Europe Between the Oceans, Barry Cunliffe
Europe Between the Oceans, Barry Cunliffe
List: $29.99 | Sale: $21.00
Club: $14.99

Europe Between the Oceans
9000 BC-AD 1000

Author: Barry Cunliffe

Narrator: James Cameron Stewart

Unabridged: 18 hr 48 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 11/28/2023

Synopsis

A sensational, interdisciplinary work which entirely reorients our understanding of Europe from 10,000 BC to the time of the Vikings

In this magnificent book, distinguished archaeologist Barry Cunliffe reframes our entire conception of early European history, from prehistory through the ancient world to the medieval Viking period. Cunliffe views Europe not in terms of states and shifting political land boundaries but as a geographical niche particularly favored in facing many seas. These seas, and Europe's great transpeninsular rivers, ensured a rich diversity of natural resources while also encouraging the dynamic interaction of peoples across networks of communication and exchange. The development of these early Europeans is rooted in complex interplays, shifting balances, and geographic and demographic fluidity.

Drawing on archaeology, anthropology, and history, Cunliffe has produced an interdisciplinary tour de force. His is a bold book of exceptional scholarship, erudite and engaging, and it heralds an entirely new understanding of Old Europe.

About Barry Cunliffe

Barry Cunliffe taught archaeology at the Universities of Bristol and Southampton and was professor of European archaeology at the University of Oxford from 1972 to 2008, thereafter becoming Emeritus Professor. He has excavated widely in Britain (Fishbourne, Bath, Danebury, Hengistbury Head, Brading) and in the Channel Islands, Brittany, and Spain, and has been president of the Council for British Archaeology and of the Society of Antiquaries, Governor of the Museum of London, a Commissioner of English Heritage, and a Trustee of the British Museum. His many books include Facing the Ocean, Druids: A Very Short Introduction, Britain Begins, By Steppe, Desert, and Ocean, and On the Ocean, all published by Oxford University Press. He received a knighthood in 2006.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Jamie on October 14, 2019

When I saw this book at the library, it seemed to shout “textbook.” Something about its size and heft, its glossy paper and 500 page length, made me think it was the kind of book an anthropology class would require students to spend $150 on. As I leafed through it, still doubtful, what caught my eye......more

Goodreads review by Justin on June 13, 2013

I'm glad this book exists--it fills a much unwanted gap, inasmuch as it's a reasonably approachable introduction to prehistoric Europe and the way it developed into historical Europe. For the first few chapters I was riveted. For the middle half dozen, I was aflame with the thirst for knowledge: Cun......more

Goodreads review by Jonfaith on May 27, 2024

Thus, humanity emerges willing to be mobile and forced to be sociable. Cunliffe delivers a spectacular narrative about a Europe gradually in a fits and starts evolving into coexistence. Citing Braudel at every turn, he does plumb beneath events and individuals to the currents and tensions which compl......more

Goodreads review by Alexis on January 04, 2009

I don't understand why this is built like a textbook. I don't understand why Cunliffe kept referring (three times!) to mountains as the "backbone" of a continent. In fact I don't understand all the weird humanization of geography especially at the beginning of the book. "where the outlying flanks of......more

Goodreads review by Dimitrios on June 19, 2016

So far, so excellent. This book goes on the top of the list of books I'm currently reading. It is a wonderfully concise and engaging, and yet magisterial and wide-ranging, history of Europe from the long perspective (about 10000 BC to 1000 AD).......more

Add to Cart
Add to Wish List