Prehistoric rock art is the markings paintings, engravings, or pecked images left on rocks or cave walls by ancient peoples. In this book, Paul G. Bahn provides a richly illustrated overview of prehistoric rock art and cave art from around the world. Summarizing the recent advances in our understanding of this extraordinary visual record, he discusses new discoveries, new approaches to recording and interpretation, and current problems in conservation. Bahn focuses in particular on current issues in the interpretation of rock art, notably the shamanic interpretation that has been influential in recent years and that he refutes. This book is based on the Rhind Lectures that the author delivered for the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland in 2006."

- A fascinating and enthralling book that brings to life the adventures and achievements of the great characters who changed the face of archaeology and the way we understand the past.
- Includes detailed portraits of famous names such as Heinrich Schliemann, the excavator of Troy, and Howard Carter, the discoverer of Tutankhamen's tomb.
- Beautifully illustrated throughout, with over 170 color photographs.

Images of the Ice Age, here in its third edition, is the most complete study available of the world's earliest imagery, presenting a fascinating and up-to-date account of the art of our Ice Age ancestors. Authoritative and wide-ranging, it covers not only the magnificent cave art of famous sites such as Lascaux, Altamira, and Chauvet, but also other less well-known sites around the world, art discovered in the open air, and the thousands of incredible pieces of portable art in bone, antler, ivory, and stone produced in the same period. In doing so, the book summarizes all the major worldwide research into Ice Age art both past and present, exploring the controversial history of the art's discovery and acceptance, including the methods used for recording and dating, the faking of decorated objects and caves, and the wide range of theories that have been applied to this artistic corpus. Lavishly illustrated and highly accessible, Images of the Ice Age provides a visual feast and an absorbing synthesis of this crucial aspect of human history, offering a unique opportunity to appreciate universally important works of art, many of which can never be accessible to the public, and which represent the very earliest evidence of artistic expression.

Paul G. Bahn provides a richly illustrated overview of prehistoric rock art and cave art from around the world. Summarizing the recent advances in our understanding of this extraordinary visual record, he discusses new discoveries, new approaches to recording and interpretation, and current problems in conservation. Bahn focuses in particular on current issues in the interpretation of rock art, notably the 'shamanic' interpretation that has been influential in recent years and that he refutes. This book is based on the Rhind Lectures that the author delivered for the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland in 2006.

Arranged thematically, the chapters reveal a vast array of incredible finds; most of the treasures and sites featured in the book were only discovered after years of committed searching and with the painstaking efforts by archaeologists, while some were chance finds. The book relates the dramas of excavation, details the items found and their significance, where they are now exhibited, and the importance of that site to our understanding of history. For example, In Cities and Dwelling Places, the story unfolds of Dolni Vestonice, in the Czech Republic: a prehistoric site where ceramics - and therefore Man's discovery of fire - have been dated at over 27,000 years. A discovery such as this helps to unravel the complex characteristics of our human development.