The Hominid Individual in Context: Archaeological Investigations of Lower and Middle Palaeolithic Landscapes, Locales and Artefacts

by Clive Gamble (Editor)

This book explores new approaches to the remarkably detailed information that archaeologists now have for the study of our early ancestors. Rather than explaining the archaeology of stones and bones as the product of group decisions, the contributors investigate how individual action created social life. This challenge to the accepted standpoint of the Palaeolithic brings new models and theories into the period; innovations that are matched by the resolution of data preserving individual action among the stones and bones. The volume brings together examples from recent excavations such as Boxgrove, Schöningen and Blombos Cave and the analyses of artefacts from Middle and Early Upper Pleistocene excavations in Europe, Africa and Asia.

346 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[oli]

I accidentally (kinda) read all the chapters for an essay on whether you can recognise individuals in the Palaeolithic record, so I am recording it.
Interesting indeed -it’s more academic-y than day to day readers may like but if you want to think about moving towards a more bottom-up (approach) focused on the individual as a unit of analysis rather than technocomplexes or groups...
Why 4? Well, in the 15 years since techniques have improved and although, recognising individuals is still difficult. I think some of the word