PAUL BAHN is a leading archaeological writer, translator, and
broadcaster. He is a contributing editor of Archaeology magazine,
and he has written extensively on prehistoric art. He has authored
numerous books, most recently Images of the Ice Age.
BRIAN FAGAN is a British-born archaeologist and professor of
Anthropology at the University of California, Santa Barbara. He is
the author of numerous books on archaeology and ancient climate
change. His latest release is The Intimate Bond: How Animals Shaped
Human History.
BOOKLIST, STARRED REVIEW
While we are not able to predict with entire clarity where we are
going, archaeology allows us to take a ound if not entirely
dispassionate look at where we’ve been. It is hard to imagine a
more engrossing or horough overview of human history than this
volume. Spanning from prehominid beginnings in Africa to he
Battle of the Little Bighorn in 1876, Bahn's copiously
illustrated, involving, and informative guide iscusses how
what we leave behind tells us about how we lived and even how
we lived, thought, and orshipped. This reference title's entries
are generally two pages in length, with between two-to-six
clear lack-and-white photographs. A description of the
site under consideration is given along with what cane deduced
from the remains. Photos are analyzed in captions, enhancing the
text. Written by experts in he field, most with
university affiliations, the entries are consistent and involving.
A final section, “How rchaeology Works,” details changes in
methods over time in the areas of surveying, excavation,
dating, nd scientific analysis, such as in the use of DNA and site
analysis to identify the body of King Richard III f England.
The volume concludes with a glossary, a list of contributors,
and a detailed, accurate index. An excellent resource for
high-school and college students with considerable appeal for the
general reader.
LIBRARY JOURNAL
Organized by time period, this book examines major archaeological
sites all over the world, from four million years ago to present
day. Bahn (Images of the Ice Age) has pulled together a group of
top scholars to create a comprehensive look at the science of
archaeology. The volume discusses the shortage of places to store
excavated materials and the delicate balance between tourism vs.
preservation, along with the effects of terrorism on cultural
heritage materials. Fascinating and little-considered facts are
included in “Focal Points” sections, detailing information on a
skull that indicated blunt force trauma believed to be the
“earliest known example of lethal interpersonal violence.” At the
end of almost all of the entries are “Key Events” in time line
form.
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