David Brown Book Company

Late bronze age ritual and habitation on a Thames Eyot at Whitecross Farm, Wallingford; the archaeology of the Wallingford bypass, 1986-92.

Following the proposal of a bypass to the south and west of Wallingford, a small market town in southern England's Thames Valley, a series of archaeological investigations were carried out in the area between 1985-92, revealing Neolithic, Bronze Age, Romano- British, and Saxon settlements at three different sites. In this work, the evidence discovered by these investigations is presented and analyzed in their local, regional, and national contexts. Distributed in the US by the David Brown Book Co. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Late glacial long blade sites in the Kennet Valley; excavations and fieldwork at Avington VI, Wawcott XII and Crown Acres.

Working alone as an independent archaeologist, Froom has spent 40 years investigating the Palaeolithic and Mesolithic remains in his local haunts in southern England. Here he presents his findings and conclusions, which even before publication have been widely cited as major contributions to understanding the transition from the Late Glacial to the early Holocene in England, and to understanding comparable long-blade assemblages in continental Europe. There is no index. Distributed in the US by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Late Roman pottery at Amarna and related studies.

The society began excavations at Amarna, on the east bank of the Nile about halfway between Aswan and the coast, in 1988, but not until 1993-94 did archaeologists target the Roman settlement at the site, Kon el-Nana, and found what is almost certainly a Coptic monastery. The pottery reported here is presented as a single homogeneous corpus without chronological subdivisions, reflecting both the nature of the site and the fact that the investigation is far from over. A chapter is also included on coins. There is no index. Distributed in the US by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Lost Nubia; a centennial exhibit of photographs from the 1905-1907 Egyptian expedition of the University of Chicago.

This catalog contains 52 selected photographic images with commentary from an exhibit that chronicled endangered monuments in ancient Egyptian and Sudanese Nubia. The introduction traces the history of Nubia and this early-20th-century expedition. Images include a map, ancient temples and rock-cut graffiti, and expedition travels. Indexed by geographical name. Distributed by the David Brown Co. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Making place in the landscape; early and middle neolithic societies in two west Scanian valleys.

This volume reports on excavations carried out in advance of the construction of a new rail line (the West Coast Line), through a detailed discussion of the emergence and development of early and middle neolithic societies in the valleys of the Saxån- Välabäcken and Lödde Å-Kävlingeån in western Skåne, Sweden. Excavated sites treated in the analysis include settlements, graves, wetland deposits, and gathering places. There is a list of references, but no index. Distributed in the U.S. by The David Brown Book Co. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

The manuscripts of Iceland.

Responding to popular calls to see the early examples of Iceland's literary heritage, the Culture House in Reykjavík opened an exhibit of 15 manuscripts in the autumn of 2002. Here 17 essays written to accompany the exhibition discuss such topics as society and literature, writing, Árni Magnússen, the Nordic demand for medieval Icelandic manuscripts, the idea of the Old North in Britain and the US, the saga tradition and visual art, and the return of the manuscripts from Denmark and the US. The contributors are identified only by name, which is sufficient in Iceland where everyone pretty much knows who everyone else is. Distributed in the US by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Mapping markets for paintings in Europe, 1450-1750.

Historians, art historians, and economists examine markets for art, chiefly paintings, in late-Renaissance and Early Modern Europe. They cover material culture and paintings, rules and market practices, drawing connoisseurs into the market, and creative dealing. Among specific topics are works of art competing with other goods in 17th-century Dutch inventories, artists' responses to the emergence of painting markets in Spain about 1600, entrepreneurial craftsmen in late 16th-century Augsburg, and dealers promoting artists in 17th-century Naples. Distributed in the US by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Material culture in London in an age of transition; Tudor and Stuart period finds c 1450-c 1700 from excavations at riverside sites in Southwark.

The assemblage described here is most unusual because Tudor-period deposits are particularly vulnerable to destruction, so the everyday material culture of the era is perhaps less well known than that of any comparably celebrated historical period. The Southwark site was waterlogged however, and yielded items of dress, furnishings, security equipment, heating and lighting equipment, kitchen and serving equipment, writing and reading implements, leisure items, religious objects, and other everyday items. Over 1200 are illustrated and described. Distributed in the US by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Medievalism and the Gothic in Australian culture.

Scholars of history, literature, and related fields here contend that the Australian context in which medievalism and the Gothic are played out has the potential to bring the two scholarly fields together in new and distinctive ways. They first consider medieval and Gothic literature, then Gothic landscapes and medieval communities. Among specific topics are Arthurianism, children's books, architecture, and monasticism. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Mereruka and his family; part 1: The tomb of Meryteti. (CD-ROM included)

The tomb (or mastaba) of Meruruka is one of the most extensive funerary complexes of the Old Kingdom. This mastaba has three sections: A, B, and C; and this first volume (of four planned volumes) examines section C. It begins with information on the tomb owner and his family and dependents, the dates the tomb was built, and a thorough description of the architectural features, inscriptions and scenes on the walls, color conventions, and objects found. The rest of the volume contains 40 black & white plates, as well as detailed diagrams of the scenes and inscriptions on the walls. Includes a CD-ROM of the 40 photographic plates. Distributed by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Mesolithic studies at the beginning of the 21st century.

Fourteen European academics and independent scholars offer 14 papers contributing to the deconstruction of Mesolithic canons and presenting new ways of thinking, new approaches and new ideas to Mesolithic studies. The articles cover a variety of topics, including mobility and sedentism, seasonality, complexity, technology, ethnoarchaeology, gender and sexuality, social relations, death and burial, music, human agency, and emotion. The collection demonstrates the enthusiasm for Mesolithic studies in the current century and provides explicit theoretical discussion which has been generally lacking for this period of archaeological study. No subject index. Distributed in North America by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Metallurgical analysis of Chinese coins at the British Museum.

Characterized by a distinctive round shape with a square hole, copper alloy cash coins were the main official form of currency in China for more than 2,000 years. This volume reports the results of metallurgical analysis undertaken at the British Museum on a selection of these coins. It is illustrated with b&w photographs of the coins studied. Distributed in the U.S. by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Miss Layard excavates; a Palaeolithic site at Foxhall Road, Ipswich, 1903-1905.

White and Plunkett describe how aspiring archaeologist Nina Frances Layard discovered Lower Palaeolithic hand axes and the remains of extinct mammals in a working quarry close to her home in southeastern England; arranged permission, financing, and workers to conduct an excavation; and published her findings. The site is little known today, they say, not because of any failing in the excavation work, but because the lack of supporting professional and official support in the early 20th century allowed the artifacts to be scattered and the site to be developed later. Distributed in the US by The David Brown Book Co. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Multicultural Europe and cultural exchange in the Middle Ages and Renaissance.

US scholars of history, art history, and literature explore such cross-cultural exchanges as Venetians and Ottomans in early modern Galata, multiculturalism in Italian Gothic architecture, whiteness and cosmetics in early imperial Britain, and Marat's satirical poetry in exile. Many of the nine essays were presented to a February 2003 conference in Tempe, Arizona. Distributed in the US by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Nicola & Giovanni Pisano; the pulpits: Pious devotion — pious diversion.

Students and scholars of Italian art will welcome this detailed volume on the history of the marble pulpits carved by the Pisano father and son in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. Moskowitz (art history, State U. of New York, Stony Brook) describes the use of pulpits in this era, the creation of the Pisano pulpits, their iconography, and their influence. The volume, which is oversized (9x11.25 inches), is particularly notable for the 152 b&w and 9 color full-page plates of photos by David Finn of all the figures and views of the four pulpits described. In addition, a wealth of plates of comparative material illustrate Moskowitz's text. Distributed by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Nonsuch Palace; the material culture of a noble restoration household.

Many 17th-century luxury and more common goods were excavated from the site of this palace, which was demolished in 1688. This volume presents a detailed report and analysis of the finds, with sections organized by materials, including stoneware, tin-glazed ware, earthenware, green glass bottles, wine-bottle seals, clay pipes, lead objects, pewter vessels, iron objects, and spurs. For each section the analysis is followed by a catalogue of the objects. Biddle (emeritus, archaeology, Oxford U., UK) took part in the excavations at Nonsuch in 1959. Distributed in the U.S. by The David Brown Book Co. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Northern Eurasia in medieval cartography; inventory, text, translation, and commentary.

Known then as Scythia and the island of the northern ocean, the territory is now called Scandinavia, Russia, eastern Europe, and countries east of the Caspian Sea. Chekin (history and science and technology, Russian Academy of Sciences) analyzes 198 western European and Byzantine maps that date between the eighth and the thirteenth centuries and contain information about the north and northeast of the known world. Most are mappae mundi, world maps, but some are regional maps derived from that dominant cartographic genre. Included are 170 pages of color and monochrome reproductions. Translated from the 1999 Russian edition. Distributed in the US by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

Old London Bridge; lost and found.

This history reaches back all the way to the prehistoric Thames to recount the vicissitudes of one of London's most famous landmarks. The many illustrations include drawings of the Roman bridge that stood at the same site, maps of early London, and photographs of excavations and modifications of London Bridge. A glossary and a list of suggested further reading supplement the text. Distributed in North America by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

The origins of the civilization of Angkor; v.1: The excavation of Ban Lum Khao.

The first in a series on the origins of the civilization of Angkor, this volume reports on the 1995-96 excavation of the prehistoric settlement of Ban Lum Khao in Northeast Thailand. The book begins with a discussion of the excavation method, the stratigraphic sequence, and chronology, and then examines burials from three mortuary phases during the Bronze Age. Subsequent chapters look at the health and mortality of the prehistoric people of Ban Lum Khao, fish and faunal remains, artifacts, person adornments, pottery vessels, and the social aspects of the cemetery. The text is augmented with numerous diagrams, maps, illustration, charts, photographs, as well as over 50 pages of color plates displaying the ceramic vessels. Distributed by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)

"Outrageous Waves"; global warming & coastal change in Britain through two thousand years.

For over 50 years, and through many positions and into retirement, British geographer Cracknell has been interested in climate-induced change in the island's coastline. Here for general readers, he synthesizes his own work and that of others on coastal change associated with global warming during the periods 300-600, 750-850, and 1200-1500 AD. He begins by reviewing the types of evidence and general features, then circumscribes Great Britain in 19 sections, focusing on the physical and human impact. Distributed in the US by the David Brown Book Company. (Annotation ©2007 Book News Inc. Portland, OR)