Ancient Olympic Games

Just about everyone is familiar with the ancient Olympic Games because of their revival in modern times. Less well known are the other three "crown" festivals of ancient Greece, those held at Delphi, Isthmia, and Nemea, not to mention local festivals that included athletic, equestrian, and musical contests. As expectation builds for the 2004 Athens Olympics, the American School of Classical Studies has published a timely new guide to The Games at Athens written by Jennifer Neils and Stephen V Tracy. Read on for more about this book and other publications archaeologically-oriented visitors to the 2004 games may want to have at hand during the more boring heats ...

Pyramids from Ancient Egypt to the Present Day

So you want to become a god, be respected and worshipped long after your death and leave a lasting legacy for your descendants - why not build a pyramid...it worked for the Egyptians!

Roman Military History at its Best - Adrian Goldsworthy Strikes Gold

Every so often, a book comes along that you sense will soon become the standard guide to its subject, against which all future books will be judged. The Complete Roman Army by Adrian Goldsworthy is just such a book. There's no escaping its author at the moment. Three of his books (admittedly one is a 'new in paperback') feature in our forthcoming Book News and two of them stand out as my clear favourites among recent Roman publications. If you have any interest at all in the Roman army do yourself a favour and have a look at The Complete Roman Army and In the Name of Rome.

Latin in Spires, or Versifying History - Abbreviated Lays by A T Reyes, S S O Edgar & C Herrmann

“In the pantheon of poetic forms, the double-dactyl must rank among the lesser forms” is the intriguingly dismissive beginning to this book. Jiggery-Pokery (by Anthony Hecht) is its model, the history of Rome is its theme, and Latin is, appropriately, the prescribed language for the first line.

A Sales and Marketing manager writes...

As this is the first year Oxbow has had it's own stand at Frankfurt, it was with some trepidation that I approached our alloted stand number, dragging my suitcase behind me, slightly pinked-faced. Would it actually be there? More importantly would the books have arrived? Luckily everything had worked and it was all there...but covered in plastic. My first lesson of having a stand at Frankfurt is that you need a pair of scissors or a knife; keys work but are labour intensive!

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.

From Wretched Kush to Stargate: An Interview with Stuart Tyson Smith

He almost became an Americanist archaeologist, but some forgotten boxes in a UCLA basement started a fascination with ancient Nubia, and its neighbour Egypt, that shines through in Stuart Tyson Smith's latest book, Wretched Kush. This study of social relationships on the border between two great ancient empires has won major acclaim since its publication earlier this year, and OXeN caught up with the author to ask him about his thoughts on ethnicity, the role of theory in Egyptology and the contributions modern Egyptologists are making to wider theoretical debates. We also couldn't resist asking him about his favourite books, and his three blockbuster film credits, as expert consultant to Stargate, The Mummy and The Mummy Returns.

November/December Conferences

American Schools of Oriental Research (ASOR)
Atlanta, GA (Wednesday 19 November, 2003 - Saturday 22 November, 2003)
To be held at the Grand Hyatt Buckhead ASOR's 2003 meeting is on home territory(ASOR headquarters are at Emory University) and promises to be a record-breaking event attracting over 500 Near Eastern and Biblical archaeologists. The David Brown Book Company's stand will be displaying hundreds of new and bargain books including, for the first time this year, a full range of Oriental Institute titles at special discounts.

Theoretical Archaeology Group (TAG) 2003
Lampeter (Wales, UK) (Wednesday 17 December, 2003 - Friday 19 December, 2003)
The University of Wales at Lampeter is a renowned centre for archaeological theory so it is appropriate that the 25th annual conference of this leading theoretical conference should be held there. Around 400 delegates are expected and Oxbow will be selling its usual selection of new books and bargains.

New Releases

CIROBE...book sale!

Here's another event that we go to on your behalf. This one is in Chicago, and it happens each year when the clocks are stuttering, on the cusp of the seasons between Fall and Winter. It can be very nice, or it can be very cold; this year it was very pleasant.

CIROBE - pronounced Si-Row-Bee - is one of those acronyms that is much easier to remember than what it stands for (the Chicago International Remainder and Overstock Book Exposition, I think). It happens far below the splendour of the grand hall and ballrooms of the Chicago Hilton, in the basement. There, spread out in "miles of aisles" are the remainders and overstocks that the publishing world no longer wants, but you do - so we do, too! - David Brown