This book is a presentation of the basic concept of social, environmental and cultural connectivity in past societies, as embodied in a diversity of disciplines in the Cluster of Excellence ROOTS. Thus, rather pragmatically driven ideas of socio-environmental connectivities are described, which form the basis of the Cluster of Excellence in its research.

A discussion of the fluidness of the term ‘connectivity’ and the applicability of the concept opens the arena for diverse interpretatio...

Pre-dating the urban revolution in Western Asia, a network of agricultural settlements developed in the forest-steppe zone northwest of the Black Sea in the late 5th and first half of the 4th millennium BCE, some of which are among the largest prehistoric mega-sites in Europe. These enormous so-called Trypillia communities are unique in many respects, and the dynamics of their formation and their development have long been a topic of intensive research. For more than ten years now, research o...

Cremation in the Early Middle Ages draws together the latest research and thinking on early medieval cremation practices. The book takes you on a journey through 19 chapters exploring cremation practices from the fifth to the eleventh centuries CE in Fennoscandia, the UK and Ireland, Frisia, Denmark, Germany, Belgium, and France. In this way, the book aims to be a central resource for anyone interested in early medieval cremations, or indeed funerary practices more generally. Notably, the str...

This volume brings together a series of case studies on the social and economic interaction and organisation in the medieval and early modern European countryside. In particular, it focuses on rural and smaller trade and markets that have remained relatively underexposed so far. It provides comprehensive presentations of new research on rural socio-economic interactions and networks, and how these are integrated into regional, trans-regional and even global exchange systems. The volume is cha...

This volume brings together a series of case studies on the social and economic interaction and organisation in the medieval and early modern European countryside. In particular, it focuses on rural and smaller trade and markets that have remained relatively underexposed so far. It provides comprehensive presentations of new research on rural socio-economic interactions and networks, and how these are integrated into regional, trans-regional and even global exchange systems. The volume is cha...

'As indispensable to an archaeology student as a trowel ... every student, or indeed any interested amateur, should really find a space on their shelf for this useful book’ Minerva Known for being an accessible and authoritative introduction, Archaeology: Theories, Methods and Practice has been updated in the Ninth Edition to include new discoveries in archaeology, innovations in field and laboratory methods, as well as covering the latest developments in archaeological theory, from ontolog...

De aanvang van de beschaving in het Nabije Oosten was een gebeurtenis van uniek belang. in werkelijkheid is de overgang van primitieve tot geciviliseerde omstandigheden mee r dan eenmaal voorgekomen, maar Egypte en Mesopotamië waren de eerste, bereikten het eerst het niveau boven dat van het algemene primitieve bestaan. Hier, en alleen hier, kunnen zij zeker zijn dat de ontwikkeling spontaan verliep en niet werd veroorzaakt door het contact met verder voortgeschreden vreemdelingen. Bovendie...

Dans les Commentaires de la guerre des Gaules de César, le terme d’”oppidum” – qui désigne dans ces écrits toute forme d’agglomération fortifiée – est utilisé afin de décrire ces sites gaulois particuliers qui témoignent à la fois d’un fort élan de cohésion sociale et du développement d’une politique territoriale centralisée. D’un point de vue chronologique, ce type de site s’inscrit dans un cadre précis : celui des deux derniers siècles avant notre ère, so...

La mort d'autrui est une épreuve que les communautés humaines ont dû apprendre à surmonter dès les premiers temps de l'Humanité. Ce travail est une exploration des différentes réponses proposées par l'homme face au problème de la perte de l'autre à travers les gestes effectués sur le corps mort, depuis les soins thanatopraxiques jusqu'aux funérailles en plusieurs temps ou la création de reliques.La manipulation post-mortem des corps fournit régulièrement à l'archéologue des ...