Ancient History Books

ANCIENT HEALING SECRETS: Practical Herbal Remedies From Around The World That Work Today
by Dian Dincin Buchman, Ph.D. B&W decorations. Condition: NEW 1998 Crescent hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), second pritning. Content: Learn how to heal yourself the natural way with this easy one volume A-Z guide of ancient home remedies. The renowned medicine expert and author writes to us from a long lineage of Herbalists, starting with her Rumanian grandfather who gathered information from the gypsies. Many of the cures discussed sprout right in our own backyards, and all of them are followed by a brief history. Reviewer: "This is a good compilation of natural remedies collected from around the world. The book is organized by a list of common complaints (digestive disorders, women's complaints, simple wounds, for example) and then there is a list of various healing treatments in the tradition of various peoples, from the British Isles to the ancient Egyptians. So the book is interesting to read from a cultural standpoint (how do different cultures treat the same ailment) or from the standpoint of different herbal or massage remedies for various problems. Unusual herbal remedy book, in this regard, and fascinating reading. [NOTE: There is a newer publishing of this book but it is the same book with a slightly different title. Same information.] Questions welcome. [1 copy available]
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BEYOND THE EDGE OF THE SEA: Sailing with Jason and the Argonauts, Ulysses, the Vikings, and Other Explorers of the Ancient World
by Mauricio Obregon. B&W maps, wind and star charts illustrate. Condition: NEW 2001 Random House small hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), second printing. Content: Obregon takes his reader on a maritime adventure through time, imagining the great explorers and their journeys, from Jason and the Argonauts to early Polynesians to Odysseus and the Vikings. Sweeping in scope, this slim text touches on every aspect of ancient travel by water, offering brief lessons in astronomy, cartography, oceanography, and carpentry. Some of Obregon's attempts to draw connections between extremely diverse and distant cultures through their ocean-faring ways are quite strained, but this book offers several surprisingly provocative and plausible conclusions. Could the Polynesians have traveled to South America? Perhaps, Obregon argues, if they chose to follow extraordinary winds, rather than prevailing ones. The choppy narrative is bound to make some readers figuratively seasick, but many will want to hang on for the ride, as the fascinating history of the sea, its mythic and historical figures, and the boats that changed the world are brought into a fresh and interesting perspective. Dozens of illustrations provide helpful information for the nautically challenged. [Note: To me the question is not whether the Phoencians (or other ancient sailors) could have reached the new world - if the Atlantic was in a good mood, but whether they could have returned home.] Questions welcome. [1 copy available]
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BLACK SEA
by Neal Ascherson. B&W maps illlustrate. Condition: UNREAD, but not perfect, 2001 Hill & Wang Trade papaerback, 5th printing. Light edge wear - not crisp. Content: If Ascherson cannot pinpoint precisely where Xenophon's 10,000 soldiers were when, lost on the march home from Persia 2600 years ago, they saw the sea and thought they were home, there is little else he does not tell us in this exotic and seductive history of the Black Sea. From his tales of its peculiar composition?in the depths beneath its upper stream of living water, it is the world's largest dead sea?to those of the myriad of peoples who have inhabited its coasts throughout time, his stories seem more fabulous than the Arabian Nights. Ascherson tells of obscure tribes, familiar heroes, lost languages, current politics and ancient hostilities as poisonous as the depths of the Black Sea itself. Around the once "monstrously abundant" Black Sea, peoples who disliked each other lived together, at best uneasily, at worst at war: Goths, Romans, Germans, Greeks, Turks, Jews, Russians, Persians, Asians and others. "My sense of Black Sea life," concludes Ascherson, "a sad one, is that latent mistrust between different cultures is immortal... not a helpful model for the 'multi-ethnic society' of our hopes and dreams." In his exploration of the myths and realities surrounding this remarkable region, where ancient cultures collided and modern states - Russia, Turkey, Romania, Greece, and Caucasus - mingle, he discovers that the meanings of community, nationhood, and cultural independence are both fierce and disturbingly uncertain. Questions welcome. [1 copy available]
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THE BOOK OF ALCHEMY
by Francis Melville. Beautiful color illustrations. Condition: NEW 2002 Barron's hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), first printing. There is a light impression mark top back cover panel. Interior perfect. Content: Alchemy—the ancient science that aims to transform various substances into different and more noble elements—remains one of the most misunderstood of the great wisdom traditions. Often scorned as a deceptive pseudo-science practiced by the greedy in pursuit of gold, alchemy is gaining renewed recognition by many today as a legitimate way to understand certain workings of nature. It is also seen as a complex key to our understanding of humanity's relationship to the universe and a means of improving our health and well-being. The Book of Alchemy teaches its readers how to penetrate the obscure symbolic language of the alchemists . . . understand how alchemical transformation can initiate a profound change of consciousness, claimed by practitioners to bring eventual union with the Divine . . . practice traditional meditations and exercises . . . prepare herbal alchemical elixirs to benefit the body . . . and discover how the alchemists' search for purity can become a twenty-first-century model for spiritual development. Readers will also find helpful meditations, brilliant illustrations of alchemical emblems, and instructions for making beneficial alchemical potions from easy-to-obtain herbs. The author shows readers how to harness the powers claimed for alchemy to improve their physical, spiritual, and mental well-being. Approximately 130 full-color illustrations. Questions welcome. [1 copy available]
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ECHOES OF THE ANCIENT SKIES: The Astronomy of Lost Civilizations
by Dr. E. C. Krupp. Great B&W photos, drawings, and star charts illustrate. Condition: PLEASE READ / UNREAD, but not perfect, 1983 Harper, Row large soft cover, no printing given. Light edge wear with rubbing along front hinge - interior clean & tight. Content: All over the world, through countless centuries, people have looked skyward for inspiration and guidance in their lives and activities. For most of the history of humankind, going back to the Stone Age, the sky has served as a tool. The regularity of the motions of celestial objects enabled our ancestors to orient themselves in time and space, satisfying their need for human order. How vast this heavenly influence was, and how awesome the human achievements it engendered were, are illuminated in this extraordinary work of investigation and discovery. With hundreds of illustrations and photographs, Echoes of the Ancient Skies is a sweeping look at the world of archaeoastronomy from the prehistoric megaliths of Stonehenge, to the medicine wheels of North America, to the Aztec "Calendar Stone." The intriguing field of archaeoastronomy--the study of ancient peoples' observation of the skies and its role in their cultural evolution--seeks to explore the "universal evidence that people have used astronomy as the model for injecting order and predictability on their behavior and on life." Examining this universal behavior, Dr. E.C. Krupp takes the reader to sites throughout the world (most of which he has personally visited)--from Egypt, China, Babylonia, and Greece, to Turkey, Scotland, Wyoming, and Mexico. He interprets the significance of celestial observation and its relation to the earthly experiences of our ancestors, from practical applications of farming and the measurement of time to philosophical queries into our particular place within the universe. He covers such fascinating topics as how we see the seasons in the sun and stars, possible ancient and prehistoric observatories such as the megalithic Kintraw monument in Scotland, and sky gods and myths around the world and throughout history--from the Egyptian goddess Nut to the myth of Phaethon and the golden chariot of his father Helios. Krupp goes on to examine the ancient parallels between cosmic creation and our lives (as seen in the great pyramids of Egyptian pharaohs) and monuments of transcendental journey (such as the painted rock shrines of California). He shows us that the effects of celestial observation on our ancestors can also be seen in religious vigils--like shamans' transactions with the sky and their access to the sacred--as well as in calendars and clocks used throughout the centuries, mathematics, ancient temples, sources of world order, and the symbols we draw. [Still the best study, IMHO.] [1 copy available]
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EXPLORE YOUR DESTINY WITH RUNES
by Joanna Sandsmark. Beautiful, detailed color illustrations. Condition: NEW 2006 Godsfield (UK) large soft cover, first printing. Content: While you may not be interested in the "magical" qualities of Runes, this book gives a great history and detailed designs of the Runes. Runes have been used to forecast the future since Viking times. With this practical guide, modern rune casters can tap into this powerful oracle to bring about self-understanding and positive life changes. Everything beginners need to know is here, including how to make a set of rune stones, draw or cast the stones and lay them out, interpret the runes, and keep a rune journal. A detailed, illustrated reference section explains the meaning of the 24 ancient symbols and shows them at work in sample spreads and readings. Questions welcome. [1 copy available]
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FOREIGN BRIDES FROM ANTIQUITY (Doll Costumes)
by Frank and Elizabeth Haines. Color plates plus B&W illustrations and patterns. Condition: UNREAD 1990 Hobby House Press Trade Paperback, no printing given. Light shelfwear to cover edges. Content: Why in the world, you might ask, would a doll costuming book be listed in ancient history? The history and the costuming details are of historical interest and a nice source for history majors and writers/researchers. The "brides" covered are: Babylon, 1600 B.C.E.; Egypt, 1375 B.C.E.; Gaul, 600 B.C.E.; Rome, 500 B.C.E.; Germany, 500 B.C.E.; Greece, 451 B.C.E.; Venice, 950 C.E.; France, 1250 C.E.; Flanders, 1434 C. E.; Burgandy and Austria, 1477 C. E.; England, 1565; and France, 1720 C.E. Excellent! Questions welcome. [1 copy available]
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FROM BLACK LAND TO FIFTH SUN: The Science of Sacred Sites
by Brian Fagan. B&W drawings, maps, and photos illustrate. Condition: UNREAD 1998 Helix hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), first printing. DJ shows edge wear. Content: The unearthing of cave paintings, stone circles, burial mounds, charnel houses, pyramids and the like poses fundamental questions about the relationships between extinct cultures and their perceived worlds. Archaeologist Fagan (The Rape of the Nile) attempts, with the aid of techniques like Accelerator Mass Spectrometry and Computer Automated Design mapping, to bridge the gap between the tangible and intangible, between the material and the spiritual lives of ancient peoples. Advocating the emerging science of the "archaeology of the mind," he suggests that he and his kind are like "Ahabs pursuing our great white whale" since "our limitations of thought, of understandings, of imagination" will prevent us from ever fully reconstructing from the available evidence the worldviews of long-defunct cultures. Nevertheless, his pilgrimageAfrom Lascaux to Zimbabwe; Jericho to Stonehenge; Knossos to the Pyramids of Giza; Chillicothe, Ohio, to Teothihuacan, MexicoAtakes us on an often gripping first-person tour of the world's past, and his excitement in surveying these areas for himself is almost palpable. But the real focus here is on the scienceAfrom debunking conjectures about Stonehenge to reanimating the ?atalh?y?k Goddess cultAand its invaluable contribution to painstaking reconstructions of the time frames and available materials of various eras. While the detail can be a little numbing, the seeming accuracy is refreshing, given the controversy that surrounds many of the more famous sites. Questions welcome. [1 copy available]
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FROM THE LANDS OF THE SCYTHIANS: Ancient Treasures from the Museums of the U.S.S.R.. 3000 B.C. - 100 B.C.
by Metropolitan Museum of Art. . Beautilful color plates plus B&W photos and maps. Condition: UNREAD, but not perfect, 1976 Metropolitian Museum of Art large soft cover, museum book. Problems: rubbings alont hinges; edge wear bottom and top spine and edges. Small "tear" bottom front hinge. Foxing to bottom edges. Interior clean & tight. Content: Reviewer: "This beautiful full-color museum catalogue chronicles the beautiful exhibit of Scythian and Sarmatian treasures that travelled to New York and to L.A. in 1975. The Scythians and Sarmatians were the original peoples who inspired the Greek legends of the centaurs and the Amazons -- the mounted Scythian warriors seeming to be one with their horses, and the female warriors of the Sarmatians stood out so much that the legend has discarded the men of the Sarmatian tribe. Both groups lived in the area bordered by the Dneipr and Ural Rivers to the east and west respectively, and by the Black Sea, Caucasus Mountains, and the Caspian Sea to the south. Minimal text information is presented: this is a picture-book, and a great one. Color photos are used to document the most valuable and well-preserved artifacts, and there is a short but complete description of every piece from the exhibition included. Also includes the famous text from the Greek historian Heroditus which describes the Scythians and neighboring peoples. A gorgeous book." Questions encouraged. [1 copy available]
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HEROES OF HISTORY: A Brief History of Civilization from Ancient Times to the Dawn of the Modern Age
by the great Will Durant. Condition: Very Good Simon & Schuster hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), first edition, first printing. Ex-library book will usual markings, but the interior is very clean & tight. Gently pre-read. Content: This posthumous collection of essays by a Pulitzer Prize winner targets those who don't know much about history. Durant, who died in 1981 at the age of 96, is best known for the multivolume history of the world, The Story of Civilization, he wrote with his wife, Ariel. In these recently discovered essays, he again displays his talents for popularizing history, most notably a remarkable ability to summarize complicated thoughts and events in a few succinct words: this book of "heroes" covers figures ranging from Nero to Shakespeare and spans more than 2,000 years. After the first three essays, on Confucius, Buddha and Egypt's Ikhnaton, Durant turns his attention to Greece, Rome and the rise of the West. He devotes several chapters to Jesus and his followers over the centuries, asserting that the study of religion "sheds more light upon the nature and possibilities of man and government than the study of almost any other subject or institution open to human inquiry."
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HISTORY OF THE GOTHS
by Herwig Wolfram. Translated from the German by Thomas Dunlap. Decorated end pages - map of Goth presence. Condition: UNREAD 1988 Univ. of California Press hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), "new and completely revised from the second German edition." Light edge wear and a small "scraping" to DJ. Interior clean & tight. Content: Reviewer: "Wolfram takes on a difficult subject, the history of a people whose origins are crusted over with legends and generations of archaeological interpretations. Some of his conclusions have been challenged but Wolfram makes a solid case for many of his interpretations. His survey of Gothic history and culture is a landmark in Gothic research. The book is intended for academics and therefore includes numerous citations and end-notes and footnotes. If the reader can ignore all the note references, the narrative flows well enough. Wolfram's detailed analysis does dispell a few nationalistic myths, but he replaces them with a thorough retelling of Gothic history. Most reference works about ancient Germanic peoples tend to speak of the Goths in an offhand manner. But they left a lasting imprint on several parts of Europe and Asia, even if we can no longer feel their presence today. Wolfram does a good job of removing the Goths from legend and putting them back into history. Questions welcome. [1 copy available.]
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THE JOURNEY FROM EDEN: The Peopling of Our World
by .Brian M. Fagan. Four B&W photo sections plus B&W drawings and photos througout. DJ cover art by Giovanni Caselli. Condition: NEW 1990 Thames & Hudson hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), no printing given. Content: Let me say that IMHO Fagan is the most original archaeologist working today. Fagan begins this account of the emergence of "anatomically modern" humans with the genetic evidence for a common human ancestor, nicknamed "Eve," living in Africa approximately 200,000 years ago. He then explores the evidence for two theories of human dispersal. The "Noah's Ark" school finds a single origin in sub-Saharan Africa for Homo sapiens sapiens, who subsequently colonized the other continents, while the "Candelabra" school argues that Homo erectus evolved independently into Homo sapiens in Asia and possibly Europe. Some of this material appears in Michael E. Brown's The Search for Eve ( LJ 2/1/90), but Fagan's book is far more concise, authoritative, and articulate. Readers with some background in paleontology will find this book very rewarding. [1 copy available]
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KOURION: The Search For A Lost Roman City
by David Soren & Jamie James. B&W and color photos plus detailed B&W drawings illustrate. Condition: UNREAD, but not perfect, 1988 Anchor Trade Paperback, BMOC edition. Edge wear with smudges on top and fore edges. Interior clean & tight. Content: Kourion was an ancient city having Hellenistic, Roman, and Christian periods. This book details the digs at the ancient city which unearthed what is most likely the earliest Christian city. Questions welcome. [1 copy available]
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LIFE AND DEATH IN THE IRON AGE
by Jennifer Foster. Beautiful color photos of artifacts plus color maps and drawings with B&W charts. Condition: NEW 2002 Ashmolean Museum (UK) larage soft cover, no printing given. Content: This is an introduction for the general reader, looking at the archaeology of Europe in the last prehistoric period before the Roman conquest (from c800 BC to AD 43). The archaeological collection of the Ashmolean Museums are used to illustrate a series of themes about the lives and deaths of people at this time, their appearance, clothes and ornaments, their economy and trade, how they produced and consumed their food, and the warfare of the period as shown through weapons. The collection at the Ashmolean owes much to Sir John Evans. The excavations and objects from the important early Iron Age cemetery of Hallstatt, Austria, some of which were excavated by Sir John, are covered in some detail. The text is lavishly supplemented by colour illustrations, particularly of exhibits from the Ashmolean Department of Antiquities. Foster is an honorary fellow in the Department of Archaeology at the University of Reading. [1 copy available]
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LOST CIVILIZATIONS: Rediscovering Ancient Sites Through New Technology
by Austen Atkinson. Color photos of the archaeological sites. Excellent! Condition: NEW 2002 Watson-Guptil huge (3-pound coffee-table-size) hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), first printing. Content: A wealth of never-before-published scientific and satellite information that attempts to solve the tangled mysteries of our lost civilizations! The enduring legends of Plato's lost city of Atlantis and the sunken origins of humanity in Churchward's Mu civilization continue to obsess archaeologists, authors, and anyone else seeking answers to questions about the true nature of our ancestors, their civilizations, their achievements, and their culture. And thanks to amazing new technology, archaeologists and historians are closer to finding these answers than ever before. Ruins considered too sacred to touch by local inhabitants, or excavations eventually abandoned due to lack of equipment and financing, can now be studied with the help of satellite and land-based remote sensing. What's more, this state-of-the-art technology reveals more information about our ancient forefathers than ever before. Through the use of never-before-published radar and resistance maps from NASA, the Russian Space Agency, National Geographic, the European Space Agency, and other organizations, Lost Civilizations investigates 20 of the most intriguing lost cities in detail. Packed with cutting-edge scientific information, this reference displays the decorative splendor of magnificent sites like Angkor Wat in Cambodia and legendary cities like Machu Picchu, as well as exciting new discoveries like the City of the Mahram Bilqis in Yemen and the Ubar in Arabia. Each lost civilization is illustrated with modern maps and breathtaking color photography of the remains, and complemented by fascinating computer-generated reconstructions presenting the cities in their original splendor. Also included are reproductions of the amazing artifacts and artwork achaeologists have managed to unearth. The perfect book for lovers of ancient history, art, and culture, Lost Civilizations offers a mesmerizing, first-ever look at the mysterious life and people of our ancient world. The sites covered: Anasazi sites, Cancuen, Chichen Itza, Machu Picchu, Tiwanaku, Atlantis, Halicarnassues, Helike, Knossos, Pompei, Troy, Babylon, Mahram Bilqis, Nimrud, Persepolis, Ubar, Ur, Angkor Wat, Anuradhapura, Mohenjodaro. [1 copy available]
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THE MOLECULE HUNT: Archaeology and the Search for Ancient DNA
by Martin Jones. Condition: NEW 2002 Arcade Trade Paperback, first printing. Two light impressions back cover. Content: Bio-archaeology, the science that finds and studies ancient DNA, has inspired its share of science fiction, but as Jones shows, the work of bio-archaeologists like him sheds light on what the distant past was like in ways never before thought possible. Those who recall high-school or college biology may best appreciate his accounts of chloroplast genomes and molecular overcoats, but anyone interested in ancient history may find much of his findings compelling for their social and genealogical ramifications. He presents science as a detective story, and the spirit of discovery he and his group manifest when analyzing a fossilized seed or piece of rice is infectious. As he reflects on the countless changes in his discipline since he began as an archaeologist 30 years ago, his sense of adventure remains constant, for he knows that each new discovery makes the whole picture a shade clearer. Sans reanimated dinosaurs or Neanderthals, Jones makes ancient history less fictional and really no less fantastic. [1 copy available]
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THE MUMMY CONGRESS: Science, Obsession, and the Everlasting Dead
by Heather Pringle. Color photos section. Condition: NEW 2001 Theia (Hyperion) hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), first printing. Content: Pringle's mummy experts are livelier than a crypt full of stacked corpses. This is high praise given how successfully the author animates the dead in this delightfully macabre piece of mortuary globe-trotting. The trip begins at the World Congress on Mummy Studies, held last in arid Arica, Chile. Arica's climate makes it the ideal place to bring your mummy as eccentric scholars do, by the busload. From South America, Pringle, a frequent contributor to magazines like Discover and Islands, departs for the global ateliers of this weird profession, from the makeshift morgue of Art Aufderheide in Egypt, where plastic bags full of brittle corpses are piled by the dozens; to the Peruvian mountaintops, where an American adventurer's discovery of a beautiful Inca girl named "Juanita," an ancient and flawless sacrifice to the gods, ignites a media frenzy; to the subterranean caverns beneath Red Square, where a team of mausoleumists tended to Lenin's lifelike remains, and freelanced their skills out to fellow communists wanting to see their own dead leaders under glass. Pringle's gifts as a writer and a journalist are evident on every page. In brisk, vivid prose she delivers the secrets of the mummy trade: mummies as medicine; the self-preservation techniques of Japanese monks; and the Vatican's modern-day practitioners of the temple priest's art. Pringle's mummies and the men and women who love them make for fascinating and lively reading; this book is sure to have, as they say, a very long shelf life. [1 copy available]
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PYRAMID ODYSSEY
by Wm. R. Fix. Absolutely loaded with B&W photos, maps, and drawings. Condition: PLEASE READ / UNREAD, but far from perfect, 1978 Mercury Media Trade Paperback, appears to be the first printing. Problems: Rubbings along the hinges, edge wear, small tag removal mark top front cover corner, with tanning to the white back cover panel. No tanning to the interior pages. This is an older book with problems of older books. Content: Reviewer: "This book is excellent because the author makes a good effort to stick to the facts and when he speculates, he makes it clear that this is what he is doing. He does cite some unusual evidence, but explains why he considers it useful to cite this material in a rational way. The book is also very well written, concise and the points well-argued. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has been reading a lot of recent "alternative history/research" type books as a general grounding in the facts. It is so easy for a mistake to get propagated as a fact and William Fix tries to avoid that and to set the facts straight on some of the errors that are still being cited as fact." and "This was written in the 1970s but discusses some of the same themes that became popular in the 1990s, i.e. that the Great Pyramid was not a tomb and that the ancient Egyptians and other ancient civilization were far more advanced than mainstream archaeologists will admit. Although this book never garnered much attention in the 1970s, it was the spiritual predecessor to Graham Hancock's "Fingerprints of the Gods". Fix was a very bright guy and did a good job of supporting his theories. This book is not new age psycho babble like "When the Sky Fell", nor is it inclined toward unsupported flights of fancy like some of the von Daniken ideas, but instead is a well researched, carefully analyzed look at ancient civilizations. Fix lays to rest with some finality the idea that the Great Pyramid was a tomb." While most of the emphasis is on the Egyptian pyramids, the New World pyramids are also discussed. Questions welcome. [1 copy available]
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THE SEVEN WONDERS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD
edited by Peter Clayton & Martin Price. B&W photos & drawings ilustrate. Condition: UNREAD 1993 Barnes & Noble hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), 17th printing. Content: The chapters in this book describe the seven wonders of the ancient world - the Great Pyramids at Giza, the Hanging Gardens at Babylon, the Statue of Zeus at Olympia, the Temple of Artemis at Ephesos, the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, the Colossus of Rhodes and the Pharos (Lighthouse) at Alexandria. Their history, location, purpose, building and description are provided along with many illustrations and drawings. The last chapter gives a list of other monuments which could be considered wonders, and tells why the actual seven wonders of the ancient world were chosen. Another interesting benefit of this book is a discussion of which wonders probably did not exist and why. [1 copy available]
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STEALING HISTORY: Tomb Raiders, Smugglers, and the Looting of the Ancient World
by Roger Atwood. Condition: NEW 2006 St. Martin's Trade Paperback, first printing. Tiny edge wear. Content: As the destruction from the war in Iraq has demonstrated most recently, a country's antiquities are never safe from marauding looters and greedy collectors who trawl the black market. In a study that is part detective story and part history lesson, Atwood, an expert on the antiquities market who writes for ARTnews and Archaeology, focuses on one incident as a case study of the insidious effects of the illicit antiquities trade. In 1987, a group of grave robbers working at a burial mound near the village of Sipán in northern Peru uncovered a mausoleum of Moche rulers (the Moche were an innovative indigenous tribe) with a rich cache of gold and silver artifacts. Word soon spread to international buyers, who responded favorably, and prolonged looting began. By the time the Peruvian police intervened three weeks later, much damage had already been done. Walter Alva, a native Peruvian and the site's chief archeologist, uncovered many more undamaged tombs and worked tirelessly to preserve this ancient legacy, bravely confronting looters and endeavoring to establish laws to prevent museums form accepting stolen goods. The case raised international awareness of the illegal antiquities trade. Atwood's ability to bring a story dramatically to life and his keen interest in stemming the illegal antiquities trade makes this an important book for anyone interested in archeology, preservation or the potentially tangled provenance of works they love. Questions welcome [1 copy available]
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TWO THOUSAND YEARS AGO: The World at the Time of Jesus
by Charles A. Frazee. B&W photos illustrate. Condition: NEW 2003 Eerdmans Publishing hardcover & DJ (in mylar jacket), second printing. Content: The shelves are filled with books describing the life of Jesus and his homeland, but rarely has Jesus life been placed within the larger context of world history. This book is an absorbing work that surveys for the first time the people who were alive and the historical events taking place around the world at the time of Jesus. Drawing on historical records and the work of archaeologists and anthropologists, Frazee explores the full sweep of human society contemporary with Jesus' own first-century Palestine. Each chapter looks at one of the worlds major regions from the Arctic, the Pacific Islands, and the Americas to Europe, Africa, and Asia and provides a short background of its history and its status at the time Jesus walked the earth. In providing a birds-eye view of the world at this pivotal point in history, Frazee gives readers a new perspective on the life of Jesus in the Holy Land, allowing them to compare and contrast it with life taking place elsewhere on the globe. Written with an inviting voice and enhanced with informative illustratations and maps, [1 copy available]
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THE UNENDING MYSTERY: A Journey Through Labyrinths and Mazes
by David Willis McCullough. Illustrated with B&W drawings. Condition: NEW 2004 Pantheon Books Trade Paperback, first edition, first printing. Content: McCullough takes on the fascinating task of explaining the history of labyrinths and mazes--and explaining the crucial differences between them--in this diverting excursion into one of the byways of civilization. Beginning with the Greeks, McCullough moves through the centuries (Mediterranean, Tuscan, Scandinavia, England, Italy, and France) until he arrives at some unexpected destinations: a maze in a forest clearing in the Catskills of New York State, the world's largest cornfield maze in Pennsylvania, and the labyrinths created in the Mott Haven section of the South Bronx by a young Scotswoman with the help of neighborhood children. [1 copy available]
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THE VIKINGS AND AMERICA
by Erik Wahlgren. 103 illustrations. Condition: NEW 1987 Thames & Hudson Trade Paperback, no printing given. Content: Did Vinland, that mysterious "land of grapevines" that the Viking Leif Eriksson discovered and christened almost a thousand years ago, ever exist? Do the clues in the sagas of a North American location point to a specific place on a modern map? How much more of the New World may these pre-Columbian adventurers have explored? Drawing upon the clues found in ancient manuscripts and a deep knowledge of the historical and archaeological evidence, Wahlgren addresses these questions in a marvelously readable account. Excavations at L'Anse aux Meadows in northern Newfoundland show that the Vikings did indeed reach the North American continent around A.D.1000, presumably from their base in Southern Greenland. Other supposed Viking discoveries such as the Kensington Stone are dismissed as frauds, but legitimate finds from Arctic Canada to New England suggest Viking exploration far to the north and the south. Eventually, a worsening climate and attacks by native peoples ended the first European presence in the New World. [1 copy available]
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ZOROASTRIANISM AND JUDAISM (World Religions series)
by George William Carter. Intro by Charles Gray Shaw. Condition: UNREAD 2007 Book Jungle soft cover, no printing given. Original copyright 1918. Content: The author attempts to give an outline picture of Zoroastriansm, and then of Judaism when it came to be somewhat a fixed system in the post-exilic times, in order to give the leading religious, social, and moral conceptions in each faith. Contents: Zarathustra and the Zeit-Geist; Judaism; the idea of deity; the host of heaven; naturalistic traits; the expectation of a redeemer; civil, social, and ceremonial regulations; morals and ethics; the future life. [1 copy available]
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