Book Thread 1

AC Feedback and Suggestions References
1

Hello,

While I am waiting for my anthropologist friend to connect me with a reading list, I’d like to offer two books for your consideration.

  1. First Cities: This text was recommended by my friend as a primer to early cities and a good source of pictures

  2. Debt:The First 5000 Years: This text provides an anthropological history of debt and its role in societies since the neolithic era. Hopefully it will be illuminating when it comes to trying to model the economies of the neolithic and beyond.

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Thanks, we will take a look at these.

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I’m going to assume this is a recomendation list so here goes

The Horse The Wheel and Language - Detailing the Yamana culture and the origins of the Indo-Europeans, fascinating insights to horse culture and the origins of horse taming (a stable food stuff first, and then a means of transportation then warfare)

Britain BC - Francis Pryor investigates neolithic Britain up to the start of the Roman period.

A couple on my reading list that I need to get are By Steppe, Desert and Ocean and Europe Between the Oceans by Barry Cunliffe, he is the authority on ancient Europe and has also done a fair number of great Youtube lectures you can search for,

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thanks for the material mate!

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@Artaxerxes 100% will second The Horse The Wheel and Language, currently working my way through it, great read. I’d add in also helps with understanding neighbouring cultures to the Yamnaya Horizon, such as the Cucuteni-Tripollye and Maikop cultures.

I also happen to have By Steppe, Desert and Ocean sitting on my beside table waiting to be read XD.

I’ve also ordered Warfare in Neolithic Europe though I probably won’t get it delivered before late-august. Will let you know whether it’s worth a read or not.

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Can I second Debt? Despite the name, it’s not just about debt, it’s actually a fantastic general introduction to non-monetary economics in premodern societies.

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Domestication of Plants in the Old World (4th ed.) by Zohary et al. is my go-to reference on anything to do with plant domestication or early agriculture.

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As a linguist (and a history enthusiast, but all of us are ;)), I of course second The Horse The Wheel and Language as well.

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