The Dead Sea Scrolls - very much alive and kicking!

There are so many books about the Dead Sea Scrolls, and their relationship to the Bible, that the casual reader may find it difficult to know where to begin. If you are one of the uninitiated, but would still like to take a dip in the salty pond, here is a guide to twenty new and recent books on the Dead Sea Scrolls and Biblical Archaeology. They range from general, introductory, 'all you need to know and more' books to the specialised, scholarly variety.

Encounters with Ancient Egypt

UCL Press is about to release an exciting new series of books which are sure to turn traditional perceptions of Egyptology on their head. From the ancient Egyptians' perception of their own past, to the influence of ancient Egyptian culture on modern art, architecture, museums, souvenirs, and design worldwide, these books offer a fresh approach to a subject that ... well, let's be polite about this ... ain't getting any younger.

In the Name of God - The Archaeology of Religious Hatred

The transition from one age to another is rarely peaceful. When social change involves a radical transformation of deeply held religious beliefs it is often worse. One of the most powerful aspects of archaeology is that every so often one comes face to face with the physical evidence of religious hatred and the violence that is carried out in the name of God. It's a tough theme, but several authors are brave enough to take up the challenge ...

Penguin Medieval Sale ... and another FREE book offer

In the run-up to the Medieval conference in Leeds, we are offering OXeN readers a selection of new Penguin titles in medieval studies at a 20% discount, plus a special offer of a FREE copy of William Chester Jordan's Europe in the High Middle Ages to the first twenty readers who order a book from this feature.

Quirky Book of the Month

In our quest for a new level of bad taste, OXeN presents you with a book that may not have you laughing your head off, but certainly provides ample warnings about monarchs, and why upsetting them has never been a good idea. Gruesome, ghoulish, fascinating and foul ... why not try to get your head around this one: Severed Heads: British Beheadings through the Ages

Of all the new books that have passed over the desks of the Oxbow staff this month, these, for whatever reason, are the ones that grabbed their attention.

Meet the Author: Nic Fields

On May 23rd a new footpath opened which will allow walkers to traverse the entire 84 mile length of Hadrian's Wall, without having to negotiate busy roads. It has cost the UK Countryside Agency £6 million to create this path, stretching from Segdenum Roman Fort in Wallsend to Bowness-on-Solway in the west. Coincidentally, Nic Fields has just written a new book on Hadrian's Wall, which provides an attractive guide to Roman Britain's northern frontier, and new information on the physical and social background to this still-impressive barrier. Considering the synergetic circumstances, I decided it was a good time to ask Nic some of his thoughts about the wall ...

It's the Summer Sneaky Bargain Preview

Yes, Charles has been at it again! Buying books, that is. And once again we are offering you, the OXeN reader, a sneak preview of his shopping list. Take a look at some of our great upcoming deals on books on prehistory, Classical Studies, Egyptology and more ... and get your orders in early because stocks are often limited.

Aristophanes at Nottingham – Comedy speaks best

If I say that the first volume that we published was The Indexes you will suspect that I speak in jest, and I hope that I do – but also in admiration of Alan Sommerstein's achievement in completing his edition of The Comedies of Aristophanes. It is the star of the Aris & Phillips Classical Texts series, which we acquired in January, and riding on its coat tails I journeyed to Nottingham (with a basket of books) for a symposium of the Midlands Classical Seminar in celebration of Sommerstein. Speakers had travelled not merely from London or Exeter or Glasgow but Italy and Germany and Pennsylvania and California – and all spoke – about comedy and satire and politics and irony and utopias and spacecraft. There was much play with words and with Aristophanes, and much to enjoy in the occasion – and in the lunch. We look forward to publishing 'At Play with Aristophanes' as a record of the occasion. – David Brown.

Unable to tell from our correspondence what Alan Sommerstein looked like, I approached each stooping grey-haired symposiast with respect and in expectation. Ralph Rosen's picture of the genial honorand should prevent you making the same mistake.

Oxbow, DBBC, and The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago

Oxbow Books and The David Brown Book Company are pleased to announce that we will now be distributing Oriental Institute Publications. Since its foundation in 1919 by James Henry Breasted the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago has published hundreds of excavation reports, dictionaries, historical surveys and texts with commentaries. Through these publications the OI continues to transform our understanding of the ancient Near East and Egypt. All books in print are now in stock at the David Brown Book Company in Connecticut and are about to arrive on the shelves of Oxbow Books in Oxford. Orders from individuals and libraries are welcome, and trade customers will receive their regular trade terms on all regularly-priced titles. A complete list of OI publications is now available online. Look out for some special reduced prices being offered on some older publications.

New Catalogues

The next Book News, number 56 - Summer 2003, will soon be mailed to our European customers, but if you are too impatient to wait for the postman it is now available in PDF format. We have divided it into four parts to ease downloading, plus our latest bargain list. Please note that these files currently only list prices in pounds sterling - US customers should stay tuned for a US dollar version which should be available on the DBBC website next month.

• Method, Theory, Conservation, Prehistory, Egypt, the Near East, and Asia (171 Kb)
• The Greek and Hellenistic Worlds (58 Kb)
• Etruscan Studies, Roman Empire (68 Kb)
• Early Medieval, Anglo-Saxon, Medieval and Post-Medieval (125 Kb)

Both DBBC and Oxbow have also recently produced Autumn 2003 catalogues, which include forthcoming Oxbow publications and distributed titles. While these catalogues have been produced primarily for the benefit of bookshops and libraries, we have decided to make them freely available in PDF format.

• Oxbow catalogue (850 kb)
• DBBC catalogue (729 kb)

Anniversaries

Another anniversary has passed by very quietly ... almost without comment ... although for some of us it represents a much more remarkable, wonderful achievement. On the 10th of May, 1983, Oxbow was registered as a corporation. Twenty years later we remain committed to David's original vision of providing a one-stop shop for any book on archaeology, classical and medieval studies in print. From our beginnings in an Oxford shed, with one employee, we have grown to the point where we now employ 30 staff in the UK and USA, publish our own books and distribute those of other publishers, as well as simply continue to sell specialist books on the ancient and medieval world. Of course without you, our customers and suppliers, we would never have got here and we would like to thank you all for your continued support. - Libby Percival