Spring Books 2003
Tom Bowers rounds up the best in history publishing for Spring 2003.
Ancient History and Archaeology
Return to Chauvet Cave: Excavating the Birthplace of Art by Jean Clottes (Thames & Hudson, £45) is the first full-length report on the remarkable palaeolithic cave paintings and other findings in the Chauvet cave of southern France, discovered in December 1994. The volume includes more than 200 photographs.
A History of the Ancient Near East by Marc Van De Mieroop (Blackwell Publishers, hb £55, £16.99) surveys the region from the emergence of writing around 3000BC to the conquests of Alexander the Great.
Using archaeological evidence, Who Were the Early Israelites and Where Did They Come From? by William G. Dever (Eerdmans, £17.95) assesses whether the origins of ancient Israel, as portrayed in biblical sources, are accurate.
On the Reliability of the Old Testament by K. A. Kitchen (Eerdmans, £32.95) presents evidence to suggest the Hebrew Bible is historically reliable and argues against critics who suggest it is pious fiction.