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Archaeology & Ancient History

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In September 2022 Oxbow's bookshop and distribution buisness merged with Pen & Sword Books, a family run independent publisher of history books. The  book distribution aspect of our business will continue to bring you some of the best books in the field of archaeology and related disciplines as Casemate UK. The Oxbow Books publishing imprint remains as a separate entity, still sold and distributed exclusively by us.

Burial and social change in first millennium BC Italy Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 336
ISBN: 9781785701849
Pub Date: 30 Nov 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Description:
In the first millennium BC, communities in Italy underwent crucial transformations which scholars have often subsumed under the heading of ‘state formation’, namely increased social stratification, the centralisation of political power and, in some cases, urbanisation. Most research has tended to approach the phenomenon of state formation and social change in relation to specific territorial dynamics of growth and expansion, changing modes of exploitation of food and other resources over time, and the adoption of selected socio-ritual practices by the ruling élites in order to construct and negotiate authority. In contrast, comparatively little attention has been paid to the question of how these key developments resonated across the broader social transect, and how social groups other than ruling élites both promoted these changes and experienced their effects.
RRP: £40.00
Iconic Costumes Cover Iconic Costumes Cover
Format: 
Pages: 216
ISBN: 9781785702150
Pub Date: 30 Nov 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Pages: 216
ISBN: 9781789255478
Pub Date: 15 Nov 2020
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Description:
This richly illustrated book presents a selection of the rich and varied iconographic material from the Scandinavian Late Iron Age (AD 400-1050) depicting clothed human figures, from an archaeological textile and clothing perspective. The source material consists of five object categories: gold foils, gold bracteates, helmet plaques, jewellery, and textile tapestries and comprises over 1000 different images of male and female costumes which are then systematically examined in conjunction with our present knowledge of archaeological textiles.In particular, the study explores the question of whether the selected images complement the archaeological clothing sources, through a new analytical tool which enables us to compare and contrast the object categories in regard to material, function, chronology, context and interpretation.
Behaviour Behind Bones Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 350
ISBN: 9781785705717
Pub Date: 15 Nov 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Illustrations: 265 b/w figs
Description:
This book is the first in a series of volumes which form the published proceedings of the 9th meeting of the International Council of Archaeozoology (ICAZ), held in Durham in 2002. The 35 papers present a series of case studies from around the world. They stretch beyond the standard zooarchaeological topics of economy and ecology, and consider how zooarchaeological research can contribute to our understanding of human behaviour and social systems.
Colonisation, Migration, and Marginal Areas Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 128
ISBN: 9781785705151
Pub Date: 15 Nov 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Series: Proceedings of the 9th ICAZ Conference
Description:
Human migration tends to involve more than the odd suitcase or two - we often carry other organisms on our travels, some are deliberately transported, others move by accident. This volume of 12 papers offers a zooarchaeological approach to questions surrounding the nature and extent of human colonisation and migration, and the adaptation of humans to new and sometimes extreme or challenging environments. The volume is divided into two parts: Part 1 takes up the theme of Human and Animal Migration and Colonisation.
Forces of Transformation Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 236
ISBN: 9781842175033
Pub Date: 15 Nov 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Series: BANEA monograph Series
Illustrations: 149 illus
Description:
The volume is the first in nearly a decade to focus a wide range of scholarship on one of the most compelling periods in the antiquity of the Mediterranean and Near East. It presents new interpretive approaches to the problems of the Bronze Age to Iron Age transformation, as well as re-assessments of a wide range of high profile sites and evidence ranging from the Ugaritic archives, Hazor, the Medinet Habu reliefs, Tiryns and Troy. Implications for a changing climate are also explored in the volume.
Quality Management in Archaeology Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 168
ISBN: 9781842172759
Pub Date: 15 Nov 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Description:
Quality Management in Archaeology deals with the effects of the profound changes that have had an impact on the discipline of archaeology all over the world. In North America, in Europe and increasingly in other parts of the world, new legislation and international treaties have changed its position in society. What was once a university based research activity by a limited number of academics has become a socially relevant field with many practitioners that are mostly employed in some branch of archaeological resource management.
Socialising Complexity Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 248
ISBN: 9781842172940
Pub Date: 15 Nov 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Illustrations: b/w illus
Description:
Socialising Complexity introduces the concept of complexity as a tool, rather than a category, for understanding social formations. This new take on complexity moves beyond the traditional concern with what constitutes a complex society and focuses on the complexity inherent in various social forms through the structuring principles created within each society. The aims and themes of the book can thus be summarised as follows: to introduce the idea of complexity as a tool, which is pertinent to the understanding of all types of society, rather than an exclusionary type of society in its own right; to examine concepts that can enhance our interpretation of societal complexity, such as heterarchy, materialisation and contextualisation.
The Cities of Pamphylia Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 288
ISBN: 9781842173343
Pub Date: 15 Nov 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Illustrations: 41 b/w illus
Description:
Pamphylia, in modern Turkey, was a Greek country from the early Iron Age until the Middle Ages. In that land there were nine cities which can be described more or less as Greek, and this book is an investigation of their history. This was a land at the margins of other great empires - Hellenistic, Roman, Arab and Byzantine - and is still off the beaten track, though Aspendos, Perge and Phaselis are all visited for their archaeology.
The Social Context of Technological Change Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 284
ISBN: 9781842170502
Pub Date: 15 Nov 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Illustrations: b/w illus, 4 colour pls
Description:
The technological capabilities of the ancient world have long fascinated scholars and the general public alike, though scholarly debate has often seen material culture not as the development of technology, but as a tool for defining chronology and delineating the level of interactions of neighbouring societies. These fourteen papers, arising from a conference held in Oxford in September 2000, take the approach that technology plays a vital role in past socio-economic systems. They cover the Near East and associated areas, including Greece, Crete, Cyprus, Anatolia, the Levant, Mesopotamia and Egypt from the end of the Middle Bronze Age to the Late Bronze Age (1650-1150 BC), a period when many technological innovations appear for the first time.
An Archaeology of Prehistoric Bodies and Embodied Identities in the Eastern Mediterranean Cover
Format: Hardback
Pages: 248
ISBN: 9781785702914
Pub Date: 31 Oct 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Illustrations: b/w
Description:
In the long tradition of the archaeology of the eastern Mediterranean bodies have held a prominent role in the form of figurines, frescos, or skeletal remains, and have even been responsible for sparking captivating portrayals of the Mother-Goddess cult, the elegant women of Minoan Crete or the deeds of heroic men. Growing literature on the archaeology and anthropology of the body has raised awareness about the dynamic and multifaceted role of the body in experiencing the world and in the construction, performance and negotiation of social identity. In these 28 thematically arranged papers, specialists in the archaeology of the eastern Mediterranean confront the perceived invisibility of past bodies and ask new research questions.
RRP: £48.00
Amphibians and Reptiles of Land Between the Lakes Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 154
ISBN: 9780813167671
Pub Date: 21 Oct 2016
Illustrations: 1 map, 92 color photos, 5 tables, 6 b&w photos
Description:
Known for its natural beauty, Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area is the largest inland peninsula in the United States. Consisting of 170,000 acres of forested and protected public land between Kentucky Lake (Tennessee River) and Lake Barkley (Cumberland River), this scenic sanctuary is visited by more than 1.4 million nature lovers annually and encompasses many diverse habitats, each supporting a particular community of plants and animals.
Viking Age War Fleets Cover
Format: Hardback
Pages: 164
ISBN: 9788785180728
Pub Date: 20 Oct 2016
Series: Maritime Culture of the North
Illustrations: 80
Description:
The military operations of Scandinavian societies in the Viking Age depended on their ships. Different types of ships were used in order to transport troops and war supplies. Some ships were designed to conduct the speedy transport of large numbers of troops, while others were specialised cargo vessels used in military operations as carriers of supplies and sometimes troops as well.
Ancient Lives Cover Ancient Lives Cover
Format: 
Pages: 382
ISBN: 9789088903823
Pub Date: 15 Oct 2016
Imprint: Sidestone Press
Illustrations: 50bw/86fc
Pages: 382
ISBN: 9789088903755
Pub Date: 15 Oct 2016
Imprint: Sidestone Press
Illustrations: 50bw/86fc
Description:
Ancient Lives provides new perspectives on object, people and place in early Scotland and beyond. The 19 papers cover topics ranging from the Neolithic to the Medieval period, and from modern museum practice to ancient craft skills. The material culture of ancient lives is centre stage – how it was created and used, how it was rediscovered and thought about, and how it is displayed.
New Frontier: The Origins And Development Of West London Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 119
ISBN: 9780904220803
Pub Date: 15 Oct 2016
Series: Crossrail Archaeology
Illustrations: 97 illustrations
Description:
Oxford Street, Paddington Station, Soho; these are some of the most iconic landmarks of the capital and famous throughout the world, but the telling of their history is frequently an aside to the story of the City - the birthplace of the Capital with its Roman origins,Norman citadel, medieval buildings and financial dominance. But what lies beneath the busy streets and pavements of the West End? Why are there so many residential squares in this part of London?
Portable Antiquities, Palimpsests, and Persistent Places Cover Portable Antiquities, Palimpsests, and Persistent Places Cover
Format: 
Pages: 332
ISBN: 9789088903830
Pub Date: 15 Oct 2016
Imprint: Sidestone Press
Illustrations: 142fc/40bw
Pages: 332
ISBN: 9789088903694
Pub Date: 31 Oct 2016
Imprint: Sidestone Press
Illustrations: 142fc/40bw
Description:
Every year thousands of archaeological objects and artefact scatters are discovered by the public, most of them by metal-detector users, but also by people whilst out walking, gardening, or going about their daily work. Once recorded, these finds hold enormous potential in helping us understand the past. In England and Wales these finds are reported to the Portable Antiquities Scheme (PAS), and since 2003 over one million finds have been recorded.
The Early Roman Empire in the West Cover
Format: Paperback
Pages: 256
ISBN: 9781842170694
Pub Date: 15 Oct 2016
Imprint: Oxbow Books
Illustrations: b/w figs
Description:
Digital reprint of this important collection of papers which form the companion to ' Early Roman Empire in the East' (Oxbow 1997) . Fourteen contributions examine the interaction of Roman and native peoples in the formative years of the Roman provinces in Italy, Gaul, Spain and Portugal, Germany and Britain. Contents: Introduction ( Thomas Blagg and Martin Millett ); The creation of provincial landscape: the Roman impact on Cisalpine Gaul ( Nicholas Purcell ); Romanization: a point of view ( Richard Reece ); Romanization: historical issues and archaeological interpretation ( Martin Millett ); The romanization of Belgic Gaul ( Colin Haselgrove ); Lower Germany: proto-urban settlement developments and the integration of native society ( J.