Ossamenta

I got the Oxbow 2014 bargain catalogue in the post the other day, and there are quite a few books that could be worth buying if you're interested in old bones and such. I have most myself (so I can't make use of the bargain price this time) and I really recommend them.

- Extinctions and Invasions: A Social History of British Fauna: Eight thousand years ago, when the sea cut Britain off from the rest of the Continent, the island's fauna was very different: most of the animals familiar to us today were not present, whilst others, now extinct, were abundant. Over the course of millennia humans have manipulated Britain's fauna. Certain species were brought to extinction and in their place new animals were introduced: some transported purposefully by invading populations, others sent as royal gifts from far off lands, whilst several species arrived as stowaways. The story of each is fascinating, telling of the changing and multi-layered relationship between humans and animals. Drawing on new research in the fields of archaeology, ecology and history, this book examines how human society, culture, diet, lifestyles and even whole landscapes were fundamentally shaped by the animal extinctions and introductions that occurred in Britain since the last Ice Age. (£7.95)
- Farmers, Monks and Aristocrats: The environmental archaeology of Anglo-Saxon Flixborough: The environmental archaeological evidence from the major estate centre at Flixborough (in particular the animal bone assemblage) provides a series of unique insights into Anglo-Saxon life in England during the 8th to 10th centuries. The research reveals detailed evidence for the local and regional environment, many aspects of the local and regional agricultural economy, changing resource exploitation strategies and the extent of possible trade and exchange networks. Bioarchaeological data from Flixborough have documented for the first time, in a detailed and systematic way, the significant shift in social and economic aspects of wider Anglo-Saxon life during the 9th century AD., and comment on the possible role of external factors such as the arrival of Scandinavians in the life and development of the settlement. (£9.95)
- Aspects of Anglo-Scandinavian York : The ten chapters in this book, each written by a specialist, place the Coppergate discoveries within the wider context of Viking Yorvik whilst demonstrating how far the study of Anglo-Scandinavian York has progressed in the last quarter century. Includes animal bones, plant remains, coinage, crafts, inscriptions, place- and streetnames etc. (£6.95)
- Excavations at Grimes Graves, Fascicule 4 : Subtitled 'Animals, environment and the Bronze Age economy' this volume describes the Bronze Age midden deposits found in Shaft X, and discusses and interprets the rich faunal deposits. (£4.95) If you've read an animal bone report that referenced Legge for cattle ageing, this is the book they were using.
- Safe Moor'd in Greenwich Tier: A Study of the Skeletons of Royal Navy Sailors and Marines excavated at the Royal Hospital Greenwich : Recent excavations in the cemetary revealed the burials of over a hundred Greenwich Pensioners, who had ended their long and colourful lives at the Hospital. These were sailors and mariners that sailed and fought in Britain's numerous wars of the 18th century. The hazards and physical demands of their lives are clearly reflected in their skeletons, with fractures, infections, amputations, joint disease and scurvy being common. Osteological findings are interpreted in the light of rich documentary sources on the social history of the lowerdeck of Nelson's Navy, and form an invaluable alternative data set in reconstructing the extraordinary lives of these 'picked and brine pickled survivors'. (£5) This is such a bargain!

First, thanks for the well-wishes. The interview seemed to go well: some things that they liked about me, and some things I could improve on. We'll see what happens.

The new Oxbow summer catalogue is out and I thought I'd give a shout-out to some that seemed interesting. A lot of the catalogue is on Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome, which I'm not enough familiar with to tell which books are of general relevance and which are only for the artefact/regional specialists. If you are interested in those periods I recommend you check out their website. An exception was made for books of interest to re-enactors and people interested in making replicas of historical finds, as there were a few of those in the Roman section.

( Cut for lots of books )