Digging Up Britain: A New History in Ten Extraordinary Discoveries

Description

Britain has long been fascinated with its own history and identity, as an island nation besieged by invaders from beyond the seas: the Romans, Vikings and Normans. The long saga of prehistory is often forgotten - but our understanding of our past is changing. Mike Pitts presents ten astounding archaeological discoveries that shed new light on those who came before us, and radically altered the way we think about our history. His compelling, sometimes teasing, archaeological odyssey illustrates the diversity, complexity and sheer strangeness of the lives that represent Britain's past. With 79 illustrations, 24 in colour

Mike Pitts is an archaeologist and award-winning journalist. He has been the editor of Britain's leading archaeological magazine, British Archaeology, for over a decade, and has written several books, including Digging for Richard III, also published by Thames & Hudson.

'Lucid and informative ... conveys both the thrill of discovery and the painstaking, puzzling interpretation work that follows it. ... If you've ever wondered how we know so much about who we used to be, this is the book for you ' - Greg Jenner, historian and bestselling author of 'A Million Years In A Day' 'By taking us backwards in time, 'Digging Up Britain' has the quality of really good science fiction ' - Tom Holland 'The popular archaeology book we have been waiting for ... Pitts has presented readers with a vision of a modern discipline, engaged and relevant politically, socially, intellectually and economically' - British Archaeology 'Many books claim to detail Britain's ancient past, but few are as absorbing, entertaining and subversively informative as this one' - BBC History 'A great book, full of engaging and thought-provoking new perspectives on some key discoveries which will appeal to archaeologists and non-archaeologists alike' - Professor Carenza Lewis, University of Lincoln 'Authoritative stuff' - Book Brunch