Introduction

A full-color examination of 50 fascinating and important archaeological discoveries from prehistoric Europe.

Countless archaeological sites and artefacts relating to the diverse prehistoric peoples who occupied the landscapes of Europe thousands of years ago, have been unearthed, either by archaeologists, or by lucky individuals who stumbled across them by chance. Prehistoric Europe: 50 Great Discoveries examines a small, but carefully chosen selection of sites and artefacts from among this abundance of archaeological evidence, all of which are remarkable, and provides fascinating insights into Europe's distant past and its long-lost prehistoric societies.

These 50 discoveries cover some sixty thousand years of European prehistory, beginning in the Middle Paleolithic (Old Stone Age), the time of our enigmatic ancient cousins, the Neanderthals, and ending in the Iron Age, the time of Celtic society, and marking the last chapter in the remarkable story of prehistoric Europe. Lying between the Middle Paleolithic and the Iron Age discoveries are those from Mesolithic (Middle Stone Age), Neolithic (New Stone Age), Chalcolithic (Copper Age), and Bronze Age Europe. The Mesolithic, Neolithic, Chalcolithic and Bronze Age, mark the time of Europe's final hunter-gatherer societies, its first farming communities, and the emergence of metalworking, respectively.