Product Description

You're no idiot, of course. You studied classical Greece and Rome in school, stood in line for the King Tut exhibit, and can name at least three of the seven wonders of the ancient world. But when it comes to knowing the basics of archaeology, you feel like you've been struck by an ancient curse. Don't get entombed just yet! The Complete Idiot's Guide to Lost Civilizations is here to dig up the facts on civilizations that have seemingly disappeared without a trace.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #29006 in eBooks
• Published on: 1999-05-01
• Released on: 1999-05-01
• Format: Kindle Book
• Number of items: 1

Customer Reviews

A reference tool I will reach for time and time again.
Dr. Donald P. Ryan serves up a plethora of fascinating and interesting tidbits of information encompassing all aspects of archaeology, clear explanations of technical jargon and the cultures of ancient civilizations in this concise and well written volume. While the format and presentation of material lends itself well to small infusions of highly educational, interesting and entertaining moments at one sitting, the author's writing style is so engaging that you anxiously await your next opportunity to dive into the next segment or chapter. Due to the enormity of the topic, space prevents a highly detailed presentation of any given ancient culture so the author kindly assists by providing a recommended reading list at the conclusion of the book for those yearning to learn even more. However, it is quite incredible just how much information Dr. Ryan has succeeding in presenting us with, given the confining space restrictions of this one volume.

Dr. Ryan has the knack of making ancient cultures "come alive" and provides an awareness that ancient cultures were significantly more advanced than they have been given credit for and points out the technical, social and political "advances" made. My special area of interest happens to be the culture of Ancient Egypt however, after devouring Dr. Ryan's book, I am now most anxious to learn more about Ancient Egypt's neighboring civilizations and to learn more about "lost civilizations" in a broader sense. I also now feel that I have a better understanding of archaeological methods, techniques and "jargon" which will make delving through all those technical journals a much more pleasant experience!

I was particularly impressed with the author's ability to cover the rather touchy topics of fringe archaeology, diffusion and isolation viewpoints and ethical dilemmas in a frank, candid and non-biased manner. He manages to pull all this off in a non-judgmental manner and encourages the reader to think for themselves based on the archaeological evidence at hand as well as keeping in mind that out of "fringe" archaeology may come a valuable piece of information.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone with even a mild interest in archaeology and ancient civilizations.

Archeology of Everything for Everybody
Dr. Ryan covers an immense archeological territory, both temporally and geographically, in this relatively small book. As an all-encompassing overview of worldwide archeology, it can scarcely be improved. This breadth necessarily leads to some superficiality, at least in the few areas of which I have personal knowledge, but this is inevitable allowing the size constraints. The b/w illustrations are a bit scanty but helpful and well-selected, and, yes, there is thank God an index.

This book will be useful and enjoyable for a wide spectrum of people ranging from those whose knowledge of archeology is limited to Indiana Jones, to those who are familiar with one limited aspect of archeology and who wish to know more about other aspects. Readers in the latter category should recall that Dr. Ryan is an egyptologist, which accounts for the slight weighting in the direction of the Nile, but this is easily forgiven.

An enjoyable aspect of the book is that Dr. Ryan cheerfully, and seemingly fairly, addresses many controversial subjects that other authors of such a book might have avoided; one comes to see archeology as distinctly not a dead field. He is also fair in discussing areas that are close to, and even well within, the broad lunatic fringe of archeology: Atlantis, ancient astronauts, Dr. Fell, etc. And he emphasizes an observation that is dear to my heart: that ancient peoples were every bit as intelligent, creative, and industrious as we are today. Generally he presents his own field fairly, warts and all, with humor and zero pomposity.

Admittedly, the book is done in the vaguely college-frat and sometimes too cute style originated by the "Dummies" series of computer texts, which may be off-putting to some, although the title offers fair warning. Thus, for example, the pages are littered with little icon-embellished boxes containing miscellaneous factoids. Sometimes these add substantially to the text; sometimes they don't, as when explaining the difference between the Ph.D. and M.D. degrees, perhaps in homage to the "complete idiot" of the title. [I am considering a book provisionally entitled "Neurosurgery for Cretins:" "Okay, you retract the meninges (careful of that pesky middle meningeal artery!), and there it is: THE BRAIN! Head Honcho of the human body...."]

In summary, if you have any interest in archeology whatever, this book is definitely worthwhile as a superbly broad-based and easily read survey.

excellent overview
This book is an excellent introduction and overview to the subjects of archaeology and ancient civilizations. Dr. Ryan, an expert in many areas of archaeology and ancient history, and an accomplished explorer, introduces the basics without condescension, and discusses more difficult or technical areas without losing his readers. He also deals fairly with those on the archaeological "fringe." A valuable part of the book is his advice to those who wish to pursue a career in archaeology. Very well-written and a pleasure to read, and downright hilarious in places. Highly recommended!