Olszewski, Archaeology and Humanity's Story: A Brief Introduction to World Prehistory 2e

This textbook for the prehistory course in archaeology introduces the archaeological past from approximately seven million years ago through later politically complex stories. The author does not attempt to discuss every archaeologically important site and development in prehistory and early history, but instead presents key issues from earlier prehistory and then organizes the chapters on politically complex societies using a similar framework. This allows students to easily compare and contrast different geographical regions. Each of these chapters also highlights a specific case study in which similar themes are examined, such as the written work; resource networks, trade, and exchange; social life; ritual and religion; and warfare and violence. Each chapter includes several sidebar boxes, a timeline showing the chronology relevant to the chapter, and "The Big Picture," "Peopling the Past," and "Evolutionary Processes" features.