Britain BC: Life in Britain and Ireland Before the Romans - Softcover

Pryor, Francis

Softcover

ISBN 10: 000712693X ISBN 13: 9780007126934

Publisher: Harper Perennial, 2004

Synopsis

An authoritative and radical rethinking of the history of Ancient Britain and Ancient Ireland, based on remarkable new archaeological finds.

British history is traditionally regarded as having started with the Roman Conquest. But this is to ignore half a million years of prehistory that still exert a profound influence. Here Francis Pryor examines the great ceremonial landscapes of Ancient Britain and Ireland – Stonehenge, Seahenge, Avebury and the Bend of the Boyne – as well as the discarded artefacts of day-to-day life, to create an astonishing portrait of our ancestors.

This major re-revaluation of pre-Roman Britain, made possible in part by aerial photography and coastal erosion, reveals a much more sophisticated life in Ancient Britain and Ireland than has previously been supposed.

About this title

Review:

‘Written with pace and passion...immensely readable.’ Tom Holland, Daily Telegraph

‘It bounds along, wonderfully enlivened by Pryor’s earthy enthusiasm. If you want to be introduced painlessly to the fascinating debates surrounding our British past, then “Britain BC” is the book for you.’ Barry Cunliffe, New Scientist

‘Francis Pryor is a modern field archaeologist with a reputation second to none. He has written a book as successful and exciting as its ambition is huge...lucid and engaging.’ Alan Garner, The Times

‘There are enough curious facts, contentious theories and bizarre hypotheses here to hold the interest of anyone concerned with the unique and peculiar story of these islands.’ Independent on Sunday

‘Beautifully written, exciting and extremely good...an essential read.’ British Archaeology

Praise for Francis Pryor’s television series ‘Britain BC’:

‘Fascinating...the evangelical Pryor paints a vivid portrait of pre-Roman society that tackles received wisdom about what was going on here in the Stone, Bronze and Iron ages.’ Daily Telegraph

‘Pryor leaps about the country at a cracking pace, his big personality making sure we never get bored by the scant and rarefied scraps that are his stock-in-trade.’ Observer

Synopsis:

An authoritative and radical rethinking of the whole of British history before the coming of the Romans, based on remarkable new archaeological finds. So many extraordinary archaeological discoveries (many of them involving the author) have been made in the last thirty years that our whole understanding of British prehistory needs to be updated. So far only the specialists have twigged on to these developments; now, for the first time, Francis Pryor broadcasts them to a much wider, general audience. Aided by aerial photography, coastal erosion (which has helped expose such coastal sites as Seahenge) and new planning legislation which requires developers to excavate the land they build on, archaeologists have unearthed a far more sophisticated life among the Ancient Britons than has been previously supposed. Far from being the barbarians of Roman propaganda, we Brits had our own religion, laws, crafts, arts, trade, farms, priesthood and royalty, the stories of which Francis Pryor tells with passion, wit and intelligence.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 000712693X
• ISBN 13: 9780007126934
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 568