Houten 11. Roman rural life in the far west: the case study of the Serena Region (Badajoz, Spain) Victorino Mayoral Herrera, Martina Cecilia Parini, and Luis Sevillano Perea IV. Local religious and cultural identity 12. The role of cult places in shaping landscapes during the Roman expansion: an Iberian perspective on a Mediterranean process Ignasi Grau Mira 13. Men, women, children, animals: the votive statuary from the sanctuary of Endovellicus at São Miguel da Mota/Alandroal (Portugal) Thomas G. Schattner 14. Romanising the mountains? Exploring cultural change through archaeological spatial analysis in western Sierra Morena (Spain) Maria del Carmen Moreno Escobar 15. Oppida and public spaces: constructing identities in Late Iron Age and early Roman north-west Iberia Manuel Fernández-Götz and Marco V. García Quintela 16. Funerary practices and material culture: a ‘portrait from life’ in the fields of Lusitania Mónica Rolo

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Book SynopsisThis book collects recent works on the subjects of sacrificial offerings, ritualised violence and the relative values thereof in the contexts of Scandinavian prehistory from the Neolithic to the Viking era. It provides a detailed re-appraisal of key aspects of prehistoric bog bodies using the latest forensic and material culture analytical techniques to examine questions of sacrifice, execution and ritual behaviour.The volume re-opens investigations into notions of value relating to diverse evidence and suggested evidence for human sacrifice and related ritualised violence. It covers a broad spectrum of issues relating to novel interpretations of the existing archaeological materials, but with a focus on the study of value and value dynamics in these diverse ritual contexts, engaging in questions of identity, cosmology, economics and social relations. Cases span from the Scandinavian Late Neolithic and Nordic Bronze Age, through to the well-known wetland deposits and bog bodies of the Iron Age, to Viking era executions, ‘deviant’ burials and contemporaneous double/multiple graves, exploring the implications for the transformation of sacrificial practices across Scandinavian prehistory.Each contributor untangles the myriad forms of value at play in different incarnations of human offerings, and provide insights into how those values were expressed, for example in the selection and treatment of victims in relation to their status, personhood, identity and life-history.The volume builds on a workshop hosted at the National Museum of Denmark in 2018 which inaugurated the beginning of the research project ‘Human Sacrifice and Value: The limits of sacred violence’ and was supported by the Museum of Cultural History at the University of Oslo. It brings together research and perspectives that go beyond the who, what and where of most archaeological and anthropological investigations of sacrificial violence to address both the underlying and explicit forms of value associated with such events.Table of ContentsList of figures List of plates List of tables List of contributors Acknowledgements Foreword Rane Willerslev Introduction: In the darkest of days: Tracing human sacrifice through Scandinavian prehistory Matthew J. Walsh, Marianne Moen, Sean O’Neill, Svein H. Gullbekk and Rane Willerslev 1. Noble hunter-gatherers and ‘cruel’ farmers – a discussion of the evidence of human sacrifices during the Mesolithic and Neolithic in South Scandinavia Lasse Sørensen and Poul Otto Nielsen 2. Societies that sacrifice? Examining the potential for attendant sacrifices in the Nordic Bronze Age Matthew J. Walsh, Samantha S. Reiter and Karin M. Frei 3. Human sacrifice and human remains – the ultimate sacrifice? Pernille Pantmann 4. Naked or clothed? Bog bodies and the value of clothing in the Early Iron Age Ulla Mannering 5. Sacrifice or execution? A brief forensic medical and archaeological perspective on the Danish bog bodies Niels Lynnerup and Pauline Asingh 6. Six human skulls in a bog: Svennum – a 1st century AD sacrificial bog Sidsel Wåhlin 7. Haraldskær Woman under a new light: Bog bodies, martial rituals and value Mads Ravn 8. Figuring out bodies in watery places: Posthumanism, figurations and ecological relations Christina Fredengren 9. Thrown stone for flesh and bone? ‘White’ stones in sacrificial context in Iron Age Scandinavia Matthew J. Walsh, Pernille Pantmann and Marianne Moen 10. ‘Better not to pray than to sacrifice too much’ Human sacrifice and its alternatives in Northern Europe AD 750 - 1050 Bo Jensen 11. Regulated deviancy – ritual executions at Viking Age Tissø as indications of a complex judicial culture Mads D. Jessen and Jesper Olsen 12. Human sacrifice in Old Norse skaldic poetry Klas Wikström Af Edholm

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Book SynopsisThis lavishly illustrated volume presents a comprehensive architectural study of 87 individual temples and sanctuaries built in the Roman East between the end of the 1st century BCE and the end of the 3rd century CE, within a broad region encompassing the modern states of Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Jordan. Religious architecture gave faithful expression to the complexity of the Roman East and to its multiplicity of traditions pertaining to ethnic and religious aspects as well as to the powerful influence of Imperial Rome. The source of this power lay in the uniformity of the architectural language, the inventory of forms, the choice of styles and the spatial layout of the buildings. Thus, while temples have an eclectic character, there is an underlying unity of form comprising the podium, the stairway between the terminating walls (antae) and the columns along the entrance front - in other words, the axiality, frontality and symmetry of the temple as viewed from outside.The temples and sanctuaries studied in this volume demonstrate individual nuances of plan, spatial design, location in the sanctuary and interrelations with the immediate vicinity but can be divided into two main categories: Vitruvian temples (derived from Hellenistic-Roman architecture) and Non-Vitruvian temples (those with plans and spatial designs that cannot be analysed according to architectural criteria such as those defined by Vitruvius). The individual descriptions presented focus solely upon the analysis of the external and internal space of the temples of all types and do not involve any cultural or ethnic discussion.Table of ContentsIntroduction Part I Chapter 1: Temples in the Roman East: Typological Analysis Vitruvian Temples Non-Vitruvian Temples Nabataean Temples Chapter 2: Sanctuaries in the Roman East: Typological Analysis Urban Sanctuaries Extra-Urban Sanctuaries Part II Corpus of Temples and Sanctuaries Part III Selected Terms in Architecture Notes Bibliography

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Book SynopsisThe Irish Neolithic has been dominated by the study of megalithic tombs, but the defining element of Irish settlement evidence is the rectangular timber Early Neolithic house, the numbers of which have more than quadrupled in the last ten years. The substantial Early Neolithic timber house was a short-lived architectural phenomenon of as little as 90 years, perhaps like short-lived Early Neolithic long barrows and causewayed enclosures. This book explores the wealth of evidence for settlement and houses throughout the Irish Neolithic, in relation to Britain and continental Europe. More importantly it incorporates the wealth of new, and often unpublished, evidence from developer-led archaeological excavations and large grey-literature resources.The settlement evidence scattered across the landscape, and found as a result of developer-funded work, provides the social context for the more famous stone monuments that have traditionally shaped our views of the Neolithic in Ireland. It provides the first comprehensive review of the Neolithic settlement of Ireland, which enables a more holistic and meaningful understanding of the Irish Neolithic.Trade ReviewAn extraordinarily important resource … this volume provides a comprehensive and thoughtful analysis of a truly exceptional data set. It will be essential reading for anyone interested in the European Neolithic and a landmark volume in the study of Irish prehistory. * European Journal of Archaeology *While this is essentially a scholarly volume it is still accessible to students and engaged general readers … [It] provides a welcome window on the greatly expanded Irish Neolithic dataset. * Landscape History *This is one of those long anticipated must-read books for anyone with a serious interest in the Irish or British neolithic (4000– 2500BC) ... A readable and enjoyable book that makes a significant contribution to neolithic studies. * British Archaeology *Table of Contents1. Populating the past 2. The house and society 3. The Irish early Neolithic house 4. The role of the Early Neolithic house 5. Beyond the ‘house horizon’ 6. Settling the island: activity and place 7. A landscape in small acts 8. After the flood: re-assessing the Irish Neolithic Index

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Book SynopsisRenowned archaeologist, Dale Serjeantson, tells the story of human engagement with birds from the end of the last Ice Age to around AD 1650. In this book, she integrates the study of archaeological bird remains with ethnography and the history of birds and avian biology. It identifies changing patterns of wetland, water bird and game species through time, and in addition to their food value, examines our changing interactions with them. This includes considering evidence for use of bird body parts in religious rituals; taboos, totemism and superstitions surrounding eating certain species; their capture and role in falconry and as companion animals; and their importance in the economy from the Viking period onwards. Essential reading for archaeologists, zooarchaeologists, and historians, it is an eye-opening, accessible introduction to the archaeology of wild birds in Britain and Ireland for anyone interested in our natural history.Trade ReviewThis book is a must read for anyone with an interest in the ornithological history of Britain and Ireland. * Birdbooker Report *Table of Contents1. Introduction 2. Ravens and crows 3. Raptors and owls 4. Fenland birds 5. Game birds 6. Waders 7. Songbirds 8. Ducks, geese, and swans 9. Pigeons 10. Seabirds 11. Gannets and cormorants 12. Auks and gulls 13. Hawks and hawking 14. Changing roles and perceptions Appendix: list of assemblages referred to in the text with bibliographic reference Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThe Roman world was diverse and complex. And so were religious understandings and practices as mirrored in the enormous variety presented by archaeological, iconographic, and epigraphic evidence. Conventional approaches principally focus on the political role of civic cults as a means of social cohesion, often considered to be instrumentalised by elites. But by doing so, religious diversity is frequently overlooked, marginalising ‘deviating’ cult activities that do not fit the Classical canon, as well as the multitude of funerary practices and other religious activities that were all part of everyday life.In the Roman Empire, a person’s religious experiences were shaped by many and sometimes seemingly incompatible cult practices, whereby the ‘civic’ and ‘imperial’ cults might have had the least impact of all. The authors rethink these methodologies, arguing for a more dynamic image of religion that takes into account the varied and often contradictory choices and actions of individual, which reflects the discrepant religious experiences in the Roman world. Is it possible to ‘poke into the mind’ of an individual in Roman times, whatever his/her status and ethnicity, and try to understand the individual’s diverse experiences in such a complex, interconnected empire, exploring the choices that were open to an individual? This also raises the question whether the concept of individuality is valid for Roman times. In some periods, the impact of individual actions can be more momentous: the very first adoption of Roman-style sculpture, cult practices or Latin theonyms for indigenous deities can set in motion long-term processes that will significantly influence people’s perceptions of local deities, their characteristics, and functions. Do individual choices and preferences prevail over collective identities in the Roman Empire compared to pre-Roman times? To examine these questions, this volume presents case studies that analyse individual actions in the religious sphere.Table of ContentsList of figures List of tables Contributors 1. Introduction: the dynamics of religious individualisation Ralph Haeussler, Anthony King, Francisco Marco Simón and Günther Schörner 2. Religious individualisation: a bottom-up approach to religious developments in the Roman world Ralph Haeussler 3. Discrepant behaviour: on magical activities in the Latin West Francisco Marco Simón 4. Individual religious choice: the case of the ‘mystery’ cults Jaime Alvar Ezquerra 5. Sons and mothers: the matres, the military and religious choice in Roman Britain Elizabeth Blanning 6. Pre-Roman deities along the north-eastern Adriatic: continuity, transformation, identification Marjeta Šašel Kos 7. Private devotions at temples in Central and Eastern Gaul Isabelle Fauduet 8. Tradition, diversity and improvisation in Romano-British cremation burials in south-east England Jake Weekes 9. Individual choices in burial ritual and cult activity in and around the Iron Age and Romano-British town of Baldock, Hertfordshire, UK Gilbert R. Burleigh 10. Religious individualisation in extremis: human remains from Romano-Celtic temples in Britain and Gaul Anthony King 11. Indigenous arae and stelae: symbolic landscapes and individualisation in north-west Roman Hispania Fernando Alonso Burgos 12. Indigenism and identity shaping: the case of the Irrico group in Central Spain Jesús Alberto Arenas-Esteban 13. The religious construction of ‘household’ in Roman Italy: the case of the Casa dei Vettii Günther Schörner 14. Types of Interpretatio and their users in the Keltiké: explicationes and translationes vs. identificationes and adaptationes Patrizia de Bernardo Stempel 15. Religious individualisation in an entangled world: how to pick and mix favourite deities in the Roman Keltiké Ralph Haeussler

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Book SynopsisThe Battle of Pinkie, fought between the English and the Scots in 1547, was the last great clash between the two as independent nations. It is a well-documented battle with several eyewitness accounts and contemporary illustrations. There is also archaeological evidence of military activities. The manoeuvres of the two armies can be placed in the landscape near Edinburgh, despite considerable developments since the 16th century. Nevertheless, the battle and its significance has not been well understood.From a military point of view there is much of interest. The commanders were experienced and had already had battlefield successes. There was an awareness on both sides of contemporary best practice and use of up-to-date weapons and equipment. The Scots and the English armies, however, were markedly different in their composition and in the strategy and tactics they employed. There is the added ingredient that the fire from English ships, positioned just off the coast, helped decide the course of events.Using contemporary records and archaeological evidence, David Caldwell, Victoria Oleksy, and Bess Rhodes reconsider the events of September 1547. They explore the location of the fighting, the varied forces involved, the aims of the commanders, and the close-run nature of the battle. Pinkie resulted in a resounding victory for the English, but that was by no means an inevitable outcome. After Pinkie it briefly seemed as if the future of Britain had been redefined. The reality proved rather different, and the battle has largely slipped from popular consciousness. This book provides a reminder of the uncertainty and high stakes both Scots and English faced in the autumn of 1547.Table of ContentsList of Figures and Tables Acknowledgements Copyright and Abbreviations 1 Introduction Slaughter near Musselburgh Modern understandings of Pinkie Purpose of this book 2 Causes of conflict in 1547 Warning of war Dynastic ambitions Religious conflict Attack on Langholm Objectives in September 1547 3 The English forces The commanders Cavalry Infantry Artillery Naval forces Logistics and supply 4 Scotland’s military capability The host Wappenshaws The mobilisation The Scottish commanders The structure of the army Scottish battlefield successes 5 Early sources for the battle – a review Official documentation Diplomatic reports English descriptions of the battle Scottish descriptions of the battle 6 Pinkie Battlefield – Topography and Archaeology What’s in a name? Topographical overview Lordships and lands Settlements Communications Land use On manoeuvres, September 1547 The Archaeology of the Battle of Pinkie 7 A New interpretation of the battle The English advance into Scotland Scottish preparations Thursday 8 and Friday 9 September Saturday 10 September 8 Pinkie First and Last After Pinkie – the English policy After Pinkie – the Scottish response Pinkie and military change in Early Modern Britain Pinkie – future directions Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisRock art in Dakhleh was produced for perhaps as long as 10 millennia, resulting in the formation of hundreds of sites displaying thousands of images. In some places, petroglyphs form a true melting pot of iconographic creations, elsewhere only isolated depictions appear on rock surfaces. Various rock art traditions, from prehistoric, through pharaonic, Graeco-Roman, and mediaeval, have all added to a tremendous variety of petroglyphs, their formal traits and subject matter.This book is the first ever monograph on Dakhleh Oasis rock art, providing both an introduction to the versatile topic as well as an overview of the current state of research. It is designed as a collection of essays that deal with specific aspects of the research. The reader is offered here not only old and new documentation, much of it previously unpublished, but also a great deal of innovative interpretation.All chapters, although devoted to different case studies, revolve around an all-encompassing concept of lan

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Book SynopsisThe Byzantine cathedral of Hagia Sophia has been a source of wonder and fascination since its sixth-century construction. It was the premier monument of the Byzantine capital, Constantinople, and remains one of the most recognisable symbols of modern Istanbul. Often seen as encapsulating Byzantine history and culture, the building has been the subject of much scholarly interest since the Renaissance. However, while almost all previous archaeological work has focussed on the church itself, the surrounding complex of ecclesiastical buildings has been largely neglected. The research project presented here (co-directed by the authors) is the first to focus on the archaeology of the immediate environs of the church in order to understand the complex as a whole.Previously unrecorded material includes parts of the Patriarchal complex, from which the Orthodox Church was governed for almost a millennium, what may be the ‘Great Baptistery’ north of the church, and what are perhaps the first fragments of the fourth-century phase of the cathedral yet identified. The discovery of an unrecognised porch, surviving to its full height within the standing building, changes the known plan of the famous sixth-century church. This new information provides fresh evidence about the appearance and function of the complex, illustrating its similarities to, and dissimilarities from, Episcopal centers elsewhere in the Byzantine world. Combined with other archaeological sources, these discoveries enable us to place the sixth-century cathedral in its urban context and to reconsider what Hagia Sophia can tell us about the wider Byzantine world.Trade ReviewAn important read for those who want as much information as possible about the whole complex of the church. * Journal of Greek Archaeology *Table of ContentsPreface Terminology and conventions Acknowledgments Chapter 1: Introduction The Patriarchal complex The Hagia Sophia Project 2004–2018 Methods and practical constraints Chapter 2: The undiscovered church: Hagia Sophia before Justinian Introduction Fourth-century structures Fifth-century structures Features below the sixth-century church identified in other recent work Conclusion Chapter 3: New light on Justinian’s Hagia Sophia Introduction Buttress piers, their external staircase towers and the corner staircases in the base of the dome The Vestibules The access ramps Newly recorded sixth-century decoration Marble veneer on the church exterior Structures southwest of the Justinianic church: the Patriarchal palace Structures surrounding the Large Hall The southwest vestibule of the church The Baptistery south of the church A large rectilinear structure north of the sixth-century church Marble paving around the church and evidence for surrounding courtyards Archaeology and liturgy in Justinian’s church Conclusion Chapter 4: Revealing the Byzantine cathedral: Hagia Sophia after Justinian Introduction The Skeuophylakion North-east and south-east vestibules The north-east ramp Post-sixth-century modifications to the Patriarchate Identifying the Large Hall and associated structures with the later textually-attested additions to the Patriarchal palace The Baptistery The buttresses The south-west buttress The south middle buttress The north middle buttress The north-east buttress The west flying buttresses The remaining buttresses Archaeology and liturgy after the sixth century Conclusion Chapter 5: Sixth-century Hagia Sophia in its wider context Introduction Hagia Sophia in the context of surrounding structures and landscape features Building Orthodoxy in sixth-century Constantinople Bibliography

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Book SynopsisThis book offers a valuable contribution to the development of a methodology to address the study of archaeological quartz artifacts, combining various analytical tools to study these objects so that we might better understand the technological strategies of hunting societies who made use of this raw material. La meta de este libro es aportar al desarrollo de una metodología para abordar el estudio de artefactos arqueológicos de cuarzo, focalizándose en la combinación de diversas herramientas analíticas que permitan estudiar estos utensilios y contribuir así a una mejor comprensión de las estrategias tecnológicas de las sociedades cazadoras recolectoras que hicieron uso de esta materia prima. Ello implica, por un lado, evaluar el potencial de dicha roca para la producción de instrumentos líticos, considerando las distintas técnicas de talla, así como analizar las propiedades y cualidades de los filos para la realización de diversas actividades de incidencia sobre la materia en general, considerando a las de corte y raspado, en particular. Con el fin de someter a prueba esta propuesta, es que se abordarán como caso de estudio las estrategias tecnológicas implementadas por los grupos cazadores-recolectores que habitaron en el Valle de Calamuchita (provincia de Córdoba) durante el Holoceno medio y tardío, estudiando allí el rol cumplido por el cuarzo como materia prima, así como el uso y manufactura de artefactos de cuarzo en dicho contexto particular. Consta de tres partes principales: la primera de ellas aborda el enfoque metodológico y consta de cinco capítulos; la segunda parte comprende los resultados obtenidos luego de la aplicación de estos desarrollos metodológicos a través de programas experimentales tanto de manufactura como de uso de instrumentos sobre cuarzo ; por último, la tercer parte incluye la aplicación de los resultados obtenidos en el análisis de un caso de estudio en sitios arqueológicos de Calamuchita.Table of ContentsINTRODUCCIÓN; PARTE 1 - CONSIDERACIONES TEÓRICAS Y METODOLÓGICAS; CAPÍTULO 1 ANTECEDENTES Y PLANTEAMIENTO DEL PROBLEMA; CAPÍTULO 2 MARCO TEÓRICO METODOLÓGICO; CAPÍTULO 3 EL CUARZO; CAPÍTULO 4 LA TALLA DEL CUARZO, UNA APROXIMACIÓN EXPERIMENTAL; CAPÍTULO 5 MORFOLOGÍA MICROSCOPICA; PARTE 2 RESULTADOS; CAPÍTULO 6 RESULTADOS DEL ESTUDIO EXPERIMENTAL DE TALLA; CAPÍTULO 7 ANÁLISIS NO TIPOLÓGICO; CAPÍTULO 8 RESULTADOS DEL ESTUDIO EXPERIMENTAL DE USO DE ARTEFACTOS DE CUARZO; PARTE 3 CASO DE APLICACIÓN EL SITIO CENTRAL NUCLEAR 2; CAPÍTULO 9 SITIO CENTRAL NÚCLEAR 2 (CN2); CAPÍTULO 10 CENTRAL NUCLEAR 2 ANÁLISIS MANA Y NO TIPOLÓGICO; CAPÍTULO 11 CENTRAL NUCLEAR 2 ANÁLISIS FUNCIONAL; CAPÍTULO 12 TECNOLOGÍA DE CAZADORES-RECOLECTORES EN EL VALLE DECALAMUCHITA (Discusión); REFERENCIAS BIBLIOGRÁFICAS

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Book Synopsis‘Rethinking the Concept of ‘Healing Settlements’: Water, Cults, Constructions and Contexts in the Ancient World’ brings together papers dealing with therapeutic aspects connected to thermomineral sites both in Italy and in the Roman Provinces, as well as cultic issues surrounding health and healing. The first part of the book consists of contributions that are focused on the numerous problems concerning the exploitation of curative springs and the settlement patterns at spa sites in terms of topography, infrastructure, architecture, cult, society and economy, emphasizing the particularities accompanying the use of beneficial sources and comparing them to that of common freshwaters. The papers in the second part of the volume concentrate on religious aspects connected to health, fertility and healing, focussing especially on sites located at particular natural surroundings such as caves and water sources. Together, the contributions in this book give us an idea of the amount and quality of research currently being undertaken in different parts of the Roman world (and complemented by one paper on the Greek world) on the topic of health and healing associated with cults and salutiferous waters.Trade Review'... this volume should be applauded for its attempt to begin seriously defining the religious aspects of Rome healing settlements—and thus initiating larger discussions in the fields of ancient religion and archaeology.'– Dylan Rogers (2020): Religious Studies Review, Volume 46, Number 2, 2020Table of ContentsPreface – by Christopher Smith; Part I Thermo-Mineral Waters: From Italy to the Roman Provinces; Methodological Aspects – by Maddalena Bassani, Ugo Fusco; Shrines and Healing Waters in Ancient Italy. Buildings, Cults, Deities – by Maddalena Bassani; The Thermo-Mineral Springs at Veii (RM) and its Territory: New Discoveries and Old Excavations – by Ugo Fusco; Cult and Healing Water in Roman Gaul – by Matteo Marcato; Places of Worship and Healing Water in Roman Germaniae and Raetia – by Cecilia Zanetti; Healing by Water: Therapy and Religion in the Roman Spas of the Iberian Peninsula – by Sérgio Carneiro and Silvia González Soutelo; Preliminary Considerations on Thermal Spas in the Eastern Roman Provinces: The Case of Asia Minor – by Emanuela Borgia; Roman Healing Settlements in Bulgaria: Past Scholarship and Future Perspectives – by Mariya Avramova; Before the Hammam: The Ancient Spas of Roman North Africa – by Jens Koehler; Part II Cult Places and Healing; Cult Places and Healing: Some Preliminary Remarks – by Marion Bolder-Boos and Annalisa Calapà; Sacred Caves and ‘Fertility Cults’. Some Considerations about Cave Sanctuaries in Etruria – by Annalisa Calapà; Hercules and Healing – by Marion Bolder-Boos; Lacus and Lucus: Lakes and Groves as Markers of Healing Cults in Central Italy – by Ingrid Edlund-Berry and Jean M. Turfa; Nomina Nuda Tenemus? The Epigraphical Records of Dedications in Two Healing Sanctuaries in Athens and in Oropos – by Maria Elena Gorrini; Results and Future Prospects – by Francesca Ghedini and Paola Zanovello

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Book SynopsisThe occupation of the territories on both sides of the Rhine was an enormous logistical challenge for the Roman military administration. In the last two decades of the first century BC, several territories were conquered or partially occupied by the Roman legions, establishing a large number of military camps around the Rhine and its important eastern tributaries. Most of these camps were occupied for short periods, depending on the march of the legions and the course of military events. In a location with good natural defences and communications with the Belgian hinterland, Neuss was one of the earliest points on the Rhine where the Roman military was positioned. The area was occupied—with some intervals—from 16 BC onwards by different legions as well as smaller units. This book provides an in-depth study of one of the most important archaeological artefacts for understanding the military supply along the German frontier: the amphorae. Deliveries arrived at the different military camps established in the intersection between Erf and Rhine from 16 BC until the Claudian principate. The study of this material is essential not only for understanding Neuss, but for further understanding of the whole Rhine and the logistics of the Roman army and its supply from very distant areas.Trade Review'…they briefly tackle a very important issue: the logistics of Roman territories on the Rhine and the contribution of Neuss material to the economic and social development of the northwestern provinces of the Roman empire.' -- Kostas Filis * American Journal of Archaeology *Table of Contents1. Preface; 2. Acknowledgements; 3. Introduction; 4. The amphora material already published; 5. A general assessment of the Neuss material; 6. Imports from the Iberian Peninsula; 7. Imports from the Gallic provinces; 8. Imports from Gallia Belgica and the Rhineland; 9. Eastern Mediterranean Imports; 10. Italian imports; 11. African Imports; 12. Appendix: Epigraphy ; 13. Neuss amphorae and their significance for the understanding of Roman imports on the Rhine ; 14. Future questions and contributions of the Neuss material for the understanding of the economic and social development of the north-western provinces of the Roman empire; 15. Bibliography

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Book Synopsis‘Cultural Interactions during the Zhou Period (c. 1000-350 BC): A study of networks from the Suizao corridor’ examines cultural interactions during the Zhou period of China (c. 1000- 350 BCE) between the Suizao corridor (near the present-day Yangtze River region) and its contemporaries within or outside the Zhou realm. It concentrates mainly, but not exclusively, on bronze ritual vessels from the Suizao corridor, and discusses the underlying social and political relations between the dominant cultures and the regional ones in this particular area (the Zeng state for example), which are central to understanding the ways in which the dominant cultures joined their disparate territories into a whole. Newly excavated archaeological evidence show that there were at least three periods when people in the corridor learned about the current traditions employed elsewhere, which are: 1) Yejiashan period (from the 11th to the 10th century BCE); 2) post-Ritual Reform period (from the mid-9th to the mid-7th century BCE); and 3) Marquis Yi’s period (from the mid- 6th to the mid-4th century BCE). In these periods, local people were involved in networks of enormous and constantly changing complexity, in which people, objects, practices, and ideas were mixed together through inter-regional contacts. The choices of local people in adopting foreign materials and ideas from either the dominant cultures or other places depended heavily on the subjective view of their social identity, which can be constructed, maintained, or transited to adapt to different social and political environments.Table of ContentsChapter One: Introduction; Chapter Two: Yejiashan Period; Chapter Three: Post-Ritual Reform Period; Chapter Four: Marquis Yi’s Period; Chapter Five: Conclusion; Bibliography

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Book SynopsisThe Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem, was built by the Byzantine emperor Constantine I to commemorate the Passion of Jesus Christ. Encased within its walls are the archaeological remains of a small piece of ancient Jerusalem ranging in date from the 8th century BC through the 16th century AD, at which time the Turkish Ottoman Empire ushered Jerusalem into the modern period. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre was the subject of extensive archaeological investigation between 1960 and 1981 during its restoration. With the development of non-destructive techniques of archaeological research, investigation within the church has continued, which led to the restoration and conservation of the shrine built over the Tomb of Jesus in 2017. The first part of this monograph focuses on the archaeological record of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, surveying past excavations as well as recent research carried out within the church over the past three decades. The archaeological survey provides historical context for the second part of the book—a collection of primary sources pertinent to the history of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The texts included here range in date from the 1st century AD to the mid-19th century and are presented in their original languages with English translation.Table of ContentsPREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS; INTRODUCTION; PART I - HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE; ARCHAEOLOGICAL PERIODIZATION OF PALESTINE: IRON AGE II–OTTOMAN PERIOD; THE HISTORY OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE: a structural, archaeological, and textual timeline; CHAPTER 1: A Brief History of Jerusalem from 30/33 AD to 1830; CHAPTER 2: The Church of the Holy Sepulchre: A History of Research; CHAPTER 3: Archaeological Investigation Inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and Its Vicinity; CHAPTER 4: The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in the Archaeological and Literary Annals of Jerusalem; PART II - HISTORICAL SOURCES FOR THE STUDY OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE; CHAPTER 5: Contextual Notes on the Historical Sources; CHAPTER 6: Selected Excerpts from the Historical Sources: Golgotha and the Tomb of Jesus to the Destruction of the Constantinian Basilica (30/33–1009 AD); CHAPTER 7: Selected Excerpts from the Historical Sources: The Reconstruction of the Church to Its Final Major Restoration in 1810 (1048–1830 AD) ; CHAPTER 8: Selected Excerpts from the Historical Sources: Legendary Accounts of the Founding of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre ; CATALOGUE OF THE HISTORICAL SOURCES; APPENDIX 1: Supplementary Historical Sources for the Study of Jerusalem and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; ADDITIONAL CONSULTED WORKS

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Book SynopsisHellenistic Alexandria: Celebrating 24 Centuries' presents the proceedings of a conference held at the Acropolis Museum in Athens, on December 13–15, 2017, and includes high-level dialogues and philosophical discussions between international experts on Hellenistic Alexandria. The goal was to celebrate the 24 centuries which have elapsed since its foundation and the beginning of the Library and the Museum of Alexandria. The conference was divided into two parts, to include in the first part archaeology, history, philosophy, literature, art, culture and legal issues and in the second part science, medicine, technology and environment. A total of 28 original and peer-reviewed articles point to the importance of the brilliantly-original ideas that emerged during the Hellenistic age and the curious modernity of the whole atmosphere of the time. The range of presented topics covers a variety of new data on the foundation of Alexandria to comparison between Ptolemaic Alexandria and Ptolemaic Greece through philosophy, culture and drama to the forgotten revolution of science, medicine and the prevailing climatological and geophysical conditions throughout the Hellenistic Period. The conference and its proceedings were co-sponsored by the Μarianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation, the Acropolis Museum, the Alexandria Center for Hellenistic Studies at Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Mariolopoulos-Kanaginis Foundation for the Environmental Sciences. The Publication also celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Alexandria Center for Hellenistic Studies, a joint collaboration between the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the Vardinoyannis Foundation and the University of Alexandria. Scholars from around the world follow the Center’s programme in various specialisations, ranging from historyliterature- art, to archaeology and architecture-philosophy, and science.Table of ContentsOpening of Hellenistic Alexandria Conference; Wednesday 13 December 2017; Address by Mrs Marianna V. Vardinoyannis; Address by the Honorable Dr Mostafa El Feki; Address by Professor Ashraf Farrag; Address by Professor Dimitrios Pandermalis; Why Hellenistic Alexandria?; Address by Professor Christos Zerefos; Address by His Beatitude Theodoros II; Address by H.E. Prokopios Pavlopoulos; Part 1: Archaeology, History, Philosophy, Literature, Art, Cultural Heritage and Legal Issues; New data concerning the foundation of Alexandria – by Jean-Yves Empereur; The navy of Ptolemaic Alexandria – by Emad Khalil; Twenty years of underwater archaeological and geophysical surveys in Alexandria by the Greek Mission (1998-2017) – by Harry E. Tzalas; Macedonian elements in Alexandria – by Angeliki Kottaridi; The early Greek presence in Alexandria – by M. Abd El–Maksoud, A. Abd El–Fattah and M. Seif El–Din; Italian archaeology in Alexandria – by Mohamed Kenawi and Giorgia Marchiori; ‘Crumbs from the Table’— archaeological remains of Hellenistic Alexandria – by Grzegorz Majcherek; Believing in afterlife in Hellenistic and Roman Alexandria. A study of some funerary paintings – by Anne-Marie Guimier-Sorbets; Graeco-Egyptian elements in Alexandrian architectural mouldings – by Mona Haggag; Alexandria in the ‘Corpus of Ptolemaic inscriptions’ – by Kyriakos Savvopoulos; From Macedonia to Ptolemaic Alexandria: the cult of Dionysos Pseudanor – by Emmanuel Voutiras; Hellenistic drama and Alexandrian culture – by Georgia Xanthaki-Karamanou; The Alexandrian cradle of philological science – by Theodore D. Papanghelis; Egyptian and Egyptiote literature as a bridge between two cultures – by Shaker Moussa; From Alexandria to Venice: Remembrances of Alexandria in the cultural treasures of Venice – by Chryssa Maltezou; The destruction of libraries in the course of history and the international law on the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflict – by Artemis Papathanassiou; Is the possession of the Parthenon Marbles lawful according to the contemporary English law? – by Christos Mylonopoulos; Part 2: Science, Medicine, Technology and Environment; A very brief introduction to Hellenistic Alexandrian technology – by T. P. Tassios; Royal catasterisms: Arsinoe II and Berenice II translated to the stars – by Dee Clayman; Antikythera Mechanism as evidence for Hellenistic technology excellence – by Xenophon Moussas; Gigantic and structurally sound: the lighthouse on the island of Pharos and the minarets of western Islam – by Paolo Vitti; Philon’s automatic servant. A reconstruction with a description of S. Economopoulos’ air-valve mechanism – by Manolis Korres; The Hellenistic mathematician Archimedes and his Renaissance admirer Kepler – by Eberhard Knobloch; Ancient Greek optical instruments and the Pharos of Alexandria: insights on its functions and technology – by Moussas, Vitti and Zerefos; Space – Time – Matter – Motion: John Philoponus: a prelude to Galileo, Descartes and Newton – by Emmanuel Floratos; Hellenistic medicine and the Library of Alexandria: its influence in the west and the east – by George P. Chrousos; Palaeoclimatic conditions during the Hellenistic period in the Eastern Mediterranean – by J. Luterbacher and E. Xoplaki; A tentative methodology of sea-level change based on fish tanks from Hellenistic Alexandria, vis-a-vis, the submerged el Hassan rock provide a new look for subsidence estimates – by N. Evelpidou, C. Repapis, H. Tzalas and C. Zerefos

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Book SynopsisThe Ironbridge Gorge is an iconic industrial landscape, presented as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution and so part of a national narrative of heroic Protestant individualism. However this is not the full story. In fact this industrial landscape was created by an entrepreneurial Catholic dynasty over 200 years before the Iron Bridge was built. This book tells that story for the first time. Acquiring land at the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the Brooke family invested in coal mining and iron production – and introduced a radical new method of steelmaking which transformed that industry. Drawing together years of painstaking archaeological and historical research, this book looks in detail at the landscape, buildings and industrial installations created by the Brooke dynasty between the Dissolution and the English Civil War. It also explores the broader contexts – religious, economic and political – which shaped their mind-set and their actions. It considers medieval influences on these later developments, and looks at how the Brookes’ Catholicism was reflected in the way they created a new industrial landscape. In so doing it questions traditional narratives of English industrialisation, and calls for a more sophisticated understanding of this period by historical archaeologists.Table of ContentsIntroduction; Lines of Enquiry; Before the Revolution; Society and Religion; Visions of Landscape; Expressions in Architecture; Industry and Conformity; Innovation and Resistance; Industrialisation and Identity; Conclusion ; Bibliography

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