Archaeological Oddities

This book is an offbeat field guide for sites in North America that reflect the rejection of the facts of prehistory and history. They are the physical equivalents of "fake news" about America's ancient past. Feder provides an entertaining summary forty sites along with the practical information you’ll need to visit these fun and fascinating sites.

Of Odysses and Oddities is about scales and modes of interaction in prehistory, specifically between societies on both sides of the Aegean and with their nearest neighbours overland to the north and east. The 17 contributions reflect on tensions at the core of how we consider interaction in archaeology, particularly the motivations and mechanisms leading to social and material encounters or displacements. Linked to this are the ways we conceptualise spatial and social entities in past societies (scales) and how we learn about who was actively engaged in interaction and how and why they were (modes). The papers provide a broad chronological, spatial and material range but, taken together, they critically address many of the ways that scales and modes of interaction are considered in archaeological discourse. Ultimately, the intention is to foreground material culture analysis in the development of the arguments presented within this volume, informed, but not driven, by theoretical positions.

Here’s a full-color guide to national parks and national monuments that have a strong connection to the lives of America’s First Peoples.

Evolutionary Research in Archaeology seeks to provide a comprehensive overview of contemporary evolutionary research in archaeology. The book will provide a single source for introduction and overview of basic and advanced evolutionary concepts and research programs in archaeology. Content will be organized around four areas of critical research including microevolutionary and macroevolutionary process, human ecology studies (evolutionary ecology, demography, and niche construction), and evolutionary cognitive archaeology. Authors of individual chapters will address theoretical foundations, history of research, contemporary contributions and debates, and implications for the future for their respective topics. As appropriate, authors present or discuss short empirical case studies to illustrate key arguments. ​

History's Mysteries is an absorbing and meticulously researched exploration of the archaeology, history, and mysteries of 35 ancient places worldwide. Haughton's book takes the reader on an unforgettable journey, from the 8,000-year-old stone circle of Nabta Playa to India's magical Taj Mahal; from Rhode Island's controversial Newport Tower to the enigmatic Royston Cave in the UK; from the strange medieval castle-village of Rennes-le-Ch�teau to the massive ancient walled city of Great Zimbabwe. Using the latest archaeological evidence, History's Mysteries explores: The incredible archaeological discoveries at the 11,000 year-old sanctuary of G�bekli Tepe in Turkey. The heated debate over the 47-million-year-old 'Ida Fossil'--could it be the missing link in our evolutionary history? The reality behind controversial ancient artifacts such as the Iron Pillar of Delhi, the Oak Island Treasure, and Egypt's "Dendera Lamps." What really happened to the Neanderthals? With 36 photographs and illustrations, this is the perfect reference work for those fascinated by the great mysteries of ancient history.

The Handbook of Archaeological Methods comprises 37 articles by leading archaeologists on the key methods used by archaeologists in the field, in analysis, in theory building, and in managing cultural resources. The book is destined to become the key reference work for archaeologists and their advanced students on contemporary archaeological methods.

A Companion to Archaeology features essays from 27 of the world’s leading authorities on different types of archaeology that aim to define the field and describe what it means to be an archaeologist. Shows that contemporary archaeology is an astonishingly broad activity, with many contrasting specializations and ways of approaching the material record of past societies. Includes essays by experts in reading the past through art, linguistics, or the built environment, and by professionals who present the past through heritage management and museums. Introduces the reader to a range of archaeologists: those who devote themselves to the philosophy of archaeology, those who see archaeology as politics or anthropology, and those who contend that the essence of the discipline is a hard science.

Organized geographically, Unnatural Phenomena: A Guide to the Bizarre Wonders of North America explores the history of natural phenomena in virtually every U.S. state. Can the sky quake? Can sand play music? Have UFOs been sighted in your town? Unnatural Phenomena crosses the centuries and travels America to chronicle the strangest natural phenomena, the most bizarre scientific findings, and events from history that defy rational explanation. Conveniently organized by region, state, and locality, this one-volume, illustrated encyclopedia maps a landscape straight out of The Twilight Zone. From apparitions in the sky to inhuman skeletons rising from the earth—and everything in between—Jerome Clark, expert on strange phenomena and author of ABC-CLIO's Extraordinary Encounters: An Encyclopedia of Extraterrestrials and Otherworldly Beings, sifts through the legends, the hoaxes, and the science. Authoritatively researched, the entries in Unnatural Phenomena will expand the most skeptical reader's sense of the possible. The truth is out there ... the evidence is in here.