Cities represent civilization and human achievement: they are bubbling microcosms of virtues and vices, vanguards of technology and creative pursuits, incubators of traditions and melting pots of dive
The mini version of Lonely Planet's captivating Cities Book.Cities represent civilization and human achievement: they are bubbling microcosms of virtues and vices, vanguards of technology and creative
Just a century ago, scholars believed that civilization in the Indus Valley began three thousand years ago during the Vedic Age. But in the autumn of 1924, John Marshall made an announcement that ro
Catalog Copy: Blending high adventure with history, this chronicle of 100 astonishing discoveries from the Dead Sea Scrolls to the fabulous "Lost City of the Monkey God" tells incredible stories of how explorers and archaeologists have uncovered the clues that illuminate our past.Archaeology is the key that unlocks our deepest history. Ruined cities, golden treasures, cryptic inscriptions, and ornate tombs have been found across the world, and yet these artifacts of ages past often raised more questions than answers. But with the emergence of archaeology as a scientific discipline in the 19th century, everything changed.Illustrated with dazzling photographs, this enlightening narrative tells the story of human civilization through 100 key expeditions, spanning six continents and more than three million years of history. Each account relies on firsthand reports from explorers, antiquarians, and scientists as they crack secret codes, evade looters and political suppression, fall in love,
? The twenty-first century finds civilization heavily based in cities that have grown into large metropolitan areas. Many of these focal points of human activity face problems of economic inefficiency
By the time Spanish conquistadors arrived in Mexico in the sixteenth century, Maya cities had long since fallen into a state of decay and abandonment. Europeans were impressed by the painted books of
In Future Cities: All that Matters Camilla Ween outlines the challenges of meeting the anticipated growth of world cities over the next few decades. Never in the history of civilization has the need t
Presents a discussion on lost ancient civilizations which may have existed in Europe, the Americas, and Asia several thousand years before recorded history.
In this new archaeological study, Arthur Demarest brings the lost pre-Columbian civilization of the Maya to life. In applying a holistic perspective to the most recent evidence from archaeology, paleoecology, and epigraphy, this theoretical interpretation emphasises both the brilliant rain forest adaptations of the ancient Maya and the Native American spirituality that permeated all aspects of their daily life. Demarest draws on his own discoveries and the findings of colleagues to reconstruct the complex lifeways and volatile political history of the Classic Maya states of the first to eighth centuries. He provides a new explanation of the long-standing mystery of the ninth-century abandonment of most of the great rain forest cities. Finally, he draws lessons from the history of the Classic Maya cities for contemporary society and for the ongoing struggles and resurgence of the modern Maya peoples, who are now re-emerging from six centuries of oppression.
The story of the world's greatest civilization spans 4,000 years of history that has shaped the world. It is full of spectacular cities and epic stories—an evolving society rich in inventors, heroes,
This book explores aspects of the ancient civilization in West Asia, which has had a great impact on modern human society—agriculture, metallurgy, cities, writing, regional states, and monotheism, all
Most archaeologists and historians of the ancient Near East have focused on the internal transformations that led to the emergence of early cities and states. In The Uruk World System, Guillermo Algaz
The Tiwanaku state was the political and cultural center of ancient Andean civilization for almost 700 years. Identity and Power is the result of ten years of research that has revealed significant ne
In a modern world often dominated by big cities, big concrete, and little computer screens, Best Tent Camping: Texas by Wendal Withrow is not only a guidebook but also an escape manual for all nature
This book provides a survey of the architecture and urbanism of Provence during the Roman era. Provence, or 'Gallia Narbonensis' as the Romans called it, was one of the earliest Roman colonies in Western Europe. In this book, James C. Anderson, jr. examines the layout and planning of towns in the region, both those founded by the Romans and those redeveloped from native settlements. He provides an in-depth study of the chronology, dating and remains of every type of Roman building for which there is evidence in Provence. The stamp of Roman civilization is apparent today in such cities as Orange, Nimes and Arles, where spectacular remains of bridges, theaters, fora and temples attest to the sophisticated civilization that existed in this area during the imperial period and late antiquity. This book focuses on the remains of buildings that can still be seen, exploring decorative elements and their influence from Rome and local traditions, as well as their functions within the urban envir
The Maya built one of the great ancient civilizations in the New World, between AD 250 and 900. Famed for over 150 years for its cities buried deep in the Central American jungle, the origins of Maya culture have, nevertheless, remained obscure until quite recently. Over the past two decades, the Preclassic origins of complex society in the Maya area have been established by a series of innovative research projects. Among the best known of these is the study of Cuello, the earliest-known ancient Maya settlement. Excavations at Cuello over several seasons from 1975 to 1987 have yielded an unmatched picture of a pioneer tropical forest community. In this volume the origins of Maya civilization 1500 years ago are documented with detailed evidence on the environment, economy, buildings, crafts, ritual practices, burials and artistic imagery.
For lovers of music and poetry the legendary figure of Orpheus probably suggests a romantic ideal. But for the Renaissance he is essentially a political figure. Mythographers interpreted the Orpheus story as an allegory of the birth of civilization because they recognized in the arts in which Orpheus excelled an instrument of social control so powerful that with it you could, as one writer put it, 'winne Cities and whole Countries'. Dealing with plays, poems, songs and the iconography of musical instruments, Robin Headlam Wells re-examines the myth, central to the Orpheus story, of the transforming power of music and poetry. Elizabethan Mythologies, first published in 1994, contains numerous illustrations from the period and will be of interest to scholars and students of Renaissance poetry, drama and music, and of the history of ideas.
