Such methods are the basis of this interesting reconstruction of European history from the first post-glacial foragers around 8000 B.C. to the Christianization of northern Europe about 1000 A.D. The focus is not the classical and medieval civilizations that recorded their history on clay, stone, papyrus and vellum, but the peoples who lived on the fringes of such societies, well beyond the reach of imperial swords and the bureaucrat?s pen and stylus. Mesolithic farmers, megalith builders, Etruscans, Celts, Huns, Picts, Vikings and a host of other barbaric peoples for whom our chief sources of information are simply the material remains they left behind are introduced to the reader. Following an introduction to various approaches to archaeology, the arrangement is roughly chronological, with sections focusing on the transition to agriculture, the introduction of metallurgy, the European Iron Age and the period of great migrations. Many of the 212 scholarly articles discuss such topics as early crops, the first domestication of the horse, the building of trackways through swamps, the first boats, the beginnings of trade and markets, and the origins of iron production. Other entries feature particular sites or finds like the Ice Man, Varna, Stonehenge and Sutton Hoo. A glossary, timelines, more than 300 maps and illustrations and selective bibliographies in each entry aid the beginning researcher. This insightful guide is highly recommended for academic libraries.

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