Monumenta Archaeologica

The transition from the Neolithic period to the Copper Age in the northern Balkans and the Carpathian Basin was marked by significant changes in material culture, settlement layout and organization, and mortuary practices that indicate fundamental social transformations in the middle of the fifth millennium BC. Prior research into the Late Neolithic of the region focused almost exclusively on fortified 'tell' settlements. The Early Copper Age, by contrast, was known primarily from cemeteries such as the type site of Tiszapolgár-Basatanya.

The Wari State was the first expansionistic power to develop in the Andean highlands.  Emerging in the area of modern Ayacucho (Peru) around AD 650, the Wari expanded to control much of the central Andes by the time of their collapse at AD 1000.  This book describes the discovery and excavation (2010-2012) of a major new Wari site (Espíritu Pampa), located in the subtropical region of Vilcabamba (Department of Cusco). 

“... presents all the relevant contexts in detail, including the original plans, within which Dimitriadou’s three phases of interest (Submycenaean, [Proto-]Geometric and Archaic) as well as the ensuing Classical phases have been highlighted in different colors. This will make her book a major reference volume for a long time... [The author has done] the scholarly community a great service in drawing the attention to the wealth of data available.”
  — Maximilian F. Rönnberg, Bryn Mawr Classical Review, 2019

Since 2007 the Jaffa Cultural Heritage Project, under the direction of Aaron A. Burke and Martin Peilstöcker, has endeavored to bring to light the vast archaeological and historical record of the site of Jaffa, Israel. Continuing the effort begun with The History and Archaeology of Jaffa 1, this volume represents a decade of fieldwork and analysis by the Jaffa Cultural Heritage Project and the publication of several projects begun earlier.

“Archaeologist Patrick Kirch here cuts through an archaeological situation of uncertainty to find a mother-lode – a site that immediately throws an immense amount of light on a prehistoric situation that was hitherto obscure.”
 — Peter Bellwood, The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, 2017

“This well-presented volume is a very timely addition to the growing body of literature on the prehistory of Northeast Africa. It illustrates the value of using the landscape and local approaches in understanding prehistoric archaeology. The multidisciplinary nature of the project has allowed the team to illuminate the distinct character of Fayumi archaeology…”
 — G.J. Tassie, African Archaeological Review, 2017

Few open-air sites of this age have the same extent, complexity and diversity of deposits, as was found at the site of Solvieux in South-west France. The complexities of the site and the intensity of the archaeological investigation called for new and novel methodologies to be devised which are discussed in detail. The history of the project, methodologies, results and analysis of finds are complemented by a large number of drawings, outlines of typologies and essays on Upper Palaeolithic traditions and the contribution of the Solvieux results in this regard.

“… a fascinating glimpse of a vital part of America’s heritage”
  — Mark Michel, American Archaeology, Winter 1997-98

“The excavation was never fully published. This volume is the product of efforts to correct that fact. And it is much more. The team, led admirably by Dr. Ernestine S. Elster of UCLA, pulled together (not without strain) the “legacy data” and applied extensive analyses, including new scientific methods.”
 — Barbara Voytek, Current Anthropology, 2017

“In all it is a thorough piece of reporting, efficiently compartmentalized, with all the evidence needed to support the discussion and conclusions clearly laid out. The editors and authors are to be congratulated in presenting such a range of complex data in so accessible a way.”
 — Barry Cunliffe, European Journal of Archaeology, 2017