Books on World Archaeology by Region
An Early Florida Adventure Story
There was a sword-maker in Seville... so starts the account of Andrés de Segura, a teenaged Spanish sailor shipwrecked off the coast of the New World in 1595. Translated by John Hann.
Ancient Ireland: Life Before the Celts
Laurence Flanagan's lively survey of Irish archaeology contains a wealth of information concerning the prehistory of the green isle, from the first human occupations, about 8000 years B.C., to the end of the Late Bronze Age, 700 BC.
Andean Diaspora: Tiwanaku Colonies
Paul Goldstein's 2005 book called Andean Diaspora, subtitled The Tiwanaku Colonies and the Origins of Empire, is an intriguing look at the Tiwanaku empire of South America and its colonies several hundred kilometers away.
Balkan Prehistory
Subtitled "Exclusion, Incorporation and Identity," this book by Douglass W. Bailey provides a glimpse into how life was changing between 6500 and 2500 BC.
Before the Volcano Erupted
Before the Volcano Erupted is a site report, written by scientists for the scientific community. Cerén is a most unusual and beautiful site, and I think it was a smart move to see that these sorts of images were made available in a cost-effective manner. While the book is a little dry, as site reports always are, the information gathered there is fascinating.
Between the Lines: The Mystery of Nasca
In Between the Lines, Anthony F. Aveni provides a personal and somewhat eccentric account of how he and his fellow researchers have come to believe what they do about the geometric shapes and animal effigy drawings called the Nasca Lines.
Bones, Boats, and Bison
E. James Dixon's Bones, Boats and Bison is a well-written and readable summary of the pertinent data about the first colonization of the America continents.
Grasshopper Pueblo
The site of Grasshopper Pueblo was the home of the Mogollon people for the latter half of the 13th and the first half of the 14th centuries AD; and the home of an archaeological crew for the better part of 30 summers. Reid and Whittlesley interweave the two human occupations of this beautiful austere place in the mountain country of central Arizona, in an entertaining and illuminating manner.
Indian Mounds of Wisconsin
From Robert A. Birmingham and Leslie E. Eisenberg, a discussion of the history and archaeology of the mounds, including information about the history of the "mound builder myth".
Indians of the Greater Southeast
The Indians of the Greater Southeast is a collection of papers on Native American groups living from Florida to Texas during the first years of the European colonization of the American continent.
Sacred Texts and Buried Treasures
William Wayne Farris's 1998 book, Sacred Texts and Buried Treasures, provides welcome insight into recent understandings of the historical period of Japan, consisting of the 700 years from AD 100 to 800.
The Archaeology of Difference
Edited by Robin Torrence and Anne Clarke, this book discusses the archaeology of Oceania at the time when Europeans first made contact.
The Casas Grandes World
In the Mexican state of Chihuahua lies Paquimé, the capital city of what is considered the third great regional state of prehistory in the 10th, 11th, and 12th centuries of the American Southwest.
The Maritime Heritage of the Cayman Islands
Roger C. Smith's The Maritime Heritage of the Cayman Islands takes the reader on a trip both underwater and into the past of the Cayman Islands; and a rollicking, swash-buckling, pirate-filled, shipwreck-strewn adventure-on-the-high-seas past it was!
Top Picks in Central American Archaeology
Several recent books on the history and prehistory of Central America make it clear that exciting things are happening in Mesoamerican archaeology.
Top Picks in South American Archaeology
There are lots of books on South American archaeology which have been published in the last few years; here's a sample.
The Rise and Fall of Swahili States
Chapurukha Kusimba's book The Rise and Fall of Swahili States investigates a truly cosmopolitan civilization which rose and fell on the eastern coast of Africa between the 11th and 16th centuries AD
Top Picks: African Archaeology
Only a handful of recent books on archaeology of the African countries have reached my doorstep to date; luckily, what there is is choice.
Top Picks: Southeastern United States
Recent books on the American southeast, consisting of the southeast quadrant of the United States, from Florida to Kentucky, and Louisiana to North Carolina.