Peter S. Wells
Barbarians to Angels
The Dark Age Reconsidered
New York 2008
Stron XV+240, format: 14x22 cm
Książka używana: bez defektów. Stan dobry plus
In "Barbarians to Angels", one of the world's leading archaeologists offers a surprising look at the least-appreciated period of European history: the so-called Dark Ages. The barbarians who destroyed Rome demolished civilisation along with it and for the next four centuries the people of Europe barely held on. The picture of the Dark Ages that most historians promote is one of random violence, mass migration, disease and starvation. But archaeology tells a different story and here Peter S. Wells surveys the archaeological record to demonstrate that the Dark Ages were not dark at all. The kingdoms of Christendom that emerged from the ninth century sprang from a robust, previously little-known, European culture, albeit one that left behind few written texts. This culture achieved heights in artistry, technology, craft production, commerce and learning. Future assessments of the period between Rome and Charlemagne will need to incorporate this fresh new picture.
Contents
Preface xi
1 Between Antiquity and the Middle Ages: What Happened? 3
2 The Decline of the Roman Empire 13
3 The Peoples of Europe 28
4 Childeric and Other Early Dark Age Kings
5 What Happened to the Roman Cities? 70
6 Roman Londinium to Saxon Lundenwic: Continuity and Change (A.D. 43-800) 88
7 New Centers in the North izi
8 The Revolution in the Countryside 130
9 Crafting Tools and Ornaments for the New Societies 142
10 Royal Exchange and Everyday Trade 153
11 Spread of the New Religion lyo
12 Arts, Scholarship, and Education 186
13 Charlemagne's Elephant and the History of Europe 199
Appendix: Selected Museum Collections 203
Sources and Suggestions for Further Reading 205
Acknowledgments 217
Illustration Credits 219
Index 221
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