Archaeology of Mediterranean prehistory / edited by Emma Blake and A. Bernard Knapp.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

This book offers a comprehensive introduction to the archaeology of Mediterranean prehistory and an essential reference to the most recent research and fieldwork.

Only book available to offer general coverage of Mediterranean prehistory
Written by 14 of the leading archaeologists in the field
Spans the Neolithic through the Iron Age, and draws from all the major regions of the Mediterranean's coast and islands
Presents the central debates in Mediterranean prehistory---trade and interaction, rural economies, ritual, social structure, gender, monumentality, insularity, archaeometallurgy and the metals trade, stone technologies, settlement, and maritime traffic---as well as contemporary legacies of the region's prehistoric past
Structure of text is pedagogically driven
Engages diverse theoretical approaches so students will see the benefits of multivocality

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

This edited volume of invited papers--12 of them by 16 authors--is densely technical. Many of the concepts involved, such as that of the Mediterranean basin itself, are considered by each of the authors. More emphasis is placed on supposed social, political, and economic matters than on the physical remains of goods or sites. Interpretation is the order of the day. However, the authors are not unanimous in their conclusions, even those involving major theoretical orientations. Each chapter has an individual bibliography, but there is none for the volume as a whole. The index lists only a few of those writers cited, usually when referring to a particular position. The maps and diagrams are clear, but the halftone illustrations are dull and muddy. Clearly, this work is for those already involved in the subject. It is substantially beyond general readers. ^BSumming Up: Optional. Researchers, archaeologists, and graduate students. R. F. G. Spier emeritus, University of Missouri--Columbia