Based on a workshop on shell middens in Atlantic Europe, held in the Kings Manor at the University of York in September 2005.

Before New York City was the Big Apple, it could have been called the Big Oyster. Now award-winning author Mark Kurlansky tells the remarkable story of New York by following the trajectory of one of its most fascinating inhabitants–the oyster, whose influence on the great metropolis remains unparalleled. For centuries New York was famous for its oysters, which until the early 1900s played such a dominant a role in the city’s economy, gastronomy, and ecology that the abundant bivalves were Gotham’s most celebrated export, a staple food for the wealthy, the poor, and tourists alike, and the primary natural defense against pollution for the city’s congested waterways. Filled with cultural, historical, and culinary insight–along with historic recipes, maps, drawings, and photos–this dynamic narrative sweeps readers from the island hunting ground of the Lenape Indians to the death of the oyster beds and the rise of America’s environmentalist movement, from the oyster cellars of the rough-and-tumble Five Points slums to Manhattan’s Gilded Age dining chambers. Kurlansky brings characters vividly to life while recounting dramatic incidents that changed the course of New York history. Here are the stories behind Peter Stuyvesant’s peg leg and Robert Fulton’s “Folly”; the oyster merchant and pioneering African American leader Thomas Downing; the birth of the business lunch at Delmonico’s; early feminist Fanny Fern, one of the highest-paid newspaper writers in the city; even “Diamond” Jim Brady, who we discover was not the gourmand of popular legend. With The Big Oyster, Mark Kurlansky serves up history at its most engrossing, entertaining, and delicious.

A pan-European overview of the archaeology of hunter-gatherer societies, written by experts in each region.

The subject of ‘Molluscs in Archaeology’ has not been dealt with collectively for several decades. This new volume in Oxbow’s Studying Scientific Archaeology series addresses many aspects of mollusks in archaeology. It will give the reader an overview of the whole topic; methods of analysis and approaches to interpretation. It aims to be a broad based text book giving readers an insight of how to apply analysis to different present and past landscapes and how to interpret those landscapes. It includes Marine, Freshwater and land snails studies, and examines topics such as diet, economy, climate, environmental and land-use, isotopes and mollusks as artifacts. It aims to provide archaeologists and students with the first port of call giving them a) methods and principles, and b) the potential information mollusks can provide. It concentrates on analysis and interpretation most archaeologists and students can undertake and understand, and to 'review' the 'heavier' science in terms of potential, application and interpretational value.

Animals have played a fundamental role in shaping human history, and the study of their remains from archaeological sites - zooarchaeology - has gradually been emerging as a powerful discipline and crucible for forging an understanding of our past. This Handbook offers a cutting-edge, global compendium of zooarchaeology that seeks to provide a holistic view of the role played by animals in past human cultures. Case studies from across five continents explore ahuge range of human-animal interactions from an array of geographical, historical, and cultural contexts, and also illuminate the many approaches and methods adopted by different schools and traditions instudying these relationships.

This much-enhanced new edition of the highly accessible guide to practical archaeology is a vital resource for students. It features the latest methodologies, a wealth of case studies from around the world, and contributions from leading specialists in archaeological materials analysis. New edition updated to include the latest archaeological methods, an enhanced focus on post-excavation analysis and new material including a dedicated chapter on analyzing human remains Covers the full range of current analytic methods, such as analysis of stone tools, human remains and absolute dating Features a user-friendly structure organized according to material types such as animal bones, ceramics and stone artifacts, as well as by thematic topics ranging from dating techniques to report writing, and ethical concerns. Accessible to archaeology students at all levels, with detailed references and extensive case studies featured throughout

Archaeology: An Introduction looks behind the popular aspects of archaeology such as the discovery and excavation of sites, the study of human remains and animal bones, radiocarbon dating, museums and 'heritage' displays, and reveals the methods used by archaeologists. It also explains how the subject emerged from an amateur pursuit in the eighteenth century into a serious discipline, and explores changing fashions in interpretation in recent decades. This fifth edition has been updated by a new co-author, Tom Moore, and continues to include key references and guidance to help new readers find their way through the ever expanding range of archaeological publications. It conveys the excitement of new archaeological discoveries that appear on television or in newspapers while helping readers to evaluate them by explaining the methods and theories that lie behind them. Above all, while serving as a lucid textbook, it remains a very accessible account that will interest a wide readership. In addition to drawing upon examples and case studies from many regions of the world and periods of the past, it incorporates the authors' own fieldwork, research and teaching and features a new four-colour text design and colour illustrations plus an additional 50 topic boxes. The comprehensive glossary and bibliography are complemented by a support website hosted by Routledge to assist further study and wider learning. It includes chapter overviews, a testbank of questions, powerpoint discussion questions, web-links to support material for every chapter plus an online glossary and image bank. New to the fifth edition: inclusion of the latest survey techniques updated material on the development in dating, DNA analysis, isotopes and population movement coverage of new themes such as identity and personhood how different societies are defined from an anthropological point of view and the implications of this for archaeological interpretation the impact of climate change and sustainability on heritage management more on the history of archaeology Visit the companion website at www.routledge.com/textbooks/greene for additional resources, including: chapter overviews a testbank of questions PowerPoint discussion questions links to support material for every chapter an online glossary and image bank