Balkan Prehistory: Exclusion, Incorporation and Identity

by Douglass W. Bailey, Bailey Douglass

Douglass Bailey's volume fills the huge gap that existed for a comprehensive synthesis, in English, of the archaeology of the Balkans between 6,500 and 2,000 BC; much research on the prehistory of Eastern Europe was inaccessible to a western audience before now, because of linguistic barriers.
Bailey argues against traditional interpretations of the period, which focus on the origins of agriculture and animal breeding. He demonstrates that this was a period when monumental social and material changes occurred in the lives of the people in this region, with new technologies and ways of displaying identity.
Balkan Prehistory will be required reading for everyone studying the Neolithic, Copper and early Bronze Ages of Eastern Europe.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

366 pages, Hardcover

First published July 13, 2000

Reviews

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are too many ambiguous sentences, repetition and biased (one-sided) interpretetion. There are some parts of it that are worth the read, but it's better to use the bibliography to find literature on the particular topic you are interested in. It's a pity that the editor (also author) has not done his job properly on this books, because this is one of the few (if not the only one) general books about the prehistory of the balkans in english. I think anybody would find the information about the Varna and Durankulak eneolithic cemeteries interesting, but as I said there's too much ambiguity and even contradiction in some parts.

[Lorena Beshello · Rating 1 out of 5]

It definitely wasn't what I expected. The whole work was more about statistics than human interaction. I wanted more why's than this's or that's cause I didn't care about numbers or places. Surely wouldn't remember them in any case whatsoever. I would love to read about causes and effects of the events listed chronologically throughout this book.