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REVIEW BY SG
This second Oxbow Classics facsimile explores the history of domestication and the role of agriculture in the social economy, based on what was current evidence when it was first published in 1994, before presenting a comprehensive catalogue of the domesticated plants and animals found in ancient Egypt (species present, genetics, origins, distribution, production and uses, and attestations from find-sites, artistic depictions, and linguistic evidence). The volume covers grains (wheat, barley, sorghum), fibre and oil plants (flax, linseed), fruits, vegetables, cattle, working and household animals, domestic fowl, and the honey bee.
In an ideal world, the introductory chapters, at least, would have been rewritten to benefit from the extensive scholarship carried out over the intervening 30 years. However, this remains a groundbreaking work and essential reading for anyone interested in the agricultural history of ancient Egypt.
Domestic Plants and Animals: The Egyptian Origins
Douglas J Brewer, Donald B Redford, and Susan Redford
OXBOW CLASSICS IN EGYPTOLOGY, 2024
ISBN 979-8-8885-7079-1
Paperback, £34.99
