Review by Bryony Coles The blurb on the back of this book gives an uncommonly accurate description of its contents: ‘a popular science book that tells the story of one of the most important, but least known major archaeological sites in Europe’. Before turning to this story, though, I should…
REVIEW BY DUNCAN W WRIGHT In An Archaeological History of Hermitages, Simon Roffey directly addresses a hitherto neglected area of scholarship by providing a wide-ranging survey of the material evidence for hermitages and eremitic practice. His work is not restricted to Britain and Ireland, nor indeed Christian practice, but looks…
REVIEW BY JENNIFER FOSTER This most useful, extensive analysis concerns Iron Age inhumed bones in eastern England. The burial types start in the late Bronze Age, with most people buried in settlements: ‘normal’ pit/ditch, crouched, and north–south orientated; disarticulated bones; and partially articulated remains. We have no idea why some…
REVIEW BY JOE FLATMAN I begin with an admission of bias: I have known Raksha Dave for many years, and I was always confident that she would become a major force in archaeology. Her innate abilities both as an archaeologist and as a communicator have long been apparent, and Lessons…
Review by Diana Bentley Nearly two and a half millennia after it was written, Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War not only remains vibrantly alive and regularly referred to in discussions of modern conflict and politics, but is a rich subject of scholarly study and debate. Although left unfinished, Thucydides’…
Review by Nigel Fletcher-Jones This volume brings together eight historians of Africa under the editorship of John Parker (formerly at SOAS, University of London) to discuss the origins and structure of kingdoms through time and across the continent – from ancient Egypt and Nubia (the earliest known African kingdoms) to…
Review by Andrew Robinson The Indus civilisation – which flourished c.2500-1900 BC – was about twice the size of its equivalent in Egypt or neighbouring Mesopotamia. In its own way, it was as extraordinary as those civilisations, with its technically sophisticated cities such as Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, utopian absence of…
REVIEW BY ROGER FORSHAW The 21st annual Current Research in Egyptology (CRE) conference was held online by the Department of Mediterranean Studies of the University of the Aegean (Rhodes, Greece) in May 2021, coinciding with the 20th anniversary of the formal establishment of Egyptology in Greece. The symposium hosted more…
REVIEW BY SG Ramesses II is known as ‘the Great’, yet there are far fewer volumes dedicated to his reign than to earlier New Kingdom kings, such as Akhenaten and, of course, Tutankhamun. So this is a timely publication – ‘a readable, up-to-date survey of Ramesses II’, with particular emphasis…
REVIEW BY JPP This relatively slim volume (with only 109 pages) is full of insightful analysis, tracing the development of architecture throughout the entire span of ancient Egyptian civilisation, from the Predynastic Period to the Graeco-Roman era. The author has selected 15 examples of buildings to illustrate major changesin architectural…
REVIEW BY CATHIE BRYAN Harvard-based Egyptologist Peter Der Manuelian examines the life, career, and legacy of George Reisner (1867-1942), and considers his place in Egyptological and archaeological history. He argues that Reisner’s contribution ‘cannot be overstated’, and is not sufficiently acknowledged in discussions of the ‘founding figures’ of archaeology. This…
REVIEW BY ROGER FORSHAW This brief book by W Benson Harer discusses the controversial question of what caused the death of Tutankhamun, with the author strongly supporting the view that the king was killed by a hippopotamus. Within the publication is a chapter by Peter Sheldrick, a physician who has…
REVIEW BY BOB BRIER With all the Tutankhamun books published for the 100th anniversary of the discovery of the tomb, it is reasonable to wonder if there is really anything new to say. The Earl and the Pharaoh answers with a resounding ‘Yes’. The Countess had access to family archives…
Review by John Blair On the whole, classics are better left unrevised. New material unbalances a familiar format, and the less it feels like the same book the less one sees the point. But there are exceptions, of which this is certainly one. David Hinton’s memorable overview of English medieval…
REVIEW BY MARTIN HENIG The Hinterland of Hadrian’s Wall and Derbyshire is the last of 11 ‘fascicules’ produced under the auspices of the British Academy’s Corpus Signorum Imperii Romani, which aims to catalogue all the sculptures of Roman Britain. This project has taken almost half a century to complete, and…
REVIEW BY JOE FLATMAN Grounded is a book that will divide opinion. Rarely as a reviewer have I read something that I was so unsure about at the end. It is a highly personal travelogue through the archaeology of south and east England, primarily in East Anglia and, to a…
REVIEW BY SIMON TIMBERLAKE This is a landmark study concerning the origins of mining and metallurgy in Britain. Alan Williams has turned his PhD thesis into a scholarly publication that provides the reader with a compelling narrative based upon thorough fieldwork, a good understanding of geology, and an insightful study…
REVIEW BY CH The Ness of Brodgar in Orkney is home to a remarkable range of Neolithic buildings, uncovered over the last 20 years. We reviewed the excavation team’s guidebook in 2018 (CA 338) but since then the story has advanced dramatically, and an updated version reflecting recent developments (and…
REVIEW SHANE MCLEOD This handsomely produced book acts as a 20-year celebration of the earlier Vikings in Scotland: an archaeological study by James Graham-Campbell and Colleen Batey, and as a continuation of that still indispensable work. Both of those authors contribute to the present work, along with established experts such as…
Review by Matthew Symonds When we think of Alexander the Great, it is his exploits as an adult that spring to mind. He is the audacious leader who landed an army in Asia at the age of 21 in a bid to bring down the Achaemenid empire. Breathtaking victories and…
Review by Max Nelson Arthur presents a global history of beer inspired by his two-year stay with the Gamo people of Ethiopia. He begins with a brief introduction examining beer in terms of technology (as fermented malted cereal processed with various additives), health (as a nutritious food safer than water),…