Tales of Three Worlds collects, as a sign of gratitude and affection, a series of papers by many authors who, in different times, contexts and contingencies, had the luck to meet Sandro Salvatori, and share with him a path of knowledge and mutual personal acquaintance. The book is divided in three sections. Whatever was the apparent relevance of what he was documenting and protecting, Sandro always acted with a deep sense of personal responsibility and with the utmost care. The first section deals with his long years of work in Middle Asia, from the plains of Sistan to those of the Indus, the coasts of the Omani peninsula and southern Turkmenistan. Here, as all authors acknowledge, Sandro's papers have marked true benchmarks of archaeological research - milestones that will be used by others for many future decades for new outlines of the social evolution in the involved regions. The second tells about Sandro's activities in Italy, as an officer of the Archaeological Superintendency (Ministry of Cultural Heritage) of his region; for years, he was daily on duty for monitoring and preserving a wide range of cultural contexts, often far from the lights of the academic scenarios. Third comes a section on the prehistory of north-eastern Africa, a context in which Sandro could work in full scientific and familiar ease, as he was prevented from doing in other situations. The groundbreaking nature of his work here is self-evident. The editors and authors of the book know very well that the sign left by this book is certainly too little for what Sandro has actually done in our field and in the life of many friends and colleagues - but the sign is a long-due one, and it is sincere.

Taking a broad perspective (from Palaeolithic to Post-Medieval and from pottery to metals) the contributors to this volume discuss the social organiztion of craft production in the past. Was there a trend towards increasing specialization as the complexity of the objects manufactured increased? What was the role of patronage in encouraging the growth of specialisms? These are all questions addressed in this volume of papers originally presented at the 3rd Meeting of the EAA, Ravenna 1997.

In history, this grand arterial 1500-mile waterway was always seen as the natural frontier between the northern provinces of the Iranian empires and the outer Turanian lands. It was for centuries central to Achaemenid and later Persian power. But, as the author shows, it has a prehistory which goes very much further back: and a succession of skilled yet still elusive Bronze Age cultures flourished here well before the rise of Cyrus the Great in the 6th century BCE. This richly illustrated book explores the fascinating history, art and archaeology of the region, including its primal trade in silk and foodstuffs; the mineral wealth of the Oxus basin; its exotic myths and beliefs; and the converging tribes and peoples which led to a new stability, economic growth and urbanism. The volume contains 150 full-colour photographs of notable artefacts, including silver decorated vessels, inlaid stone pots, agate beads and 25 'Bactrian Princesses': remarkable statuettes made in chlorite and limestone. Most of these rare objects have never been seen, let alone published, before.

Walking with the Unicorn - Jonathan Mark Kenoyer Felicitation Volume' is an important contribution highlighting recent developments in the archaeological research of ancient South Asia, with specific reference to the Indus Civilization. As suggested by the title, it is a compilation of original papers written to celebrate the outstanding contributions of Jonathan Mark Kenoyer to the archaeology of South Asia over the past forty years. Many interpretations now commonly accepted in the study of the Indus Civilization are the results of Kenoyer's original insights, which combine his instinctive knowledge of the indigenous culture with the groundbreaking application of ethnoarchaeology, experimental studies and instrumental analyses. The numerous contributions from international specialists cover central aspects of the archaeological research on Bronze Age South Asia, as well as of the neighboring regions. They include socio-economic implications of craft productions, the still undeciphered Indus script and related administrative technologies and procedures. The inter-regional exchanges that allowed the rooting of the Indus culture over a vaste territory, as well as the subtle regional variations in this 'Harappan veneer' are also studied.