Transitions in Prehistory: Essays in Honor of Ofer Bar-Yosef
Shea, JJ & DE Lieberman (eds) (2009) Transitions in Prehistory: Essays in Honor of Ofer Bar-Yosef. Oxbow Books, Oxford. 498 pp. ISBN 978-1-84217-340-4
Contributors:
DS Adler, A Belfer-Cohen, M Chazan, MI Eren, C Feibel, Y Garfinkel, I Gilead, P Goldberg, N Goren-Inbar, N Goring-Morris, E Hovers, RP Ioviţă, M Kaczanowska, JK Kozłowski, DE Lieberman, C Makarewicz, C Mallal, L Meignen, DR Pilbeam, JJ Shea, N Stern, MC Stiner, AJ Stutz, M Tappen, GB Tostevin, N Tuross, FR Valla, S Weiner, RW Wrangham
Description:
Ofer Bar-Yosef is a prominent prehistoric archaeologist, who was a professor at the Institute of Archaeology at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem (1970-1988) before moving to Harvard (1989- present). His research has focused predominantly on the emergence of behaviourally modern humans and the establishment of complex sedentary societies – both important transitions in human prehistory. This volume is a celebration of Ofer Bar-Yosefs contributions to prehistory, in the form of a collection of manuscripts written by his students and collaborators. In their brief Foreword, the editors describe a prehistoric transition as an explanation for the differences observed between sequential assemblages, both paleontological and archaeological, and point out that such transitions can be biological, cultural, historical, or even methodological in nature. The breadth of contributions reflects this. The bulk of the chapters (17) focus on transitions in the Pleistocene and Holocene, and are organised chronologically. These include topics as varied as the transition from australopiths to Homo, the emergence of large-game hunting, changes in goat management in the Neolithic, and the Neolithic-Chalcolithic transition in the Levant. Five chapters are also dedicated to methodological and theoretical transitions within the field of archaeology, such as changes in the way evidence is viewed or interpreted. This volume makes an interesting read and a robust tribute to Professor Bar-Yosef’s legacy in the field.
