The Archaeology of Malta

The Archaeology of Malta

Author: Claudia Sagona

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2015-08-25

Total Pages: 471

ISBN-13: 1107006694

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This book synthesizes the archaeology of the Maltese archipelago from the first human colonization c. 5000 BC through the Roman period (c. 400 AD). Claudia Sagona interprets the archaeological record to explain changing social and political structures, intriguing ritual practices, and cultural contact through several millennia.


Historical Dictionary of Malta

Historical Dictionary of Malta

Author: Warren G. Berg

Publisher: Scarecrow Press

Published: 1995

Total Pages: 198

ISBN-13: 9780810830189

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A handy reference that provides an introduction to the history of the strategic archipelago of Malta. The entries cover the political, economic, and social situation in the country since its independence from Britain in 1964. Invaluable to those in the scholarly professions, many laypersons, and even casual tourists.


The Materiality of Stone

The Materiality of Stone

Author: Christopher Tilley

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-06-03

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 100018191X

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With Wayne Bennett From the silky wax qualities of the surfaces of some quartz menhirs to the wood-grain textures of others, to the golden honeycombed limestones of Malta, to the icy frozen waves of the Cambrian sandstone of south-east Sweden, this book investigates the sensuous material qualities of stone. Tactile sensations, sonorous qualities, colour, and visual impressions are all shown to play a vital part in our understanding of the power and significance of prehistoric monuments in relation to their landscapes. In The Materiality of Stone, Christopher Tilley presents a radically new way of analyzing the significance of both 'cultural' and 'natural' stone in prehistoric European landscapes. Tilley's groundbreaking approach is to interpret human experience in a multidimensional and sensuous human way, rather than through an abstract analytical gaze. The studies range widely from the menhirs of prehistoric Brittany to Maltese Neolithic temples to Bronze Age rock carvings and cairns in southern Sweden. Tilley leaves no stone unturned as he also considers how the internal spaces and landscape settings are interpreted in relation to artifacts, substances, and related places that were deeply meaningful to the people who inhabited them and remain no less evocative today. In its innovative approach to understanding human experience through the tangible rocks and stone of our past, The Materiality of Stone is both a major theoretical and substantive contribution to the field of material culture studies and the study of European prehistory.


The Oxford Handbook of Prehistoric Figurines

The Oxford Handbook of Prehistoric Figurines

Author: Timothy Insoll

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2017-04-13

Total Pages: 961

ISBN-13: 0191663093

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Figurines dating from prehistory have been found across the world but have never before been considered globally. The Oxford Handbook of Prehistoric Figurines is the first book to offer a comparative survey of this kind, bringing together approaches from across the landscape of contemporary research into a definitive resource in the field. The volume is comprehensive, authoritative, and accessible, with dedicated and fully illustrated chapters covering figurines from the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australasia and the Pacific laid out by geographical location and written by the foremost scholars in figurine studies; wherever prehistoric figurines are found they have been expertly described and examined in relation to their subject matter, form, function, context, chronology, meaning, and interpretation. Specific themes that are discussed by contributors include, for example, theories of figurine interpretation, meaning in processes and contexts of figurine production, use, destruction and disposal, and the cognitive and social implications of representation. Chronologically, the coverage ranges from the Middle Palaeolithic through to areas and periods where an absence of historical sources renders figurines 'prehistoric' even though they might have been produced in the mid-2nd millennium AD, as in parts of sub-Saharan Africa. The result is a synthesis of invaluable insights into past thinking on the human body, gender, identity, and how the figurines might have been used, either practically, ritually, or even playfully.


The Oxford Companion to Archaeology

The Oxford Companion to Archaeology

Author: Neil Asher Silberman

Publisher:

Published: 2012-11

Total Pages: 2130

ISBN-13: 0199735786

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The second edition of The Oxford Companion to Archaeology is a thoroughly up-to-date resource with new entries exploring the many advances in the field since the first edition published in 1996. In 700 entries, the second edition provides thorough coverage to historical archaeology, the development of archaeology as a field of study, and the way the discipline works to explain the past. In addition to these theoretical entries, other entries describe the major excavations, discoveries, and innovations, from the discovery of the cave paintings at Lascaux to the deciphering of Egyptian hieroglyphics and the use of luminescence dating. Recent developments in methods and analytical techniques which have revolutionized the ways excavations are performed are also covered; as well as new areas within archeology, such as cultural tourism; and major new sites which have expanded our understanding of prehistory and human developments through time. In addition to significant expansion, first-edition entries have been thoroughly revised and updated to reflect the progress that has been made in the last decade and a half.


Ibss: Anthropology: 1972

Ibss: Anthropology: 1972

Author: International Committee for Social Science Information and Documentation

Publisher: Psychology Press

Published: 1974-10-24

Total Pages: 406

ISBN-13: 9780422744003

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First published in 1974. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.


Landscapes and Landforms of the Maltese Islands

Landscapes and Landforms of the Maltese Islands

Author: Ritienne Gauci

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2019-08-04

Total Pages: 392

ISBN-13: 3030154564

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This edited volume brings together a collection of works that comprehensively address both the myriad geomorphological landscapes of the Maltese Islands and how their evolution has been shaped over various time-scales by different sets of processes. Additionally, the work highlights how the small geographical setting of the Maltese Islands helped to closely connect these landscapes with Maltese society and as a result, they have evolved from stand-alone examples of geomorphology to important backdrops of Maltese cultural identity. Most of the contributing authors are academics – both local and foreign – with a research focus on the geomorphology of the Maltese Islands. However, the editors have also (and purposefully) chosen other contributors from governmental institutions and research agencies, who complement the geomorphological research with their proactive work in selected case studies on Maltese landscapes.


Cult in Context

Cult in Context

Author: Caroline Malone

Publisher: Oxbow Books

Published: 2010-04-01

Total Pages: 1043

ISBN-13: 1782974962

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Gods, deities, symbolism, deposition, cosmology and intentionality are all features of the study of early ritual and cult. Archaeology has great difficulties in providing satisfactory interpretation or recognition of these elusive but important parts of ancient society, and methodologies are often poorly equipped to explore the evidence. This collection of papers explores a wide range of prehistoric and early historic archaeological contexts from Britain, Europe and beyond, where monuments, architectural structures, megaliths, art, caves, ritual activity and symbolic remains offer exciting glimpses into ancient belief systems and cult behaviour. Different theoretical and practical approaches are demonstrated, offering both new directions and considered conclusions to the many problems of studying the archaeology of cult and ritual. Central to the volume is an exploration of early Malta and its intriguing Temple Culture, set in a broad perspective by the discussion and theoretical approaches presented in different geographical and chronological contexts.