Julian Heath

This is, of course, a very specialized subject: an overview of the archaeological finds in Egypt, covering the period from 20,000 to (approximately) 3,000 BCE. In other words, even before classical Egyptian civilization started. Archaeologist Julian Maxwell Heath gives a very solid and detailed overview, with just enough illustration material. His work is so thorough that the book is perhaps more of a boring, exhaustive enumeration of finds for laymen. If you want to quickly go through what this book has to offer, you can stick to the introduction, it summarizes everything perfectly. The big question is, of course, whether the dazzling Egypt of pharaohs and pyramids already announces itself in the preceding Stone Age. See my review in my History account on Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4090428674.… (mehr)

An overview of archaeological sites and findings related to Paleolithic, Neolithic, and Predynastic Egypt.

The author begins with a historical overview of what can be known of the times from ~10,000 BCE until 3000 BCE. He then goes into detail about Paleolithic sites and discoveries, then Neolithic, then Predynastic, with some asides about farming and art.

Much of the book is spent in the western and eastern deserts in environments which were more hospitable to human habitation during the Paleolithic and Neolithic but desertified by the time of the historical record. This is most likely due to the preponderance of where archaeological evidence is most easily accessible.

A good primer of what has been discovered about ancient life before the pharaonic period.

**--galley received as part of early review program… (mehr)